The Seduction of Thinking: When We Mistake Analysis for Feeling

In therapy, I often ask clients, “Can you describe what you’re feeling—what it actually feels like?” I’m inviting them into their embodied experience: the tightness in the chest, the flutter in the stomach, the heat behind the eyes. But more often than not, what I hear back is, “It feels like it means…”

This response is familiar—and telling.