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technique
Driver and Passengers Framework
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1 recommend
Last discussed Jul 1, 2026
A therapeutic metaphor used by Dr. Becky Kennedy where the self is the driver of a car and feelings are backseat passengers — the goal is to remain in the driver's seat (in control) while acknowledging feelings exist, rather than suppressing them or letting them take over.
Recently discussed in
How to Feel Everything Without Losing Control With Dr. Becky Kennedy
Becky Kennedy · Jul 1, 2026
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Becky Kennedy
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Used for: Therapy with adults; teaching emotional regulation to children and parents
Praised: Validates that feelings cannot be suppressed; gives a clear mental model for ...
vs: Contrasted with the futile strategy of trying to 'kick feelings out of the ca...
"If you think about yourself as a driver of a car, and your feelings as backseat passengers, they're telling you information. A lot of us were raised to try to kick them out of the car — but you can't kick feelings out of the car. The goal is to st..."
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