#therapy techniques

[butterfwiesndinorawrs]

Superhero Strengths with the Slumberkins 🦸‍♀️

We all get a little worried from time to time. Here's a few things I do to help when I'm worried or stressed and need help calming down.

1. Ask myself is what I'm worried about actually happening? This is important because I worry a lot about the what if's in life. What if this situation goes wrong or what if I mess this thing up... if it's not actually happening right now I remind myself that it's not happening right now and most of my what if worries never happen.

2. I take deep breaths! Your breath is one of your most powerful tools. I slowly inhale and then slowly exhale trying to extend how long my inhales and exhales are with each breath. After a few breaths I usually feel better.

3. Creative expression.. I often turn to my journal or my sketchbook. Both work equally well for me depending on my mood. Sometimes I want to write out how I'm feeling and sometimes I'd rather express it through art. Both techniques allow you to express how you're feeling and provide the opportunity to better process and reflect on your emotions. Use what works for you!

4. I practice EFT... what is that? Emotional Freedom Technique is an alternative therapy option that involves tapping on acupuncture points on the body while focusing your attention on your emotions. There are many different pressure points in the body and they all regulate different systems in the body. I could easily do a whole post or series on this but we'll keep it simple. The pressure point between your eyebrows often called the third eye is the pressure point that helps most regulate me when I'm worried as it relates to bringing peace and clarity. It's simple to do but if you've never heard of it or tried it you can feel a little strange. Just give it a try if you're open to it. Simply close your eyes and lightly tap on the place between your eyebrows repeating to yourself silently or aloud "I am calm". After a few moments I find my mind is more clear and I feel less worried. (I often always find myself giggling, bonus points if after you've calmed down you want to look in the mirror while you do this, guaranteed to get a little giggle out of you!)

5. Somatic Shaking... I'm sure you're asking what is Misky talking about now? Somatic Shaking is a therapeutic technique involving intentional and rhythmic movements of the body to release tension and stress. This is a technique that if you can get into the process it can be quite fun and very effective especially if your anxiety is very high energy as in unable to stay still. This is easier with music and honestly the type of music doesn't matter, just something you enjoy moving your body to. I start with gentle swaying and a very light bounce in my knees and I slowly let that evolve. Listening to my intuition and allowing my body to move and shake in whatever way feels right. I hold a lot of tension in my upper body like chest, shoulders and back.. so I focus on those areas a lot swinging my arms and shaking everything out. This is another technique that can feel a little strange at first but just give it a try and go with the flow. There is no right or wrong way to do this. Just listen to your body, and do what feels best for you. This is another technique I often find myself giggling towards the end. I highly recommend at least trying this one because it provides a physical way to release that energy.

6. Meditation. I love meditation, it is a tool that has helped me for decades. There are so many ways to meditate again I could do an entire series on just this topic alone but for this I would recommend going to YouTube and finding a meditation that brings peace and relaxation. There are millions of guided meditations online. I have a list of some of my favorites I've found over the years so when I'm really anxious I just go and choose one from that list. I highly recommend doing this so when you are in high anxiety or a panic attack your meditations are easy and quick to find.

7. Call a friend or loved one. Sometimes just having someone else listen while we audibly process can be very beneficial. Your stuffed animals will happily listen anytime too, or a technique called chair therapy where you place a chair in front of you as if someone was there listening and you just talk it out. Some people need to vocally process things.

8. Laughter. If you have a show, book, movie, podcast, favorite comedian, literally anything that always makes you laugh... do it! Laughter energetically breaks up anxiety quicker than anything else. Also laughing triggers the release of endogenous opioids, or endorphins which are the main happy hormones that are the brains natural painkillers and mood elevators.

9. If you have a pet, give them a cuddle or play with them. Animals are truly healing. They want to be near you and be cuddled, it helps heal them and you. In fact studies show that humans that pet their animals live longer, and so do their furry family members.!

10. Be patient and kind to yourself. Being worried and anxious is hard enough as it is without adding the extra stress and pressure that we put on ourselves when we aren't kind to ourselves. Your worries and anxiety is not your fault, we all deal with them and it's okay to feel worried and anxious. We're human we are meant to feel, all the things.. but being more kind and compassionate with yourself makes the difficult feelings just a little easier.

I couldn't possibly fit every single technique or piece of advice when it comes to dealing with worries or anxiety. These are just my top favorite tools in my toolbox. What are some of your favorite tricks or techniques to help you when you're feeling worried or anxious?

-Misky 🦋🦖

[kajisbraincell]

Sorry about the glare. You will need to open the picture in another tab and zoom in to see it better to get any real use out of it. But, this is one of the most helpful resources I have ever received at the psych hospital before!!

Though the original intention of the worksheet was to teach us to use the more complicated words for our feelings because this idea that a lot of people ignore you when you give "basic feelings", I found a different use for it. As an autistic with alexithymia, I struggle to identify any of my emotions by name, so having a worksheet that I can actively look at that will possibly allow me to name one of the 12 basic feelings based on any of those more complicated words I might be able to recognize is honestly the biggest win ever.

Whether you wish to use it for my therapist's intended purpose, the purpose I found use for it, writing, or whatever else you need it for - please take this gift.

[cringecorp]

Be Present in the Here and Now? Um No thank you... I have Standards

[c-ptsdrecovery]

Containment Skills for Trauma Therapy — Safe Haven Trauma Services, PLLC - Nashville, TN

Trauma symptoms can come out of nowhere. Typically, they pop up when you don’t expect them and they can happen at very inconvenient times. One of the first things I teach my clients is containment skills. Although feeling your feelings is essential to trauma therapy, it

I can’t believe I’ve never posted about containment skills before! This is a technique my trauma therapist taught me when I first started working with her. It’s for putting upsetting memories and thoughts away someplace safe so you can deal with them later. Whenever we’re in the middle of working through a trauma memory and we have to end a session, my therapist has me contain the memory for next week. This article walks you through a couple of different containment techniques. Even if you’re not in therapy, you can take some time while you’re calm and NOT upset to practice imagining your container, so when you need it you can close your eyes, take out the container, and put away whatever is upsetting you so you can deal with it later.

[beingsoupahbi]

Speechless (ABC) 1x04 - Dylan uses therapy techniques on Maya. more

[c-ptsdrecovery]

This is something my therapist did with me in parts work: she had me imagine different characters that could protect me, offer advice, or show me some affection. Then when I got upset, I could imagine one of those characters giving me what I needed in the moment.

Notes for DIY:

--A “resource” character can be anybody: a real person you know, a real person you don’t know, a fictional character, somebody you literally just made up, an animal, anybody.

--If you imagine this resource doing their job and you start getting upset, you should probably pick another resource. For instance, if you pick your best friend to imagine comforting you, but imagining your best friend comforting you actually upsets you, then they’re not a good choice for your resource. Pick somebody else.

--Establish the character firmly in your head while you’re calm and not distressed. That way you don’t have to scramble to try to come up with one while you’re upset.

--One way that my therapist helped me to establish a resource was by having me describe them--looks, personality, etc--in some detail (you can do this in your head or journal it). Then she had me pick a pose to represent that resource and close my eyes and hold the pose for 30 seconds (while doing bilateral stimulation as in EMDR, but I’m not sure that part’s really necessary!). For instance, my protector is a werewolf character, and to establish him as a resource, I stood up with my arms out and my “claws” at the ready, snarling, for 30 seconds.

[thatnerdhex]

I find that my brain shit works best if I think of myself as a plurality. Not in a DID sense, but like, I have this exercise I do, I call it The Boardroom, and it's where I consult with all the versions of myself I've ever been, so there's the customer service persona sitting next to the angry 7 year old and my teenaged self sulking in the background, and a few of my RP characters wandering around wondering wtf they have to do with this lunacy, and if I'm really feeling lost, this helps me find direction because it means I'm no longer ignoring any part of my psyche, everyone gets a vote, everyone gets a voice, I'm not pretending to be One Consistent Thing forever because society demands that, I can live authentically and not worry if others will see my actions as "out of character" because literally every being in that room is still me. I'm just actually taking their input, now.

This has actually helped me overcome the persistent suicidal ideations I tend to have--with a psych provider's awareness and approval--because in the exercises, I can see that voice is just from the depression. No one else in that room, including me, actually wants to die. When I can actually visualize every part of me wanting to remain alive, the depression is much less overwhelming. There's more of me than there is of it; we're going to win every time.

[ableautism]

Boosting Language Progress With Therapy

ABA therapy in Alpharetta, Georgia, is designed to address a range of developmental concerns, including difficulties with speech.

ABA therapy is a widely recognized approach that effectively helps children with communication delays. ABA therapy in Alpharetta, Georgia, is designed to address a range of developmental concerns, including difficulties with speech. Through targeted, individualized interventions, ABA therapy works to improve the skills necessary for effective communication, which can be particularly beneficial for children struggling with delayed speech and language development.