Series: Emotional Suppression & Techniques to Manage It [Part 1 of 4]

Sharing is caring!

Emotional suppression is a strategy for regulating our emotions.  Emotions are essential in human experiences. However, when our emotions become dysfunctional, they interfere with our adaptability and affect our psychological and physical well-being. So, successful emotion regulation is vital for our mental health. Difficulties in adaptive emotion regulation are associated with different mental health disorders, such as anxiety and depression.

What Emotional Suppression Looks Like in Everyday Life

Emotional regulation is one of the distinctive features of our emotional intelligence (EQ).  We normally use various strategies to regulate emotions, and one of these strategies is emotional suppression.

Emotional suppression is an emotion regulation strategy where you push away unpleasant thoughts and feelings when they feel too overwhelming to process in the moment. In other words, when we feel overwhelmed by an intense thought or feeling that we cannot handle at the moment, we try to push it out of our minds.

You might notice this showing up as telling yourself to “just move on,” avoiding difficult conversations, or staying busy so you don’t have to feel what’s underneath. It can look like strength on the outside, but internally, it often creates pressure that doesn’t actually go away.

Research shows that this emotion regulation strategy may be counterproductive. When used sporadically, emotion suppression doesn’t have significant negative outcomes. However, this strategy is usually ineffective in eliminating disturbing thoughts and feelings. Research in cognitive psychology, including work by Daniel Wegner, has shown that trying to suppress thoughts often makes them return more intensely.  In fact, when used regularly, emotional suppression may even worsen the situation – pushing emotions away all the time can lead to serious issues afterward.

What’s important to understand is that the brain doesn’t process what it’s told to ignore.

When you suppress emotions, your nervous system still holds onto that experience. Over time, this can show up as anxiety, emotional reactivity, or a constant sense of internal tension.

Some scientists believe that emotional suppression is the possible reason why people with mental health conditions such as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) struggle with countless painful thoughts and feelings.

In my work with clients, emotional suppression often isn’t the problem; it’s the pattern underneath it.

Many people learned early on that expressing emotions wasn’t safe or wouldn’t be received. So suppression became a form of protection.

And that protection can stay in place long after it’s needed.

If this is something you recognize in yourself, it can feel confusing. You’re trying to cope. You’re trying to stay in control. And at the same time, something still feels unresolved.

Create a powerful life-changing mind shift! Enroll in my RiseUP online course to put a stop to your inner critic for good.

Distraction

Distraction is a coping strategy that involves shifting attention away from a negative aspect of a situation to neutral or positive ones. For example, we shift our attention when we try to concentrate on positive thoughts.

Actually, distraction is anything we do to temporarily remove our attention from intense emotion. Distracting ourselves from a strong emotion may give it time to lessen in intensity, making it easier to cope with.

Distraction is important because it can keep us safe at the moment by preventing harmful behaviors such as alcohol or drug abuse. Nevertheless, distraction is effective only when applied temporarily – once the intensity of the emotion has decreased, we should try another skill to manage it, such as mindful meditation. For example, stepping away from a triggering situation, going for a walk, or focusing on a simple task can give your nervous system space to settle. The key is understanding that distraction is a pause and not a solution.

Several studies have shown that distraction may be an effective emotion regulation strategy when emotional stimuli are highly intense. In addition, distraction seems to be helpful in regulating emotions with depression and anxiety-related disorders. Moreover, this emotion regulation mechanism showed results in emotions related to PTSD.

Namely, the amygdala (the brain’s center that plays a key role in the processing of emotions) seems to be over-stimulated in people with posttraumatic stress disorder. Research has shown that, during distraction, brain activity in the amygdala decreases. Additionally, distraction appears to trigger changes in certain areas of the prefrontal cortex, also affected in people with PTSD.

There are various emotion regulation strategies, and some are more useful than others. While distraction may work in the short term, it may have negative long-term consequences.

Why Emotional Suppression Feels Necessary

Emotional suppression doesn’t come from nowhere. It often develops in environments where emotions were dismissed, judged, or considered unsafe to express.

So you adapted. You learned to manage internally rather than express externally. That adaptation makes sense, but what helped you then may be limiting you now.

Frequently Asked Questions About Emotional Suppression Techniques

What is emotional suppression?

Can distraction be a healthy way to manage emotions?

Related Posts: