Living With the Blues

How to Move With Emotions Instead of Through Them

Introduction

What if feeling 'blue' isn’t something to overcome but a part of being fully alive? 

Imagine you have experienced a loss in your life. Someone incredibly close to your heart is no longer there. You want to crawl into a closet and cry for what feels like eternity—but there is no closet near you. So instead you throw up your guard. As people approach sharing how sorry they are for your loss, you thank them with a gracious smile—but crumble on the inside.

Now imagine months passing and everyone around you seems to have forgotten about your loss—but for you, it feels like just yesterday. Few people ask how you are doing because most don’t know how to have a difficult conversation. And those who do ask you imply as if you should have “moved on” from your grief and hurt. 

You feel confused and alone, asking yourself: when will this end?

We’ve all experienced the blues—moments or periods of sadness. Yet there is a far too common misconception that emotions like the blues have an expiration date. In reality, emotions are part of our inner landscape. Constantly shifting, cycling, and reshaping. They exist within us and express themselves to varying degrees. When we embrace this fluidity, we learn to accept and coexist with our emotions.

We no longer have to “move on” and can instead understand them as a natural part of our emotional landscape, here to stay in different forms, reminding us of our humanity.

Understanding the Blues as Part of Life 

The blues can feel like a subtle but pervasive emotional state. 

They can be brief moments of sadness and prolonged periods of pain. They can be whims of hysteria and subtle waves of reflection. They are often cyclical meaning they show up throughout life without any predictability making it difficult for us to understand and accept. 

Most of us can think of moments in our lives when we’ve been surprised with a few tears reminiscent of a moment from a past hurt. This feeling is universal and not something to “fix.” 

The blues express themselves in varying degrees depending on our personality, our environment and many other factors. 

And the blues are not a temporary intrusion, they are life’s companion that we dance with. They are part of our human experience. 

They foster deep connections with ourselves and with others. And show us how the nature of our emotions are non-linear, allowing for more grace and self-compassion. 

Practical Ways to Move With the Blues

It is difficult to know how to move with the blues when you feel like you are in the throes of life. And even more challenging when we add in the societal pressure to act “normal” as if your blues don’t exist. 

In light of these obstacles, here are some practical ways to move with the blues: 

1. Reframe Sadness as Part of the Human Experience
• Normalize the feeling and remove judgment around sadness. Just as the season’s change without any effort, sadness changes without any effort. It ebbs and flows throughout our life presenting challenges and gifts along the way. Instead of crawling in the closet, reframe this universal human experience.
2. Practice Mindful Awareness
• We don’t need to fix anything. Instead can you sit with your sadness. Create a ritual that honours your feelings, like lighting a candle, so that grace and self-acceptance can grow.
3. Lean on Community
• Sharing sadness can ease its weight. There is an inward-looking and outward-looking process to the blues and healing. We often find ourselves stuck in our own heads, navigating the blues alone. When we invite others into our journey, we can find solace in connection and healing through community. 

The Lifelong Relationship with Emotions 

Emotions, like the blues, are not destinations to reach or problems to solve—they are ongoing companions in the landscape of our inner world. 

Just as sadness ebbs and flows, so too do the brighter emotions—hope, joy, and peace. They cycle in and out, sometimes overlapping, sometimes standing in contrast, but always adding to the richness of our emotional experience.

Living with the blues means accepting that they don’t have to be overcome, but integrated—woven into a richer, more complex emotional experience that honors the fullness of life. 

If you are called to use your grief in a way that helps others grieving, then we invite you to explore our Grief Specialist Training. This course teaches you counselling techniques and perspectives, journaling prompts, and guided meditations to help you navigate emotions with grace and intention.

Enroll in our Grief Support Specialist Training Today

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At Empowered Inc., we’re here to walk alongside you, offering guidance and a community of understanding as you continue on your path toward healing. Reach out to us at [email protected], and let us support you in this journey.