Working with emotions

Clients often seek out change through therapy and they are indeed their own change agents. Therapists facilitate these change(s) by guiding and coaching them towards the desired change/goal.

Emotion focused therapy works on the principle that we need to first arrive at a place before we can exit it. In other words, we have to feel it to heal it — in reference to helping clients process the emotional experiences in order to help them come to closure or resolution.

In order to keep painful emotions at bay, perhaps as a form of protection from fear that these emotions may get too overwhelming or that we may lose control, we sometimes choose to partake in dysfunctional coping e.g., tuning out or blocking emotions. This is unfortunate as they can lead to dire consequences in the longer term.

In EFT, we coach clients to approach these painful emotions and help with processing them — however painful they may be, as if they are left unprocessed, these pent up emotions can lead to numerous physical and psychological health concerns (e.g., hypertension; depression).

Change in therapy happens when we symbolize and make sense of the emotions and emotional experiences, discover the underlying needs and find ways to meet these needs. In the end, clients would hopefully heal from the painful experiences, be an agent of their emotions as well as develop more adaptive relationships with their emotions, as well as with themselves and others. These can translate to better functioning in various aspects of their lives, e.g., social relationships.

EFT can be an effective approach for individuals and/or couples dealing with relational injuries, losses or conflicts, past or present trauma and/or suffer from post traumatic stress disorders and mood disorders (e.g., anxiety, depression). Another area in which EFT can be helpful is related to work on self-criticism, often present in individuals who are perfectionistic (e.g., in social anxiety, eating disorders).