Crisis Survival 1
Name one of the crisis survival skills (150 bonus points if you can name all 6 sets of skills we covered).
1. ACCEPTS
2. Self-Soothe
3. IMPROVE
4. STOP,
5. TIPP
6. PROS & CONS
I start to get upset, so I put a cold towel on my face for 1 minute. What distress tolerance skill am I using?
TIPP – Temperature skill
What is radical acceptance?
Identifying what you have control over and what you don’t have control over then skillfully letting go of things you cannot control.
Name one of the reality acceptance skills (150 bonus points if you can name all 6 sets of skills we covered).
1. Radical Acceptance
2. Turning the Mind
3. Willingness
4. Half-Smiling
5. Willing Hands
6. Mindfulness of Current Thoughts
What are the 2 goals of distress tolerance?
1. Survive crisis situations without making them worse [crisis survival skills]
2. Accepting things as they are in the moment [reality acceptance skills]
A peer took away my magic cards without permission and I want to smack them. What distress tolerance could I try to use so that I don't act on my problematic urge?
Example response: Think through the pros and cons of smacking them before I do. Or, other appropriate DT skill.
How does engaging in positive activities to distract ourselves help us survive crisis situations?
Helps us to improve the difficult moment a little bit by refocusing our attention on doing things we enjoy or that make us feel some positive emotions
Suffering = pain + _________
Non-acceptance
What is Turning the Mind?
Making a conscious decision to turn your mind toward acceptance and away from rejecting reality (and acting on problematic urges) over and over again.
What does the STOP skill stand for?
S= Stop
T = Take a step back
O = Observe
P = Proceed mindfully
How can you use E in IMPROVE?
Encouragement (cheerlead yourself by telling yourself things like “I can do this,” “I’ve gotten through hard times before,” “This won’t last forever,” “I’m doing the best I can”)
Demonstrate how to do progressive muscle relaxation.
Tense, hold for 5 seconds, then release several a muscle group (e.g., legs, belly, back, hands, arms, shoulders, neck, face). Breath in while tensing and breathing out while relaxing muscles. Repeat with other muscle groups.
How can we practice half smile and willing hands?
Relaxing our face and unclenching our hands to send a message to our brain to be more accepting.
What does it mean to practice Willingness?
Wisely responding to what happens in life without complaints and bitterness. Willingness is making the effort to try acting effectively and accept things for what they are without fighting against it.
True/False: Distress tolerance skills should be used in every situation and for solving all problems.
False – if we just distress tolerance for all problems that just turns into ineffective avoidance.
Demonstrate how to do paced breathing.
Exhale longer than you inhale and breathe deeply from your belly (example: inhale 4, exhale 6). Continue until you start to feel more calm.
Name one way to use the TIPP skill at CSTC.
Example answers: Run around the loop, put a cold towel on my face, paced breathing, progressive muscle relaxation. Or, other responses as appropriate.
What is NOT part of acceptance?
Acceptance is NOT liking, giving in, agreeing, or approving the situation.
What are 5 ways to handle any problem?
1. Change the situation/solve the problem
2. Change how you feel/think about the problem
3. Radically accept the problem
4. Stay miserable
5. Make it worse
Describe a recent time when you used a distress tolerance skill. What was the situation, skill you used, and outcome of using the skill?
Any appropriate response
What is the difference between the push away DBT skill (the P in the ACCEPTS distract skills) and avoidance?
With the push away skill, you only push away the thought/distress temporarily. You must come back to the problem when you feel better able to manage it!
Give an example of self-soothe for each of the 6 senses.
VISION: walk in a pretty part of campus, look at the nature around you, watch the rain fall
HEARING: listen to beautiful or soothing music or sounds of the ocean
SMELL: breakfast being cooked, light a scented candle
TASTE: have a special treat and eat it slowly, savoring each bite
TOUCH: take a hot shower, take a bubble bath, pet your dog.
MOVEMENT: Side hug, stretching, fidget toy
Are reality acceptance skills useful for tolerating short-term or long-term problems? What type of problems?
While reality acceptance skills can be useful in a crisis, these are mainly skills to help with problems you cannot solve in the long term (things that happened in the past or events in the future that haven’t happened yet or cannot be solved)
What is one way of practicing mindfulness of current thoughts (or the skill of allowing the mind)?
1. Imagine your thoughts as if they boxes on a conveyer belt, leaves on a stream, boxcars on a railroad track, clouds in the sky
2. Notice thoughts as they come into your mind and comment on them
3. Relax your face and body while accepting your thoughts as just thoughts
Or, other appropriate responses.
Why should we even bother using distress tolerance skills?
Helps us get through emotional crises or situations when problem solving is difficult/not possible without engaging in problematic behaviors and making things worse.