Grounding Exercises
Deep Breathing / Box Breathing
What cognitive distortion involves calling yourself or someone a name just because a mistake was made or something bad happened one time.
Labeling
It is normal for people to feel anxious.
True
What coping skill involves writing about your anxiety?
Journaling
The most common symptom of anxiety is...
Excessive or uncontrollable worry/anxiety/nervousness
For this exercise you have to imagine you have roots planted in the ground. What is it?
Grounding Tree
Challenge this irrational thought: You had plans to go to the beach today! You are so excited but it's raining and you can't go. You think "I never get to go to the beach!"
I can't go to the beach today because of the weather. But, I can go another time.
Anxiety is the feeling of worry, fear, or unease.
True
What type of coping skills involve doing something that is the opposite of your impulse that is more consistent with a more positive emotion?
Opposite action coping skills. If you feel like you want to avoid what is making you anxious, you could take action instead.
What are three ways anxiety can affect a person's body?
Headaches, feeling hot, racing heart, tense muscles, stomachaches, sweating, shaking, etc.
For this exercise, you have to cross your arms over your chest and tap.
Challenge this irrational thought: Your best friend tells you she'll be in another 3rd grade classroom than you. You think "I'll never have a best friend again. Our friendship is over!"
We won't see each other as much as we did when we were in the same class, but we can still see each other at recess. We can still be friends even if we do not see each other as often.
Anxiety is always unhealthy.
False. It is healthy when our brain tells us that we feel threatened or in danger to protect us from harmful things. It can be unhealthy when we feel anxious severely or frequently from things that do not put us in danger or threaten our safety.
What type of coping skills help you center and ground yourself in the present moment?
Mindfulness coping skills / Grounding
What are 3 signs that you feel anxious?
...
For this exercise, you have to find many colors around you. What is it?
Spot the Rainbow
What cognitive distortion is this an example of: "I know she hates me and doesn't want to sit with me at lunch."
Mind Reading
Avoiding triggers to my anxiety helps me.
False. Avoiding triggers lets the anxiety grow into other areas and then you attempt to avoid everything. Avoidance only gives you short-term relief, but it does not fix or help you decrease the anxiety since anxiety comes back.
What type of coping skills helps you take your mind off what is making you anxious?
Distraction skills, like listening to music and watching TV.
What is the symptom that most people with anxiety see in school?
Difficulty concentrating or having trouble staying focused.
What is the 5-4-3-2-1 Grounding Exercise?
5 things you can see, 4 things you can touch, 3 things you can hear, 2 things you can smell, and 1 thing you can taste.
What cognitive distortion is this an example of? "I made a mistake, so I am a total failure. I am not perfect."
All-or-Nothing Thinking or Black-and-White Thinking
All coping skills can work at any level of anxiety to help us feel better.
False. If you are extremely anxious, you might not want to use a coping skill that you use when you feel a little bit anxious. For example, journaling may not help you feel grounded when you are extremely anxious.
What coping skill helps you express your feelings in a healthy way and helps you take responsibility for them without blaming.
I Statements
In the Cycle of Anxiety, people experience a symptoms of anxiety first. What is the second stage?
Avoidance