Module 3. Emotion Regulation: (Discussion #5) ABC PLEASE - Cope Ahead ("C")
DBTuesday is a series of posts where we explore skills and concepts from dialectical behavior therapy (DBT).
What is coping ahead?
The third emotion regulation skill in ABC PLEASE for reducing vulnerability to negative emotions is coping ahead.
Coping ahead involves creating and rehearsing a plan for a stressful situation before it happens.
Benefits of coping ahead
1) Can lead to more helpful actions
It can be difficult to come up with a wise course of action if you’re in the middle of a stressful situation, have limited time to decide what to do, and might be in a more emotional state of mind.
Preparing a plan beforehand gives you the benefit of being in a different state of mind and having more time to consider different options.
2) Can help break cycles of unhelpful actions
If you don’t have a plan for what to do, you are more likely to revert to whatever your usual impulsive/automatic response is, which might not be the best option.
Deciding ahead of time how you plan to respond and practicing that response makes it easier to act skillfully in the moment.
How to cope ahead
There are five steps to coping ahead. The first two steps are creating an action plan and the last three steps are rehearsing that action plan.
1) Describe the difficult situation
- Think about what specifically might happen that could create discomfort
- Think about what emotions you might have
- Think about what actions you might have an urge to do that would might the situation worse
2) Decide what action(s) you want to do
- These could be coping skills or problem-solving skills
- Think about what you will do about the situation, your emotions, and your action urges
3) Imagine the difficult situation
- Visualize yourself being present in that situation (as opposed to watching it)
4) Rehearse your actions
- Rehearse in your mind what you will do to cope with the situation.
- This includes actions, thoughts, what you’ll say, and how you’ll say it.
5) Relax afterwards
- Recover from any stress you might feel after rehearsing.
- Some options for this could include distress tolerance skills such as self-soothing, TIPP, ACCEPTS, or IMPROVE
Reflection
What is a situation you sometimes encounter where coping ahead might be able to help?
Sources:
https://dbt.tools/emotional_regulation/cope-ahead.php
https://bayareadbtcc.com/cope-ahead-part-1/
https://dbtselfhelp.com/dbt-skills-list/emotion-regulation/abc-please/