The Details

This group may be a good fit if you:

• Feel emotionally “stuck,” shut down, or overwhelmed

• Notice anger, stress, or anxiety showing up in ways you don’t like

• Struggle to identify or express what you feel beyond “fine” or “frustrated”

• Want better emotional control without suppressing yourself

• Are already in individual therapy and want deeper skills

• Prefer structured, practical learning rather than open-ended processing

No prior therapy experience is required.

This is not a support group or a venting group.
It is an education-plus-practice group focused on skill-building.

Participants will learn how to:

• Understand the biological purpose of emotions

• Recognize emotions in the body—not just in thoughts

• Work with anxiety, shame, and self-criticism instead of being driven by them

• Process core emotions (like anger and sadness) safely and constructively

• Experience positive emotions—joy, pride, gratitude—without shutting them down

• Access a more calm, confident, openhearted internal state

• Format: Virtual (HIPAA-secure platform)

• Length: 8 weekly sessions

• Group Size: Small, capped for safety and engagement

• Style: Psychoeducation + guided reflection + experiential practices

• Facilitator: Tom Allen, PhD, LP
  Licensed Psychologist | AEDP-Informed

Session 1: How Emotions Actually Work

• Why emotions are adaptive, not weaknesses

• The neuroscience of emotion and regulation

• Introduction to the Change Triangle®

Session 2: Anxiety & Inhibitory Emotions

• How anxiety, shame, and guilt block core emotions

• Recognizing these states in the body

• Tools for down-regulating anxiety safely

Session 3: Core Sadness & Grief

• Understanding sadness as a healing emotion

• Differentiating sadness from depression

• What sadness may be asking for (connection, rest, support)

Session 4: Core Fear

• Fear vs. anxiety: what’s the difference?

• How fear lives in the body

• Working with fear without avoidance or overwhelm

Session 5: Core Anger

• The purpose of anger (and why it often gets suppressed)

• How anger shows up physically

• Using anger to set limits and boundaries—without harm

Session 6: Blocks to Emotional Processing

• Why emotions get “stuck”

• Common defenses men develop

• Practical ways to move through—not around—feelings

Session 7: Expansive Emotions

• Joy, pride, gratitude, excitement

• Learning to stay with positive emotions in the body

• Distinguishing healthy pride from false confidence or arrogance

Session 8: The Openhearted State & Integration

• Practicing the full Change Triangle®

• Experiencing calm, clarity, and connection

• Q&A and next steps

• Emotion education without pathologizing

• Designed specifically with men in mind

• Skills-based, not just insight-based

• Grounded in neuroscience and experiential therapy

• Respectful of privacy and emotional pacing

This is about building emotional strength, not emotional exposure for its own sake.

Emotions Education 101™ can be offered as:

• A referral-based adjunct to individual therapy

• A men’s mental health group within outpatient clinics

• A structured psychoeducational series for burnout, stress, or emotional regulation

Clinics interested in hosting or contracting this group are encouraged to inquire about custom scheduling and group pricing.

$360 total for all 8 sessions
($45 per session)

Payment is due prior to the start of the group.

A limited number of sliding scale spots may be available.

This group is offered as a psychoeducational, skills-based program rather than psychotherapy.

Insurance cannot be used for payment, and claims will not be submitted to insurance providers for this group.

Participants are responsible for the full self-pay fee.