Emotions 101
One function of emotions (why we need them!)
What is:
1) Emotions motivate us into action
2) Emotions help us communicate to others
3) Emotions help us communicate to ourselves
This skill changes our emotional experience by assessing and potentially changing our thoughts and interpretations to fit the facts.
What is Check the Facts?
This skill involves doing pleasant or pleasurable activities each day to reduce vulnerability to emotion mind.
What is Accumulating Positives?
Bonus: Name one way to accumulate positives in the short term and one way to accumulate positives in the long term. (What is the difference between the two?)
This is the point when you are so overwhelmed that it would not be helpful to use emotion regulation skills and it would be more effective to shift to distress tolerance skills.
What is the Skills Breakdown Point?
The state of mind in which people are most likely to act impulsively and based on emotions.
What is Emotion Mind?
One reason why emotions are difficult to regulate
What is:
1) our biology
2) lack of skills
3) hidden reinforcers
4) falling into the "sea of dyscontrol" when emotions feel too overwhelming
5) myths or unhelpful beliefs about emotions (e.g., I shouldn't feel this way)
This group of skills reduces vulnerability to emotion mind by building healthy habits and taking care of one's body.
What are the PLEASE skills?
Bonus: Name the 5 skills in PLEASE.
Mindfulness of current emotions encourages us to experience our emotions, knowing that they do not last forever and will come and go. This skill is sometimes called the _______ skill because it's like being at the beach and imagining our emotions coming into shore and back out to sea, or reaching a peak and then returning to baseline.
What is the Wave Skill?
Observing and describing an emotional experience from a distance instead of being controlled by the emotion and its action urge is an example of this emotion regulation skill.
What is Mindfulness of Current Emotion?
This mindfulness skill is when individuals sit back and look at things.
What is Observe?
True or False: There is a right way to feel in every situation.
Myth!
Bonus points for coming up with an appropriate challenge to this myth.
Doing the opposite of what you feel like doing when you know/determine that the emotion is not justified.
What is Opposite Action?
The P and the A of PLEASE
What are treating PhysicaL illness and Avoiding mind-Altering substances?
True or False: You always have to act on an emotion urge.
False! It's possible to experience an emotion without acting on the emotion. It's important to identify whether the emotion is justified (using Check the Facts and Wise Mind) to help you decide whether to act on the emotion or use an emotion regulation strategy to lower the intensity (e.g., Mindfulness of Current Emotion) or change your response by going against the urge (e.g., Opposite Action).
This mindfulness skill involves focusing on the facts themselves instead of a label or judgment of the situation as good vs. bad or right vs. wrong.
What is Nonjudgmental?
True or False: Sensations in the body and physiological changes are part of an emotional experience.
True!
Bonus: Give an example of an emotion and an associated body sensation.
This skill involves identifying and describing a prompting event of negative emotions and then finding solutions to lower the chances that the prompting event will occur in the future.
What is Problem Solving?
This emotion regulation skill involves identifying a common or recurring prompting event of negative emotions and then imagining, planning, and rehearsing how you would use skills to be more effective.
What is Cope Ahead?
Opposite Action is only effective if it is done ___ ___ ___ (three words).
What is All The Way?
Bonus: Provide an example of using opposite action ALL THE WAY and explain why this is more effective than only doing it halfway.
This skill in the emotion regulation module has been the most helpful for you.
What is ____(Answers vary!)_____?
Bonus: Describe how you use this skill and why it has been helpful.
A situation or event that triggers an emotional experience
What is a prompting event?
This skill involves doing at least one thing a day to make yourself feel more competent and in control.
What is Building Mastery?
A situation or prompting event when the emotion of FEAR fits the facts.
What is when there is a threat to:
1) your life
2) your health
3) someone you care about
This is an effective skill/response for when your emotion (or its intensity or duration) does not fit the facts and is not an effective response.
What is Opposite Action?
This is a list of the emotion regulation skills covered in this module.
Hint: (CtF, OA, PS; ABC PLEASE; MoCM)
What are:
1. Check the Facts, Opposite Action, Problem Solving
2. Accumulating Positives, Building Mastery, Coping Ahead, Tend to Physical Illness, Balanced Eating, Avoid Mind-altering substances, Balanced Sleep, Balanced Exercise
3. Mindfulness of Current Emotions (and using mindfulness to know when you're at the Skills Breakdown Point and need to transition to Distress Tolerance skills!)