Sorry for your difficulties. I think the answer sort of depends on what kind of therapy you are doing. Because different therapies have different views about emotions and how to manage them. The method I personally use is that if I can find a clear cause, I try to fix it or do something about it. If I feel enraged every time the neighbor starts making a lot of noise, I suppose I could tell them or if they ignore me, I could take them to court or alternatively just leave the building. But what if I get triggered by a lot of different things? What if the trigger is not clear?

An hour ago while sitting here suddenly I started to have palpitations and nausea and anxiety and anger. I was not doing anything unusual, so why was I feeling that way? Part of my mind wanted to get to the bottom of it. Main thing is I wanted it all to go away and fast. What I did is first become aware of it. That's how I feel. And specifically the various symptoms. Then I let it be. If I fear the symptoms or be mad at the symptoms or get into a fight with the symptoms, I make them worse.

Rumi has a poem called The Guest House. ( The Guest House - Poem by Jelalludin Rumi, translated by Coleman Barks ). The poem is about letting emotions be.

But what if they are so extreme, so out of control, that you can't let them be? I have used grounding methods or distraction in those cases. There is no point in trying to think through them because they are very powerful. It would be like me trying to walk through a sea of soldiers approaching from the other side. I will let them pass. Obviously breathing also helps (though some people prefer distraction more). I've had terrible panic attacks in the past and days when I experienced 50-60 powerful panic attack, such that I did not know when one began and the other ended. I tried to distract myself by TV. I've found classical music also helpful. Warm bath, a walk outside, and other things also help. Like doing something involving senses, like chewing gum or tasting something or massage.

Then, maybe next day or another time later, I can reflect on the incident, specifically what happened before it. Or discuss it with my therapist. If I realize I was speaking with my mom, I recognize the topic or her tone or whatever as the trigger. Knowing the trigger won't make the feeling go away but will make it understandable and not so foreign. I feel more empowered. I can anticipate it.

At the end of the day, it is about your type of therapy and you yourself. Sometimes therapists themselves tell you to experiment with things: what works and what doesn't? Often distraction can not be the main or only strategy because it throws you off your path. If I'm driving and have to pull over every two minutes to distract myself, I can't get to my destination. So that's why these other strategies are important, and that's why therapists can help us pinpoint the cause or the situations that give rise to the most persistent or overwhelming of emotional reactions.