Emotion-Focused Therapy and How It Helps
Do you find it hard to control your emotions? Do your reactions sometimes feel bigger than the situation? Do you wish you had the skills to navigate your feelings instead of feeling overwhelmed by them?
If so, Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT) is a powerful approach that can help you better understand, regulate, and work with your emotions—rather than against them.
What Is Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT)?
Emotion-Focused Therapy is based on a simple but profound idea:
Your emotions are not the enemy—they’re information.
EFT is based on the premise that our emotions are a key to our identity and a guide for decision making. When we lack awareness of our emotions— or avoid unpleasant ones, we are unable to use the information those emotions provide.
Rather than pushing feelings down or trying to ignore them, EFT teaches you to welcome, regulate, understand, and transform your emotions in healthy ways. It helps you tune into your emotional world with curiosity instead of fear.
What EFT Helps With
Emotion-Focused Therapy has been shown to be highly effective for a wide range of emotional and relational challenges, including:
Anxiety and chronic worry
Depression and low self-worth
Trauma and unresolved emotional wounds
Grief and loss
Relationship conflict or emotional disconnection
Difficulty expressing emotions
Feeling numb or “shut down”
Anger management struggles
Emotional overwhelm or reactivity
Clients often benefit from EFT when they feel “stuck,” misunderstood, or disconnected from their inner experience.
How EFT Helps You Heal
With the support of a trained therapist, EFT helps you:
Become more aware of your emotions
Welcome and allow feelings, instead of suppressing them
Regulate emotions so they feel manageable
Evaluate whether emotions are helpful or harmful
Develop healthier responses and coping skills
Unlike more cognitive approaches, EFT assumes that emotion itself holds the key to healing. By working directly with your emotional experience, you can access deeper insight, self-compassion, and transformation.
Types of Emotion-Focused Approaches
While EFT is the overarching approach, there are several therapeutic models that integrate emotion-focused work. A few common ones include:
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
DBT is heavily emotion-focused and teaches concrete skills for:
Emotion regulation
Distress tolerance
Interpersonal effectiveness
DBT is particularly helpful for people who experience intense or rapidly shifting emotions.
This approach helps clients slow down, observe emotions without judgment, and respond intentionally rather than impulsively. Mindfulness-Based Therapy helps individuals understand their emotional patterns, separate helpful emotions from harmful ones, and develop healthier responses that serve their well-being.
Schedule an Appointment for Emotion-Focused Therapy in San Antonio, TX
If you struggle to identify, express, or regulate your emotions, you don’t have to figure it out alone. Our therapists are here to help you discover the transformative power of understanding your emotions. Contact us today to schedule a session today.