"Processing" an emotion is NOT the same as feeling it or healing it. Quit perpetuating psycho-babble bullshit, and try to get yourself genuinely WELL.
When we process cheese, we change it from being one product into something entirely different. Compare a raw sharp cheddar to a slice of American cheese. The American cheese has been heat treated (pasteurized) and bastardized until it loses its enzymes and beneficial bacteria, and has only a fraction of nutrition compared to its original form.
People are often encouraged to "process" their emotions in a psychotherapist's office. This is when we force something that is naturally occurring in the body to be cerebrally dissected, interpreted, clarified and understood by the mind. We do this because CONFUSION about our pain (“where does it come from, why is it here, how come I’m still feeling it after decades in treatment?”) is actually far more distressing than the emotion of pain itself!
You would not be analyzing or processing a stomach ache. You'd be rubbing your tummy and searching in your cabinets for an over-the-counter remedy to ease your discomfort. Perhaps you'd even lie down for awhile. Don't "deal" with your emotions~ learn how to feel and tolerate ‘em in your body with the help of a gifted professional, and STAY THE FUCK OUT OF YOUR HEAD about ‘em!!!
In my view, psychotherapy is a huge conglomerate that keeps churning out defective products. People who enlist ‘psychotherapeutic’ services may gain stellar insights, but never be free of their inner pain.
Bottom line: Learning where your agony comes from, doesn’t magically stop the anguish you episodically feel. Maybe you’ve just grown more skilled at running from your pain. Perhaps some kind of addiction takes the edge off feeling it. Maybe your overly-busy mind is still analyzing each uncomfortable feeling that arises, so you’re still dissociating from your very own emotions, which represent the most vibrant and important parts of You.
Fearing and dreading difficult emotions is the same as rejecting facets of yourself. How can one get to self-acceptance and self-love, if there are significant parts of yourself you’re not yet even acquainted with, but harshly judge and hate anyway?!
The only way one can gain happiness and contentment is to develop emotionally, start operating from a full repertoire of emotions, gain radical self-acceptance, and become whole and well. Incidentally, this approach works for those who’ve dissociated from their emotions lifelong. It is the only type of intervention that can help Borderline Personality Disordered individuals emotionally grow into their chronological age~ and at last, truly Heal.
This is the way, but although on one level the suppression of uncomfortable emotions is akin to pulling your hand from the fire (away from not good) it is disasterous because it is not that at all and is more like throwing a bucket of cold water over the wise man/ woman who only has your interests at heart and is attempting to kindly give advice.