Working with Emotion Waves in the Therapy Room
Play the audio version on Substack →
This week’s Tend to it Tuesday post explored how somatic therapy and Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT) pair beautifully to support emotional regulation — not through suppression, but by staying with the wave.
As a therapist, I see this integration play out in real time: when clients realize they don’t have to "get rid of" an emotion to feel better, they just have to stay present with it, safely.
In Emotion-Focused Therapy, we often say emotions aren’t problems to be solved, they’re signals to be heard. That signal becomes clearer when we feel it in the body, rather than just thinking it through.
🛋️ In the Therapy Room
Clients sometimes arrive thinking they need help “fixing” emotions like anger, grief, or fear. But through body-based work, we begin to explore:
Where is that emotion located in the body?
What does it feel like before it escalates?
Can we be with it — even for a few breaths — without shutting down or pushing it away?
Therapy becomes a practice of building emotional capacity, not emotional control.
For example, one client I worked with described anxiety as a “sharp buzzing in my ribs.” By staying with that sensation slowly — tracking, naming, breathing — the sharpness softened. Eventually, they realized this part of their body was asking for reassurance, not avoidance.
That kind of insight doesn’t come from logic alone. It comes from tuning in.
For therapists, this is our work too. I’ve learned to check in with my own system during emotional sessions:
Do I feel tension in my body that’s mirroring the client’s experience?
Is my own history being stirred up?
Can I stay regulated enough to co-regulate?
These questions help me model what it means to feel deeply, without shutting down or rushing to fix.
✨ A Practice: Listening for the Emotion Beneath the Feeling
You can try this short inquiry, whether you’re a client or a therapist:
Think of a recent emotional moment (not the most intense one — just one you remember).
Ask yourself: “What was I feeling underneath that?”
Was the anger covering sadness?
Was the silence protecting hurt?
Was the humour deflecting fear?
Notice where that emotion sits in your body.
Offer it a breath—just one.
Say to it (internally): “You’re allowed to be here.”
That simple permission — you’re allowed to be here — can shift everything.
📣 Prepared for action?
Working with emotions doesn’t have to feel like fighting the tide.
If you’re looking for support in riding the waves of your emotions, gently, safely, in your own timing, therapy might be the next step.
📍 Book a session at interocare.ca
⚖️ Disclaimer
This post is intended for informational and educational purposes only.
It is not a substitute for therapy, diagnosis, or medical advice.
Learn more about Sarah’s work at interocare.ca
