We have many judgments about what types of feelings are okay. We may even encourage our colleagues to express different emotions (as perhaps we believe this is healthy); however, it is a different story if/when we express ourselves outside of the “carefully-constructed” ways we’ve come to perceive our communication style. In a moment of desperation or tiredness, perhaps we express more fire, heat, sadness, grief, or frustration than we normally allow for. Then, all hell breaks loose. No, not really, but we may be hard on ourselves and ruminate.

In this video, I talk about my feelings of frustration and agitation today. I also ask an important question for you to reflect on this weekend, and share about an upcoming 6-week Somatic Skill-Building Group.

When it comes to feeling frustrated…here’s the thing….

Whoever we are, we may have been taught we need to be perfectly calm and composed. Or even if we weren’t taught this directly, the idea certaintly exists in society so we may still have ways we are constrained by this idea even if we don’t believe it.

Adrienne Maree Brown says “somatics isn’t about feeling better, it is about feeling more.”

To enhance our workplace cultures, we actually want to increase our ability to feel more…. to be able to express our feelings… and to do less overriding and minimizing of our feelings.

When managers and leaders can model this as well, it helps to show and encourge all staff and members of an organization that it is okay to have off-days, tired days, and make mistakes. Rather than defaults like perfection in our culture, we can encourage individuals and teams to be themselves and develop and strengthen the important skills of repair and accountability in relationships.

So… Whatever you feel (joy-gratitude-angry), may we remember two things:

To find people who welcome our range of feelings and with whom we can express ourselves in all sorts of ways, and they still hold us in our wholeness and dignity.
To feel and welcome more of our range of feelings and come to really get that we are not only one thing, or one emotion, that our shadow parts are also important just as our light parts.

We’re not alone in this moment. There is so much support out here. With care, Sarah

Sarah Rimmel (she|they), Founder of Slow Integration Coaching, is a Denver-Colorado based certified Strozzi Institute Somatic Coach and also holds the credential of Associate Certified Coach (ACC) through the International Coaching Federation. Sarah offers 6-week internal workplace groups, team coaching, individual coaching, embodied strategy sessions, and facilitation to support people in becoming more skilled to tend to themselves and become embodied as a pathway to navigating systemic inequities and increasing retention, belonging, and access. This includes visioning, learning skills to regulate oneself, practicing holding one’s boundaries, interrupting internalized isms, moving towards connection and support, and bringing curiosity to one’s needs. If you’d like to talk about about providing support to you and/or your team through coaching, capacity building, and accountability-building, please email me hello@sarahrimmel.com or use the form below.

Who’s feeling frustrated? Is this OKAY? Maybe? Yes? No?