Emotions
These are the three parts of an emotion?
What are thoughts, body clues, and behaviors/actions?
This is an action motivated by an emotional experience
What is an emotional behavior?
What is Opposite Action?
Reduce/change strong emotions by doing the opposite of what that emotion is telling you to do.
Sarah has the body clues of shaking hands and fast breathing. She might be feeling this ______.
Anxiety or fear
This is an event that sets off a person's emotional response
A trigger
These are emotional behaviors in response to anger
What are yelling, fighting, isolating, etc.?
These would be opposite actions for intense anxiety
What are approaching the situation/not avoiding, relaxing/calming body/deep breathing, self-soothing, etc.?
Joel is avoiding a fear food because he does not want to experience intense guilt after the meal. Joel is engaging in this cycle.
The cycle of avoidance.
Harmless!
These are emotional behaviors in response to fear
What are avoiding, hiding, running away, etc.?
These are benefits to practicing opposite action
Practicing working through intense emotions, not letting emotions take over, coping, being in line with core values, etc.?
Andrew wants to make friends but fears being rejected by his peers. Andrew asks his sister for advice, and she tells him to try opposite action. These might be examples of advice she gave him.
Reaching out to people, sending texts, connecting to peer groups on social media, writing letters/notes/cards, etc.?
What are three examples of "body clues"?
Heart racing because you're anxious, feeling hot because you're angry, sweaty palms because you're nervous, etc...
Give two examples of emotional behaviors in response to sadness.
Isolating, sleeping all day, avoiding people and enjoyable activities, etc.
This is the first step to acting opposite
Noticing your emotions
Blake has distressing thoughts related to poor body image. These are emotional behaviors that follow.
Restricting, over-exercising, isolating, etc.
True or False: Once we feel an emotion we are stuck in it and cannot change it.
False! We can use skills like Opposite Action to recognize our emotion and what it is tell us to to and act opposite to change the emotion.
Name two emotional behaviors you experience in response to anger.
Yell? Name call? Shut down? Throw things?
This would be an opposite action in response to shame.
Not hiding and talking about what is causing the shame.
Levi feels anxious and avoidant every time he starts to do his homework, leading him to procrastinate. These are THREE ways he can act opposite.
Starting right away, using incentives to help him stay motivated, working on his homework for just 20 minutes at a time, etc...