Coping Skills
Relaxation technique in which the individual takes slow, deep breaths
What is Deep Breathing?
Thinking in absolutes such as “always”, “never”, or “every”.“I never do a good enough job on anything.”
These are irrational thoughts that have the power to influence how you feel.
What are Cognitive Distortions?
Doing this gives an immediate sense of relief from a stressor, but it comes at a cost-- often leading to the worsening of anxiety in the long-term.
What is Avoidance?
This can provide similar benefits to talking about emotions, providing an outlet and a source of reflection.
What is journaling?
Pay attention to the “here and now” by focusing attention on the sensations of breathing.
What is Mindfulness Meditation?
Making broad interpretations from a single or few events. “I felt awkward during my job interview. I am always so awkward.”
What is Overgeneralization?
This is the process of making the importance of a problem more exaggerated, or believing the worst possible outcome is assumed to be true.
What is Catastrophizing?
Doing this may temporarily numb feelings of anxiety, but ultimately, they serve as a form of avoidance.
What is taking/using drugs (alcohol)?
Doing this regularly each week has been known to decrease symptoms of anxiety and depression>
What is exercise?
A relaxation technique in which a person consciously tenses and relaxes their muscles one-by-one.
What is Progressive Muscle Relaxation?
Exaggerating or minimizing the importance of events. One might believe their own achievements are unimportant, or that their mistakes are excessively important.
What are Magnification and Minimization?
The process of learning to question your own thoughts, in order to correct many of these cognitive distortions.
What is Decatastrophizing?
Removing oneself from social situations or from people you care about.
What is social isolation?
This is a prolonged period of intense sadness, and may also include thoughts of harm to self, social isolation, and frequent thoughts of dying.
What is depression?
Mindfulness practice of noticing the feeling of your feet on the floor, the weight of a shirt on your shoulders, or the temperature of the air on your face.
The expectation that a situation will turn out badly WITHOUT adequate evidence.
What is Fortune Telling?
Excessive dwelling on negative thoughts, or excessive worrying.
What is rumination or overthinking?
The act of sleeping TOO much, which can often being a sign of mental health challenges like depression and anxiety.
What is hypersomnia?
Mental illnesses such as depression and addictions can damage communication and problem solving in these.
What are relationships?
This is done by assessing the actual evidence that supports a belief, as opposed to accepting it at face value.
What is Challenging Irrational Thoughts?
Interpreting the meaning of a situation with little or no evidence.
What is Jumping to Conclusions?
Despite plane crashes being very unlikely, it is when a person may experience excessive anxiety over this possibility.
What is an irrational thought?
The act of sleeping too LITTLE, which can often be a sign of mental health challenges like depression and anxiety.
What is insomnia?
Assertive communication is a style of communication involving a person clearly stating their wishes, while also respecting the needs of others-- like boundaries. This OTHER style of communication includes not asking for what a person needs and not speaking up about what may be bothering them.
What is passive communication?