Release bottled up emotions
Self-Care

Healthy Ways To Release Your Bottled-Up Emotions

June 10, 2020 / 58 Comments
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If you are an individual that struggles with healthy ways to release your bottled-up emotions and feelings when things are rough, raise your hand.

If you could see me behind this keyboard, you would see me practically jumping up and down with both hands in the air.

I have a confession that I want to make to you all.

I bottle up all of my emotions and refuse to seek help because I don’t want to be a burden to others with my issues.

This is especially true if I don’t feel that this person would relate to what I am experiencing.

I have such a big support system and people around me who would drop everything to come to my aid, but I will not reach out to them and I don’t know why.

Does this sound familiar to anyone else?

Well if this is also you, then you are not alone in this way of thinking.

By us bottling up the way that we feel and never getting whatever it is off our chests, it is bound to have some harmful effects.

The symptoms of bottled-up emotions not only affect us mentally but physically as well.

With that being said, I want to discuss the effects of holding in your feelings and emotions and how to release your emotions in a healthy way.

Here are some healthy ways to release your bottled-up emotions.

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Release bottled up emotions

What Happens When You Bottle Up Your Emotions?

Before I discuss how to release your bottle-up emotions in a healthy way, let’s talk about what it means to bottle up your emotions and what happens when you do.

What happens when you bottle up your emotions for too long?

Bottling up your emotions is essentially you suppressing how you feel and refraining from expressing your emotions.

Now you may be wondering why would someone choose to do that?

Well as I was saying above, I do it because I don’t want to be a burden to others by bringing down the mood with my sad attitude.

Others do it because they don’t want to appear weak or don’t want to face the emotions themselves.

Whatever the reason for bottling up your emotions, there are harmful effects doing so.

Our mind and bodies are connected, so when you are suppressing your feelings, it is gradually building up within your body somewhere.

According to Healthy Shots, the physical effects of bottled up emotions can include:

Other signs to look for when you are bottling up your emotions are:

  • Feeling anxious and worried all the time
  • Isolating
  • Avoiding confrontation
  • Overreacting to everything
  • Resorting to unhealthy coping mechanisms

A lot of people will try to numb themselves through substances and other unhealthy coping mechanisms instead of having to face what they are feeling.

That is why it is so important to find healthy ways to release your emotions so that you can handle different situations that arise.

Now, let’s get into how to do just that.

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Healthy Ways To Release Your Bottled-Up Emotions

Acknowledge The Feelings Present

The very first thing you need to do to release your bottled-up emotions is to acknowledge the feelings that are present.

What are you feeling?

Is it anger? Sadness?

Get real with yourself and figure out what is actually wrong.

Often the only way to figure out what is wrong is by spending time with yourself and there is a way to spend time with yourself in order to gain a better understanding of yourself that is not isolating.

A lot of the time is much easier to acknowledge the surface emotion that you may be feeling.

In the therapeutic world, we call these secondary emotions and the most common secondary emotions people feel are anger, jealousy, and resentment.

These emotions only mask the primary emotions underneath.

The primary emotions underneath those angry secondary emotions are usually sadness, pain, and guilt.

There is a reason you will see people starting to cry when they are angry and screaming.

Underneath the anger is the hurt and pain that someone else caused that person.

So get to the root of the issue, so you can acknowledge what feelings are there and be able to communicate exactly what you are feeling.

Communicate What Is Going On

This leads us to the next thing you have to do and that is to communicate what is going on with you.

Like I mentioned earlier, there is a way to spend time with yourself to gain a better understanding that is not isolating.

If you have a good support system and people around you who care about your well-being, they may not take well to you needing alone time.

This is where communicating comes into play.

If you are a person that needs some alone time to get back on track, then communicate that you need that and take that dedicated alone time as needed.

But if you don’t do well being stuck in your own thoughts for too long, then this is the last thing you need to do.

You know which type of person you are.

I personally don’t do well if I’m left alone too long because my thoughts would turn rather negative quickly.

I will also talk myself out of seeking help knowing that I need to talk to someone.

This was my entire experience with postpartum depression as a first-time mom.

Instead of reaching out to someone or getting professional help, I would just hide in my closet crying and feel guilty for doing so.

If this is also you, you don’t need to go at it alone.

There are friends, family, and even therapists who want to help you.

Going to therapy doesn’t mean that you are weak or broken, it actually makes you stronger for getting help than to keep digging a hole that you cannot get out of.

But, they can’t help you if you don’t say anything, so stop saying that you’re fine when you are not.

Take Care Of Yourself Physically

So we have acknowledged what we are feeling and communicated those feelings as well, so now we need to take care of ourselves physically.

From what you have already read, then you know that bottled-up emotions set into bodies.

So in order to relieve those anxious feelings in our bodies, we need to make sure we are treating our bodies right.

Exercising and consuming healthy foods will do the trick.

We all know the benefits of exercising from the weight loss to the dopamine it releases into our brain that makes us feel good after a workout.

And of course, we are all aware of how food affects our bodies.

Greasy fast food will make you feel sluggish, while leafy greens and fiber will give you that boost of energy to keep going.

These healthy physical habits will do wonders for relieving those suppressed emotions from your body.

Take Care Of Yourself Mentally

And I feel like I can’t say taking care of yourself physically without also mentioning taking care of yourself mentally.

The last healthy way to release your bottled-up emotions is to participate in some self-care.

Self-care looks different for everyone though.

It should be what works for you and puts you in the right mindset.

For some, this can be mediating or using breathing techniques to relieve stressful thoughts and calm your mind.

And for others, it can even be cleaning and decluttering different rooms in their home.

Both of these activities relieve stress in different ways and can be helpful for your mental well-being.

My self-care as a stay-at-home mom can often be me sipping on some tea, writing for my blog, or even watching an episode of a good show on Netflix.

These make my brain happy and that is what you should want.

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Your Turn

Now that I told you what happens when you bottle up your feelings and how to release your bottled-up emotions in a healthy way, I want to hear from you. Are you like me where you bottle up everything and feel like you are about to implode from the inside? What are some healthy ways that you release your bottled-up emotions? Let me know in the comments and while you are still here, check out my previous post down below. Until next time!

Love,

Just Jass

Release bottled up emotions
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Hi! I'm Jasmyn or "Jas" as everyone likes to call me! I'm a stay-at-home girl momma to 2 beautiful little girls and married to my wonderful husband whom I have been with for 10 years! I'm a book and tea lover and when I'm not working on my blog, you can find me sharing bits and pieces of our lives on Instagram or me strolling down the aisles of Target and DSW! I'm the mama blogger behind the blog, Just Jass, where I offer parenting advice, productivity tips, and positive mental health habits from my perspective as mama of 2. Why don't you join me and my Jassy Fam as we navigate this thing called "mom-life" together!

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58 Comments

      • Amber

        November 8, 2021 at 11:19 am Reply

        This is such an important post and I’m glad you addressed this topic. So many women struggle but don’t speak up about what they are going through. Some don’t because they are scared or uncomfortable sharing, some because they think they don’t have time or need to just be tough and get through it on their own, some because they don’t have a support system or if they do they don’t want to be a burden. Whatever the situation, it’s so important to address it with yourself. For me during my mental struggles during and after having my son, I would write. I had a notebook and would hid in his nursery in the dark and spen hours writing down everything that I was feeling in hopes to clear my head. While it would provide temporary relief, nothing fully got better until I finally opened up and asked for help. Stay strong mamas.

        • Jasmyn Heard

          November 8, 2021 at 12:51 pm Reply

          I couldn’t agree more! Writing is also something that I like to utilize when I’m feeling some kind of way! But like you said, it ultimately comes down to finally opening and asking for help! I’m so glad that you enjoyed this post!

  • Jen

    June 10, 2020 at 11:59 am Reply

    I couldn’t agree more. Your emotions will come out one way or another. If you deal with them in a healthy manner from the get-go you’ll be much better off!

  • Samantha

    June 10, 2020 at 6:18 pm Reply

    Such great tips. It’s so important not to bottle everything up. My husband does this and I worry about him. I think it’s even more common for men to do in our culture. Thanks so for sharing.

    • Jasmyn Wilkins

      June 10, 2020 at 8:10 pm Reply

      Men are some of the worst including my fiance! It’s tough not to do, but there is usually so much relief once you begin to release some of those emotions. I’m so glad that you enjoyed this post!

  • Laia Feliu

    June 11, 2020 at 1:13 pm Reply

    It was a really stressful journey with my boyfriend because he used to do that, now that we are living together we had a conversation about this and everything is so much better now. Thank you for sharing!

    • Jasmyn Wilkins

      June 11, 2020 at 3:46 pm Reply

      It really can be a stressful journey but I’m so glad that you both were able to talk about it openly and honestly in order to make things better. I’m so glad that you enjoyed this post!

    • Jasmyn Wilkins

      June 11, 2020 at 10:02 pm Reply

      You are very welcome and you are not a burden! I, too, feel that way at times. But what I have learned is that once I have opened up, I find that the people around me didn’t feel burdened at all. They were just glad that I was honest with them about what I was experiencing. I’m so glad that you enjoyed this post!

  • Rach

    June 12, 2020 at 9:38 am Reply

    Some really great tips! I’ve learnt the hard way in the past when it comes to bottling up feelings – they come out either way! Thanks for sharing! 🙂

  • KD

    June 14, 2020 at 9:23 am Reply

    Your post jumped out at me because I know so many people who bottle up their feelings. I’m not one to do this (for better or worse) I like speaking about how I’m feeling. But I can see why others may do it. This article would be very helpful in encourage others to make a change that can help them in so many ways. I’ll definitely be retweeting this post on twitter.

  • Kristen

    June 15, 2020 at 9:49 am Reply

    I am guilty of this but I have been doing better with effective communication. I’ve learned to pay attention to what triggers me so that I can
    communicate how that made me feel. I’m a work in progress though!

    • Jasmyn Wilkins

      June 15, 2020 at 7:37 pm Reply

      Bottled up emotions can some really bad effects on you mentally and physically if we don’t find a way to relieve them in a healthy way. I’m so glad that you enjoyed this post!

  • Emily

    June 15, 2020 at 2:21 pm Reply

    Very well written! I live by this movement! I could go on and on and on all day about the lack of empathy in this world, especially in my field as a teacher. I hate when people tell kids and anyone to “stop crying” and “Crying is for babies.” We all cry no matter how old we are so I do not see what is wrong with anyone crying? Feelings and emotions of any kind are always valid no matter what is going on and everyone reacts differently to things. As long as we are not hurting anyone, then it is okay to react in any way. It is so bad to bottle up our emotions. Everyone should be allowed to express their feelings and emotions in any way as long as they problem-solve and get help with the situation in the end. When it comes to me encountering anyone of any age crying or getting upset or angry about anything I always treat their feelings as valid no matter who they are or how old they are, especially my students. I teach young toddlers so if one of them is crying about separation anxiety from family members or another caregiver, I comfort them, let them cry it out, and do something good that they like with them additionally to make them feel better. I reassure them that the person will be back because “they always come back.” If they are crying about getting in trouble, I still let them cry because who likes getting in trouble? In this case, I just let them cry it out and say to them, “It is okay to cry, but you need to understand that what you did was wrong and this is what happens when you do that.” If they need help calming themselves in this case too, I will help them with that too for their own safety and mental health. It is extremely damaging to anyone’s mental health to downplay their feelings and emotions. Aren’t we preventing children from learning how to self-soothe too if we do not let them cry by telling them to stop? All feelings and emotions should always be treated as valid no matter what because they always are by fact no matter what is going on. Thank you so much writing about this. I always enjoy your posts.

    • Jasmyn Wilkins

      June 15, 2020 at 7:41 pm Reply

      I’m so glad that this post resonated with you! It makes me feel so good to receive such a thoughtful comment. I couldn’t agree more with what you said and you are absolutely right. It is always ok to cry if you need to and all of our emotions are valid emotions. Thank you for reading and for your continued support!

  • Amber

    June 15, 2020 at 6:04 pm Reply

    Yes, bottling up emotions can be detrimental to your health. Therapy, writing, and expressing my creativity are great avenues I take to release any unwanted emotions ✨?

    • Jasmyn Wilkins

      June 15, 2020 at 7:48 pm Reply

      Writing and expressing my creativity has always done wonders for me and I will continue to so in order to relieve my emotions in a healthy way. I’m so glad that you enjoyed this post!

  • Natasha

    November 7, 2021 at 9:25 am Reply

    This is such a great post! And I am one of those people who bottle things up. It is something that I am working on, as like you I feel like I don’t want to burden other people, even though deep down I know they would love to help. I enjoy having a bath which is me time, and so relaxing, I always feel better once I have spent that time on myself.

  • Chrissy

    November 7, 2021 at 10:52 am Reply

    Thank you for your post. The topic of mental health is so important! I had a mentally ill husband whom I lost before our son was born. I’ve lived through loving someone with bipolar depression and difficulties in sharing emotions. I didn’t dare to share my emotions anymore, because he had so much to cope with already. And if I said something (I am a born optimist), he would say I live in La-La-Land and don’t understand how bad it is in reality (while I think he was a born pessimist and always saw the worst-ever outcome). It wasn’t easy. There should be more support for people with mental health issues, and more understanding in general.

    • Jasmyn Heard

      November 7, 2021 at 6:13 pm Reply

      There really should be and I think that they’re a lot more resources now for individuals who struggle with mental disorders! We all could benefit from talking to someone and finding healthier ways to release our emotions. I’m so glad that you enjoyed this post!

  • Cori

    November 7, 2021 at 2:29 pm Reply

    Great article! I journal a lot of my feelings and it definitely helps me. Anxiety runs in my family. My grandfather died from drinking his troubles away. We def need to find a way to help those that have mental health issues.

    • Jasmyn Heard

      November 7, 2021 at 6:18 pm Reply

      Journaling is a great way to relieve those heavy feelings and anxiety! And you are right, we should find something for those who dealing with mental health troubles! I’m so glad that you enjoyed this post!

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