‘Sit with your emotions without letting them define you’

Edit: I should’ve prefaced by saying that I am reaching out for help! I’m definitely not trying to denounce this wisdom or question it, which is what my post sounds like… that’s my mistake. I am asking for help with how to do it, please <3

Can’t wrap my head around this. For years and years I’ve seen it in all the esoteric works and even in psychology etc, but I don’t understand how it’s possible to ‘sit with your emotions’ and ‘feel them fully’… while simultaneously not identifying with them. It seems to contradict the idea of ‘letting go’ and ‘being in the present’ (since emotions coming up are generally tied to the past or future) and the notion of not allowing your emotions to dictate your thoughts. Our thoughts are precious and we need to be careful which ones we focus on yada yada, but at the same time we’re told to feel our emotions fully, and even cry if we need to, but doesn’t that just generate more negativity, and thus more negative thought patterns, which in turn creates more negativity?

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