Mindfulness & Grounding
Paying attention to the present moment on purpose.
What is mindfulness?
Slow breathing tells your body it is safe to do this.
What is relax (or calm down)?
Changing the way you think about a situation to feel better.
What is cognitive reframing?
Paying full attention when someone else is talking.
What is active listening?
A trusted person you can call during a crisis.
What is a support person?
This popular technique asks you to name 5 things you see, 4 you can touch, 3 you hear, 2 you smell, and 1 you taste.
What is the 5-4-3-2-1 technique?
This breathing technique involves inhaling for 4 seconds, holding for 4, exhaling for 4, and holding for 4.
What is Box Breathing?
A thought that automatically pops into your mind without thinking.
What is an automatic thought?
I made a mistake, but I can learn from it” is an example of this type of thinking.
What is balanced thinking?
People, places, or emotions that increase urge to use.
What are triggers?
Mindfulness encourages noticing thoughts without this.
What is judgment?
Paying attention to body signals helps improve this skill.
What is self-awareness?
This term describes "all-or-nothing" thinking, where things are seen as either perfect or a total failure.
What is Black-and-White Thinking (or a Cognitive Distortion)?
Using these types of statements (starting with "I") helps you express feelings without sounding like you are attacking the other person.
What are "I" Statements?
The purpose of an emergency mental health kit is not to eliminate emotions but to safely do this with them.
What is cope (or manage emotions safely)?
This mindfulness exercise involves eating a piece of fruit very slowly, noticing its texture and flavor as if for the first time.
What is the Raisin Exercise?
This skill involves tensing and then releasing different muscle groups to identify where you hold stress
What is Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR)?
Instead of saying "I have to do this," a healthy reframe would be changing the verb to this 3-letter word.
What is "Get"? (I get to do this)
This is the "invisible fence" we set up to protect our time, energy, and emotions from being drained by others
What is a Boundary?
This 4-letter word describes a box or bag filled with items that engage the five senses during a crisis.
What is a Coping Kit (or Comfort Box)?
In DBT, this "State of Mind" is the balance between your "Reasonable Mind" and your "Emotional Mind."
What is Wise Mind?
This reflex can be triggered by splashing ice-cold water on your face to slow a racing heart.
What is the Dive Reflex (or TIPP skill)?
T — Temperature
I — Intense Exercise
P — Paced Breathing
P — Paired Muscle Relaxation
The goal of TIPP is rapid emotional regulation by calming the nervous system when emotions feel overwhelming.
This is the act of looking for a "silver lining" or a different perspective in a negative situation.
What is Reframing (or Cognitive Restructuring)?
This 4-letter acronym stands for a way to ask for what you want: Describe, Express, Assert, Reinforce
What is DEAR MAN?
This technique involves naming all the states in the US or colors in the room to "force" your brain back into its logical centers.
What is Cognitive Grounding?