Emotional approach: healing past wounds

Overcoming depression does not depend solely on rational strategies or behavioral changes.

Often, at the heart of emotional distress are unresolved wounds that, when left unattended, turn into painful thoughts, physical symptoms, and feelings of stagnation.

This module proposes a deep emotional approach to healing these wounds, especially those related to guilt, anger, victimhood, blocked emotions, and forgiveness as a path to personal liberation.

Working with hidden guilt and anger

One of the most common roots of depression is unacknowledged guilt, especially when mixed with anger that we do not allow ourselves to feel. Many people blame themselves for being vulnerable, for not acting differently in past situations, or even for being hurt.

When that anger cannot be expressed and becomes a silenced emotion, it turns against oneself, generating self-critical thoughts such as “I'm not good enough,” “it was my fault,” or “I don't deserve to be well.” This process ends up draining vital energy.

These emotions are stored in the body and affect our ability to motivate ourselves, our mental clarity, and our desire for the future.

Working on them in therapy is key, but even outside the therapeutic space, it is possible to begin to recognize them by writing them down, naming them, and giving ourselves permission to feel them, without judgment.

Identifying the “inner victim” and their emotional needs

Within every depressed person there is usually an inner part that we could call “the inner victim.” This is not a negative label, but rather an emotional representation that expresses helplessness, sadness, loneliness, or abandonment.

This inner part needs to be heard, understood, and validated. It is not enough to impose messages such as “you have to move forward” if that emotional part feels that its pain has not been seen.

The first step is to accept that this part exists and not be ashamed of it. Many people, in their isolation, long for someone to validate their story: “Yes, what you went through was hard,” “Yes, what happened to you was unfair.”

If this validation is not found in your environment, it is important to start giving it to yourself, through self-compassion and self-recognition. Validating is not the same as remaining stuck in the past: it is seeing what you have experienced clearly so that you can let it go and move forward.

Techniques for releasing blocked emotions

Unexpressed emotions tend to become “trapped” in the body, causing tension, insomnia, fatigue, or a constant feeling of heaviness.

Releasing them is a process that can be started with simple but powerful methods. Some useful techniques include:

• Expressive writing: escribir sin censura sobre lo que sentimos, sin preocuparnos por la coherencia ni la forma, permite que emociones reprimidas encuentren salida.

• Mindfulness and conscious breathing: ayudan a contactar con el cuerpo y permitir que emociones surjan y se atraviesen sin evitarlas.

• Body movement: el ejercicio físico, el baile libre o incluso sacudir el cuerpo conscientemente pueden desbloquear emociones estancadas. El cuerpo, cuando se mueve, permite que las emociones se procesen.

• Conscious crying: permitirse llorar, no como signo de debilidad, sino como una forma fisiológica y emocional de liberación.

These practices allow you to open up internal space and connect with feelings that were numbed by sadness or apathy.

Forgiveness as a tool for personal liberation

Forgiveness, in this context, is not a religious act or a moral obligation. Rather, it is a personal decision to stop carrying emotions that are hurting us. It does not always involve reconciliation with those who hurt us, nor does it justify what happened. It involves letting go of the bond of suffering that keeps us tied to the past.

As explained in mindfulness-based and ACT approaches, we cannot change what happened, but we can change the relationship we have with that experience. Forgiving is recognizing that we no longer want that pain to rule our lives. It is freeing the other person, but above all, freeing ourselves.

The practice of forgiveness can begin with visualization exercises, writing letters that are not sent, or simply with phrases that are repeated as a symbolic act: “I no longer need to carry this anger,” “I free myself from the past to live my present.”

This process can take time, but it is deeply transformative. Healing the wounds of the past does not happen in a single moment, but through honest, patient, and compassionate emotional practice. The more we allow ourselves to feel, validate, and let go, the more space we make to build a meaningful present and a hopeful future.

Facing emotional discomfort and unease

Overcoming depression does not mean eliminating all discomfort from life. On the contrary, it involves developing a new relationship with emotional pain: stopping running away, learning to tolerate discomfort, and using it as a compass for transformation. In this section, we discuss how to move through suffering without getting stuck in it.