Tag Archives: Stress Management

No. 109: Create Something Simple to Have Faith in

August 11, 2012 6:59 pm ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅ admin

This week, in order to attain, maintain or regain my sense of wellbeing…

… I will practice coping with uncertainty by creating a simple vision for the future that I can have faith in achieving and then reminding myself of it on a regular basis. First of all, I will think of the simple things I would like to see in my future. I will make sure I think of positive and realistic things, that I could have faith in achieving or maintaining if I put my mind to it. I could list things like being close to my family, a safe place to live, regular healthy meals or a daily routine I enjoy. Second, I will visualise or imagine what a day would look and feel like in that future. I will try my best to bring a realistic and detailed picture of it into my mind, from waking up in the morning to going to bed at night. Finally, I will write down all of the things I imagined I did and experienced as part of that day. As I move through my week, I will regularly bring my mind back to that simple vision of my future and remind myself that no matter where I am now, my vision of the future is where I will one day be. If I find this hard, I might set an alarm on my phone to remind me to spend a moment visualising it. Whenever I can, I will mindfully do what I imagined I would do in the course of a day in my vision of the future. In this way, I really can have faith that I will gradually get there and I will give myself small bits of evidence that helps me have hope every day. When I am familiar with creating a simple vision and visualising it throughout the day, I will add it to my Personal Coping Kete as a strategy for self-soothing and engagement in times of stress, distress or mental unwellness. When I am finding it hard to have hope, I will focus my attention on creating something I can have hope in. By spending time visualising a positive picture of my future and reminding myself of the small things I can do to achieve it, I can actively balance any worried thoughts I might be having about how things are going to turn out and leave room for the possibility that everything will turn out okay in the end.

Posted in: Engagement, Mindful Distraction, Self-Soothing ⋅ Tagged: distraction, gratitude, humor, perspective, positive thinking, social connection, Stress Management

No. 107: Think of the Safer Alternatives

July 28, 2012 11:29 am ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅ admin

This week, to attain, maintain or regain my sense of wellbeing… Coping Kete

…I will practice harm minimisation as a way of responding to distress. As I move through my week, when I notice small changes in my mood or any self-destructive urges, I will practice thinking of the safest way of responding to the way I feel. Where I might sometimes have the urge to do something to hurt myself to express the way I feel, this week, I will practice thinking about the less harmful alternatives. When I notice my thinking or feelings heading in a self-destructive direction, I will ask myself “what would be the safest way of responding to this?” For example, if I notice myself thinking about cutting myself to relieve my distress, I will think about some less harmful things that might give me the same release. In this way, I will nurture my wellbeing and treat myself with a bit more respect and kindness. Using intense, but safe sensations is often really helpful. Some people find that holding a piece of ice or running a piece of sharp ice over their skin gives them an intense almost painful sensation that can replace the need to cut. Other people find snapping a rubber band on their wrist does the same thing. Yet other people find that running a red felt-tip pen over their arm gives them an intense visual picture that replaces the need to self-harm. Some people find them all helpful at different times. This week I will practice imagining doing these kinds of things rather than thinking about hurting myself. This week, I will practice thinking about doing these kinds of things whenever I notice myself thinking about hurting myself. Once I have gotten used to thinking about these safer alternative ways of reacting to my distress, I will add ‘ Think of a Safer Alternative’ and the strategies I thought of to my Personal Coping Kete as a way of responding when I feel the urge to hurt myself.

Posted in: Mindful Distraction, Self-Soothing ⋅ Tagged: Coping, self-care, Stress Management

No. 105: Sharing the Little Positives

July 13, 2012 2:52 pm ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅ admin

This week, to attain, maintain or regain my sense of wellbeing… Coping Kete

… I will practice sharing my successes, achievements and moments of enjoyment with other people. At the end of every day this week, I will contact someone I know to talk about one positive moment from my day. If I find it hard to notice positive things I might carry a notebook in my pocket so I can write them down when they happen or simply jot them down at the end of the day in preparation of my call or conversation. If I find it hard to talk to people about positive things I have experienced, it might help to make a list of people I can call. It may also help to think of some things I can ask the people I talk to so my sharing does not come out of the blue and the conversation doesn’ t become one-sided. This week, I will practice celebrating my achievements and sharing my good moments, however small they may be, with the people in my life. In doing so, I will practice making the small positives of life stand out from the mix of more difficult daily experiences. As a regular practice, this may help me to have balanced attention that takes both the good and the bad information on board. In regularly talking to the people I know about my positive experiences, I will create relationships in my life that give me the chance to also talk about the difficult things I go through as well. Once I have gotten used to sharing my achievements and positive moments, I will add ‘ Connect to Share the Little Positives’ to my Personal Coping Kete. In moments when the negatives seem overwhelming, I will contact someone to share some of the positives in my life. When I feel bad about myself and am finding it hard to feel better, I can get in touch with one of my people for some support to remember my positives. Sometimes it really helps to get a reminder about those things from someone other than ourselves!

Posted in: Engagement, Expression & Support ⋅ Tagged: breathing, Meditation, mindfulness practice, relaxation techniques, Stress Management

No. 101: Stretching Distraction

June 16, 2012 10:55 am ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅ admin

This week, to attain, maintain or regain my sense of wellbeing… Coping Kete

…I will practice stretching to distract myself from the present moment and lift my energy. Once a day I will spend a few minutes doing some basic yoga stretches. As I do them I will practice mindfully focusing my attention on the movements I am making and the way they feel in my body. I will practice letting thoughts of the day pass through my mind as I observe them and bring my mind back to my stretches.\r

Neck Roll: Standing up, relax your shoulders, drop your head forward to rest your chin on your chest. Slowly roll your head to rest your right ear on your right shoulder, pause, return to centre then slowly roll your head to rest your left ear on your left shoulder, pause, return to centre. Repeat.

Shoulder and Arm Rotation: Stretch your arms out to the side and imagine you are pushing apart two walls. Repeat three times. Keeping the arms at shoulder level, rotate the shoulders forwards and then backwards. Repeat three times. Slowly drop arms to the side and observe the sensation produced in your body.

Swaying Tree pose: Standing with your feet at hip-width, reach your arms above your head, clasp your hands together, exhale and lean gently to the left. Inhale and come back to centre. Then exhale and lean to the right. Repeat.

Cat Pose: Kneel on all fours with hands shoulder distance apart and your knees the same distance apart. Exhale while arching your back up and looking down at your belly. Hold for a few seconds. Inhale as you arch your back down and lift your head.

\r Once I am familiar with doing stretches as part of my ordinary day, I will add them to my Personal Coping Kete as a way of distracting myself from distressing moments and times of stress and tension. When I notice I am feeling tense, I can take myself away from present company for a moment and practice my stretches.

Posted in: Mindful Distraction ⋅ Tagged: breathing exercises, emotional regulation, mindfulness practice, physical needs, relaxation, self-care, Stress Management, time-out

No. 100: Use Energy Lifting Words

June 9, 2012 4:17 pm ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅ admin

This week, to attain, maintain or regain my sense of wellbeing… Coping Kete

… I will practice using positive, inspiring words in my self-talk and my communications with others to help shift the mood of things. This week, I will become aware of the kinds of words I am using with myself and with others. Each time I notice what I am thinking, I will find a way to reframe it that allows me to use more positive words. Each time I notice the kinds of words I am using/want to use when talking to others, I will think of a way of inserting more positive words. It might help to first make a list of the kinds of energy-raising words I could use, such as inspired, peaceful, harmonious, content and enjoyment. So for example, instead of thinking or saying ‘ I feel awful right now,’ I might reframe things so I think or say ‘ I want to do something to inspire me’ instead. Sometimes just thinking about the positive concept can lift our energy. Using these words in our communication can help lift the energy of those around us and make the way we communicate our problems more effective. Once I am comfortable doing this as part of my regular day, I will add ‘ Reframe to use positively charged words’ into my Personal Coping Kete as a strategy for self-soothing and/or expressing myself when I am stressed or distressed.

Posted in: Expression & Support, Self-Soothing ⋅ Tagged: breathing, Coping, creative expression, distraction, Meditation, self-care, Stress Management

No. 98: Just One Pleasurable Thing

May 25, 2012 11:26 am ⋅ admin

This week, to attain, maintain or regain my sense of wellbeing... 

...I will purposefully do one potentially pleasurable thing every day.

From the list of 113 activities below, I will choose one different potentially pleasurable thing that I can do each day and plan which day I will do them. I might not be certain about whether I'm actually going to like doing the activity - It just has to have the potential for some kind of enjoyment, interest, pleasure,or entertainment that I value. Each time I put one of the activities into practice, I will acknowledge my accomplishment, however small. I will observe how I felt before, during and after the activity to help myself become aware of what kinds of things lift my mood and shift my energy levels more than others.

It can be hard to start doing pleasurable things if we have been down or disconnected for a while. So I might plan small steps to begin with and scale back the length of time I plan on doing each activity for - e.g. it might be easier to start with attempting a 5-minute activity than an hour-long one. The goal for this week is to start by doing just trying one thing each day, regardless of how I feel. If the idea of every day is hard, I'll just do one or two days. It doesn't even need to work, the point is just to practice doing it and get used to doing it. If it's unfamiliar, it probably won't start being enjoyable until I'm used to doing it.

Once I am comfortable doing pleasurable things every day. I will add 'Just One Pleasurable Thing' to my Personal Coping Kete along with a short list of some of my favourite things. Then, in moments of stress and distress, I will try doing just one pleasurable thing to shift the way I am feeling in the moment. It's good to have a mini-list there because it can be ultra hard to think of pleasurable things to do when we are in a bad space.

113 Pleasurable Activities 

	Soaking in the bathtub
	Planning my career
	Collecting things (coins, shells, etc.)
	Recycling old items
	Going to a movie
	Jogging, walking
	Thinking I have done a full day’s work
	Lying in the sun
	Planning a career change
	Listening to others
	Reading magazines or newspapers
	Hobbies (stamp collecting, model building, etc.)
	Spending an evening with good friends
	Planning a day’s activities
	Meeting new people
	Remembering beautiful scenery
	Going to the gym, doing aerobics
	Thinking how it will be when I finish school
	Getting out of debt/paying debts
	Practising karate, judo, yoga
	Repairing things around the house
	Working on my car (bicycle)
	Remembering the words and deeds of loving people
	Having quiet evenings
	Taking care of my plants
	Going swimming
	Doodling
	Exercising
	Collecting old things
	Going to a party
	Playing golf
	Playing soccer
	Flying kites
	Having discussions with friends
	Having family get-togethers
	Going camping
	Singing around the house
	Arranging flowers
	Going to church, praying (practising religion)
	Going to the beach
	Thinking I’m an OK person
	A day with nothing to do
	Going ice skating, roller skating/blading
	Sketching, painting
	Doing embroidery, cross stitching
	Going birdwatching
	Singing with groups
	Playing musical instruments
	Doing arts and crafts
	Making a gift for someone
	Buying CDs, tapes, records
	Watching boxing, wrestling
	Planning parties
	Cooking, baking
	Going hiking, bush walking
	Writing books (poems, articles)
	Going out to dinner
	Discussing books
	Sightseeing
	Early morning coffee and newspaper
	Playing tennis
	Watching my children (play)
	Going to plays and concerts
	Catch up with an old friend
	Daydreaming
	Watching videos or DVDs
	Going bike riding
	Completing a task
	Thinking about my achievements
	Eating gooey, fattening foods
	Photography
	Star gazing
	Reading fiction
	Being alone
	Writing diary/journal entries or letters
	Cleaning
	Reading non-fiction
	Dancing
	Thinking “I did that pretty well” after doing something
	Meditating
	Having lunch with a friend
	Going to the hills
	Playing cards
	Having a political discussion
	Solving riddles/puzzles
	Seeing and/or showing photos or slides
	Knitting/crocheting/quilting
	Shooting pool/Playing billiards
	Dressing up and looking nice
	Reflecting on how I’ve improved
	Talking on the phone
	Going to museums, art galleries
	Lighting candles
	Having coffee at a cafe
	Getting/giving a massage
	Saying “I love you”
	Thinking about my good qualities
	Having a spa, or sauna
	Going skiing
	Going canoeing or white-water rafting
	Going bowling
	Doing woodworking
	Fantasising about the future
	Doing ballet, jazz/tap dancing
	Debating
	Having an aquarium
	Going horseback riding
	Going rock climbing
	Thinking about becoming active in the community
	Making jigsaw puzzles
	Playing with my pets
	Having a barbecue
	Rearranging the furniture in my house

These activities were taken from a longer list by an unknown author found in a great online article by Elisha Goldstein, which also happens to have some excellent tips on putting pleasurable activities into action when they feel like the last things we want to do.

Posted in: Engagement, Mindful Distraction ⋅ Tagged: Behavioural Activitation, physical needs, relaxation, Stress Management, Valued Actions

No. 95: Doing Something Else

May 5, 2012 11:14 am ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅ admin

This week, to attain, maintain or regain my sense of wellbeing… Coping Kete

…I will practice doing something else to shift my mood when I need to improve the moment. To prepare myself, I will make a list of random activities that I am familiar with. For example things like baking, reading a book, walking around the block, washing the dishes, cleaning the bathroom, doing a cross-word and making a card for someone are all pretty common activities that many people could do at almost any time. It is important these are activities I am familiar with as learning something new is incredibly difficult during times of stress and distress. When I notice myself getting stuck in an unhelpful mood or chain of thinking that I can’ t really do much about right now, I will practice doing the items on my list. I will focus my attention on the task at hand, noticing my movements, the space around, various sensations and my desired outcome. If worried or distressed thoughts find their way into my mind, I will notice and observe them there as I carry on with what I am doing. In this way I will practice connecting my attention with the world outside myself when my inner world is getting too intense, without pushing my internal reality away altogether. This week I remember that no matter how I feel, I can always compel my muscles to move. In this way I always have power over my circumstances. Once I have figured out which kinds of familiar activities help me to focus on something else when my emotions are not serving me well, I will add those activities to my Personal Coping Kete. When I am finding it hard to counter-act unwanted thoughts or express distressing moods, I can use these activities to distract myself until some of the heat has come out of them and I am able to look at the situation more objectively.

Posted in: Mindful Distraction ⋅ Tagged: physical activity, relaxation techniques, self-care, Stress Management, time-out

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Tag Archives: Stress Management

No. 107: Think of the Safer Alternatives

No. 105: Sharing the Little Positives

No. 101: Stretching Distraction

No. 100: Use Energy Lifting Words

No. 98: Just One Pleasurable Thing

No. 95: Doing Something Else

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