THE EMOTIONAL BUCKET2Use the graphic illustration as you talk through the notes below:
1. Begin by introducing the topic with a personal story on how you did not handle anger, bitterness, or stress in a healthy way.
2. Then read the caption found underneath the title “intensity and duration…” You may want to add examples, stories, or other illustrations which come to mind at this point.
3. Begin by explaining the emotional bucket starting at the bottom. Each level is represented by areas in our lives which begin filling up our emotional bucket (i.e. Suppressed Area, Repressed Area, Life in the present, and other stressors and concerns. Take your time and talk through each level giving personal examples for each.
4. If one is not able to handle their emotions appropriately the end result is an overflow of the causes which are behind the symptoms of our emotions (yellow).
5. To avoid the guie yellow stuff one must have a way to channel his emotions (i.e. the outlet attached to the bottom of the bucket. Again, all of this is figurative language in hopes of communicating, in this instance, “self-care, healthy coping skills, and telling your story.
6. If then, one uses their outlet appropriately then healing begins and the person in recovery begins to adapt, overcome, and improvise their life as depicted in the pointing arrow to these conditions.
7. We are talking about social skills but we are really talking about faith issues, and character development. You may want to develop these two thoughts here.
8. Again, there is no magic to all of this. Rather, this illustration of the emotional bucket is a visual, which helps us to see how our emotions are processed and then hopefully controlled.
