Post by mia on Oct 31, 2013 10:52:53 GMT
This is an exercise I learned which can be used in any distressing situation, it basically tries to ground you and bring you back to the present moment, slow down your thinking and help things feel a bit calmer:
When you feel yourself becoming distressed, ask yourself the following questions:
When you feel yourself becoming distressed, ask yourself the following questions:
- Where Am I Right Now
- Am I time travelling to the future - worrying about something that might happen - or planning something that might happen?
- Am I time travelling to the past - reliving bad experiences, reviewing mistakes or thinking about how life would be under different circumstances?
- Or am I in the present? Really paying attention to what I'm doing.
If you are NOT in the present, refocus your attention to what is happening right now using the following steps:
- Notice what you're thinking about and that you are probably time travelling, bring your focus back to the present
- Notice how you are breathing, take long, slow breaths to help you refocus
- Notice how your body feels and observe any tension. Recognise how your thoughts might be contributing to this tension
- Notice any painful emotions you might be feeling as a result of your time traveling and recognise that past or future has no relevance to NOW.
It takes a lot of practice, and I found it helpful to practice this in situations where I'm not in distress, so that it's easier to draw upon when I am. It's basically trying to get you to recognise that most of our panic comes from the past - which we can't change, and the future - which is yet to happen and therefore irrelevant right now. Focussing in on the present can really help with the physiological symptoms of panic, which are important to get under control, and then you are better able to address what is going on emotionally.
