Therapy Skills: Containment

12/2/2024

Adult Caucasian Female seated at window during daytime, smiling | Containment for Creative People, Learn to Manage Strong Emotions with Therapy for Creatives in Maryland and Virginia via therapy for artists in Virginia and Maryland.

What is Containment? A Skill for Managing Emotions as a Creative Person

My first experience with containment was during a time when I worked in a highly intensive hospital program at Johns Hopkins. The work was challenging, and I often found myself carrying the weight of the day’s experiences home with me. One day, my supervisor suggested something that changed how I approached those emotions. She recommended an end-of-day ritual—a way to “contain” the intensity of the day’s experiences before heading home.

At first, I wasn’t sure how this would work, but I decided to try. Each evening, I would pause, reflect on the day’s events, and visualize placing all the intensity into a symbolic box. This simple act of acknowledgment and separation allowed me to leave work at work. I felt lighter on the drive home, more present with my family, and better prepared to approach the next day with renewed focus.

Containment for Creative Thinkers: Managing Emotions to Fuel Your Creativity

Creative thinkers often experience intense emotions—whether it’s the thrill of inspiration or the weight of doubt and overwhelm. These emotions can feel like they’re running the show, making it challenging to focus or stay productive. Enter containment, a practical therapy skill that can help creative minds regain control, channel their feelings constructively, and maintain their emotional well-being.

Let’s explore how containment works, why it’s especially useful for creative people, and how you can start using it today.

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What is Containment? A Brief History and Overview

Containment is a foundational skill in psychotherapy, particularly in approaches designed to help individuals manage overwhelming emotions and experiences. The term “containment” was first popularized by British psychoanalyst Wilfred Bion in the mid-20th century. Bion introduced the concept in the context of early childhood development, describing how a caregiver “contains” a child’s distress by holding it, understanding it, and reflecting it back in a manageable way. This dynamic creates a sense of safety and teaches the child how to process emotions over time.

From its psychoanalytic roots, the concept of containment evolved into a practical skill used across various therapeutic modalities. It is now widely recognized as a way to help individuals temporarily “hold” intense emotions when they cannot be immediately processed or resolved. In essence, containment provides a mental or symbolic “container” for emotions, giving people the space to cope with life’s challenges more effectively.

How Containment Works in Therapy

The idea of containment is based on the understanding that emotions are dynamic and can sometimes become overwhelming. While the ultimate goal in many therapeutic approaches is to fully experience and integrate emotions, there are times when this is not immediately possible. Containment offers a way to pause and manage these emotions until it is safe and practical to process them.

In therapy, containment is often introduced as a tool for emotional regulation. It is used to:
- Prevent emotional overwhelm.
- Allow for deliberate processing of emotions at a later, more controlled time.
- Create a sense of emotional safety, especially when addressing past traumas or intense current experiences.

Why Creative People Benefit from Containment

For creative thinkers, who often experience emotions and ideas with greater intensity, containment can be a lifeline. It offers a structured way to acknowledge and respect emotional experiences without letting them dominate or derail daily life. By learning containment, creative individuals gain a tool that not only supports their mental health but also preserves the energy and focus needed to channel their emotions into meaningful creative work.

Whether it’s used in therapy, creativity coaching, or personal development, containment is a skill that helps bridge the gap between emotional overwhelm and clarity. It’s about finding balance—holding emotions when necessary, processing them intentionally, and ultimately using them as fuel for growth and creativity.
Creative thinkers often experience emotions more intensely. This passion fuels their creativity but can also lead to feeling overwhelmed. Containment helps by:

1. Regulating intensity: Preventing emotions from taking over all at once.
2. Restoring control: Allowing you to decide when and how to address your feelings.
3. Preserving energy: Helping you balance emotional highs and lows without burnout.

By managing your emotions through containment, you create space to let your creativity flourish instead of getting stuck in emotional chaos.

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The Containment Balloon Metaphor

Picture yourself as a balloon. Your emotions are the air filling it. In a balanced state, the balloon inflates and deflates naturally. But when too much air fills it at once, the balloon risks either flying out of control or bursting.

Containment is like learning to release small amounts of air at a time—closing the balloon, releasing more later, and maintaining balance. This process mirrors how you can manage emotions in a healthy, sustainable way.

Adult female in green overalls standing at easel painting in art studio | Learn containment with Creativity Counseling, Creativity Counseling Online in Maryland and Virginia with Creativity Counselor Cindy Cisneros at Creatively, LLC who specializes in therapy for artists in Virginia and Maryland.

How to Practice Containment

The beauty of containment lies in its adaptability. It’s about finding what works for you. Here are a few ideas to get started:

1. Physical rituals: Create a tangible routine to “close off” your emotional experiences temporarily. For example, close your sketchbook or studio door at the end of a creative session.
2. Visualization: Imagine locking your emotions in a box or placing them in a jar, knowing you’ll revisit them later when you’re ready.
3. Creative expression: Use art, journaling, or movement to channel overwhelming feelings into manageable, productive outlets.

Walking Through Containment Exercises for Creative Thinkers

Containment is all about creating a temporary boundary for your emotions, so they don’t overwhelm you. To make it more tangible, here’s a step-by-step walkthrough for each exercise idea:

# 1. Physical Ritual: Closing Your Creative Space
Imagine you’ve had a tough day in the studio. Maybe a project didn’t turn out as you hoped, or you’re feeling emotionally raw from the creative process.

Step-by-step example:
- Step 1: Acknowledge the emotions. You might say to yourself, *"I’m feeling frustrated, but I don’t need to carry this with me right now."*
- Step 2: Physically tidy up your space. Close your sketchbook, turn off the lights, or place your tools in their proper spots. Each action is a symbolic step toward containing the emotions tied to your creative work.
- Step 3: Close the studio door (or your workspace area) with intention. As you do, take a deep breath and visualize leaving your emotions behind in the room.
- Step 4: Move to another activity that helps you decompress—like taking a walk, spending time with loved ones, or enjoying a hobby unrelated to your art.

This ritual creates a boundary, allowing you to revisit your emotions later without letting them dominate your evening.

# 2. Visualization: Locking Your Emotions in a Box
Let’s say you’re ruminating about a critique of your work that hit a nerve, and it’s making it hard to concentrate on anything else.

Step-by-step example:
- Step 1: Close your eyes and imagine a sturdy, secure box. It might be a treasure chest, a modern safe, or anything that feels strong and protective to you.
- Step 2: Picture yourself gathering up your feelings—frustration, self-doubt, or even anger—and placing them into the box. You might visualize writing the feelings down on slips of paper and tucking them inside.
- Step 3: Close the box firmly. Imagine locking it with a key or wrapping it with a strong rope. Reassure yourself that the emotions are safe and contained, waiting for you to process them when you’re ready.
- Step 4: Visualize placing the box somewhere secure, like a high shelf or a vault, where it will stay until you choose to retrieve it. Take a few deep breaths to center yourself before moving on.

This mental exercise allows you to put distance between yourself and overwhelming emotions while acknowledging their existence.

# 3. Creative Expression: Releasing Emotions Through Art
You’re feeling emotionally stuck—maybe overwhelmed by excitement about a new idea or burdened by fear of failure. Either way, you can use your creativity to contain and process these feelings.

Step-by-step example:
- Step 1: Gather simple materials like a sketchpad, watercolors, or clay—whatever feels accessible and unstructured.
- Step 2: Start by naming your emotion. Say to yourself, *"I’m feeling anxious,"* or *"I’m feeling exhilarated."*
- Step 3: Let your emotion guide your expression. Use colors, shapes, or textures that reflect how you’re feeling. For example, bold, jagged strokes might represent anger, while flowing, soft lines might express calmness.
- Step 4: When you feel like you’ve captured your emotions, pause. Reflect on what you created and thank yourself for giving your feelings a safe outlet.
- Step 5: Set your work aside or store it in a dedicated space. Symbolically, this contains the emotion within the artwork, freeing you to focus on other things.

Creative expression helps you channel your feelings productively, giving them form while creating a sense of control.
Each of these exercises is adaptable to your unique preferences and circumstances. The goal is to experiment and find the containment method that resonates most with you, so you can manage emotions effectively while staying connected to your creative process.

The key is to experiment and develop a system that resonates with your unique creative process.

When to Use Containment

Learning when to apply containment is just as important as how. Pay attention to moments when:
- Your emotions feel overwhelming or disruptive.
- You’re stuck in a creative block or spiral of overthinking.
- You need focus but can’t quiet your inner turmoil.

By recognizing these situations, you’ll be better equipped to use containment to your advantage.

When to Use Containment

Mastering containment is a journey, and like any skill, it takes practice and patience. At Creatively, LLC, I specialize in helping creative thinkers build tools like containment to support their emotional and creative well-being.

Here are three ways to get started:
1. Take a Creativity Course: Explore topics like managing emotions, reclaiming your strengths, and living creatively through self-paced courses designed for creative thinkers.
2. Book a Free Consultation: Let’s chat! New clients are entitled to a 15-minute consultation to explore your needs and create a tailored plan for support.
3. Invest in Coaching: For working creatives, my coaching packages provide specific, actionable guidance to help you thrive.

Powerful emotions are part of the creative process. With skills like containment, you can learn to manage them in a way that honors your unique brain and fuels your creative journey.