Where is guilt stored in the body?

When you experience an intense emotion, you may have noticed that you also experience a felt sense in the body. The idea that emotions can become stuck or trapped in the body is an old one. Many ancient medicine traditions that date back thousands of years pay special attention to clearing emotions trapped in the body. Current research and concepts in psychology, neuropsychology, and psychiatry support the idea that we experience emotions in the body and that the body’s felt sensation impacts the emotional state. 

Recent research has shown how traumatic experiences and their emotional fallout can impact the body and become “stuck.” Famous trauma researcher and psychiatrist Bessel Van Der Kolk, author of The Body Keeps the Score, insists that trauma patients participate in bodywork like yoga or massage as a compliment to receiving psychotherapy to reset the body following traumatic experiences.

Scientist Candace B. Pert, the author of Molecules of Emotion, lends credence to the idea that emotions impact the body and become stuck there. In this book, she writes about how unprocessed emotions in the body can actually become stuck, impacting a person’s entire wellbeing. 

Researchers have explored the concept of embodied cognition, which is the mind-body link. This is the idea that what we think has implications for the body and what is felt within the body also impacts emotions. Studies examining the embodied cognition of guilt are often described as a heavy feeling or a heavyweight.

Psychological stress, like that experienced when we’re carrying guilt, can impact many physical body areas. Muscle tension can result from stress in almost any muscle group of the body. Often, sore shoulders, a sore or stiff neck, or lower back pain can result from stress experienced due to guilt.

As to where guilt is stored, since many people report it as a feeling of heaviness in the body and psychological stress associated with it can cause all-over muscle tension, focusing on releasing muscles all over the body may be helpful. In yogic practice, guilt may impact the heart chakra, where many emotions and the ability to connect are thought to be stored or affected. Yoga practices designed to open and release this area of the body may be helpful.

Understanding guilt and its source can be vital to healing and moving past the emotion when it becomes problematic. Guilt is also linked with depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder. If you’re experiencing symptoms associated with these or guilt impact your daily life, visit a therapist to learn coping strategies and process emotions. Working with a yoga instructor or energy healer is another option that can complement traditional therapy.