I don’t know about you, but MAN the flood gates opened when I got into sobriety. And I had a hard time with it because I saw it as weak from programming as a child. What about you? Ever hear that “Big Girls don’t cry?” Or the “I’ll give you something to cry about!”
I’m guessing thats why you clicked on this post, so you can see what you can do besides crying with all this massive emotional energy you now have. Hence, this blog post!!
I honestly cannot go further into this without sharing with you what I’ve learned in my 7+ years of sobriety when it comes to crying. Think of it as a BONUS!
Facts AND Benefits about the Good Ole Cry:
- is 100% natural and normal cleansing & releasing process
- it causes damage physically when it’s shut down
- it releases endorphins
- Researchers at Yale UniversityTrusted Source believe crying in this way may help to restore emotional equilibrium.
- According to Healthline, crying activates the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS). The PNS helps your body rest.
- Bottom line, crying is actually a pretty badass and brave thing to do
We’ll move on to how you, a Sober Mom, can release physical emotional energy without crying,
but hopefully this helped your perspective on how beautiful and badass crying can be so that the next time the flood gates open you’re more loving and graceful with yourself.
Onward!
How to release physical emotional energy other than crying (take time to try each of these out and see what works best for you)
A. Scream
I know, I know, you were probably told that any type of screaming in anger or frustration was unacceptable and something that should be shamed.
Well, good thing you’re Sober and willing to let go of old ideas to embrace new badassary. Think about your kids – this is one of many reasons why they scream! They have so much emotional energy built up that they scream to release it. Emotional buildup is REAL!
I’m not talking about screaming AT people, what I’m talking about
- is screaming into a pillow,
- in your car,
- in the woods, ect…
Scream to get the energy out!! Sometimes, my kids and I do a family scream if things get overwhelming and then we laugh about it.
B. Punching/hitting Something, not someone (see what I did there?)
Maybe this was discouraged to you growing up as well. Same here.
Then one day, I had a mentor give me a bat and a HUGE cardboard box and had me beat the crap out of that box while screaming at it all that I needed to get out. It was a GAMECHANGER.
What you can use:
- get a punching bag,
- beat up a pillow or a mattress,
- or go to a Rage Room (they are a big hit for a reason),
- a box & a bat……
just keep in mind that whatever you make a mess with you’ll need to clean up.
C. Cardio/Weight Training Exercise
This one is a bit more socially acceptable, and it sure does work.
Have you ever tried a full workout of Insanity or Body Beast while upset? Pretty dope.
Running, biking, hiking, they can all be very useful to release that emotional energy
D. Dance Party
Don’t be shy, you can party by yourself.
Turn up the tunes and dance like no one is watching. If you do have little eyes watching, you I assure you they may jump in.
Do as many songs as you need and the genre is personal to YOU.
Welp, did you cry anyways? It’s alright beautiful, so after you do one or more of those (even crying), I HIGHLY recommend 3 things after your release:
- Give thanks to your Higher Power and yourself for that gift
- Take a moment to reflect and journal what, when, where, and why, so you can become aware of what’s going on with your triggers and thoughts.
- Refill with love and abundance, peace and prosperity, strength and stability, compassion and worth, ect… whatever it is you DO want to feel in your body and heart.
And that my friend, is how you can physically release emotional energy without crying. Hopefully what I have learned as a Reiki Energy Practitioner and just wanting to stay sober, has helped you as well.
P.S. if you’d like to connect with other Sober Moms on the same journey, we have a FREE Brave Sober Moms support group and we’d love to have you with us!
P.S.S. If you feel like you have energy blocks, I do offer Distance Reiki Sessions, you can reach out to me via FB HERE and we’ll get you scheduled for an appointment.
P.S.S.S. I wanted to gift you this blog post of 4 Tips for Sober Moms during Overwhelm with Kids; you’ll see a lot of these things listed plus some additional ideas to help bring the whole household some peace.
Keep rocking on,
Leona.
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