Distress Tolerance Strategies for Thoughts of Suicide / Self-Harm
What are Distress Tolerance Skills?
Distress tolerance skills help you cope with intense emotions or stress by using healthy techniques to calm yourself down. They allow you to manage difficult situations without reacting impulsively or making things worse.
Whilst these strategies can be helpful, don’t forget speaking to someone is always an option. We have compiled a list of Crisis Mental Health Supports in Geelong.
TIPP
TIP stands for Temperature (using cold water to calm down), Intense exercise (burning off energy with quick activity), Paced breathing (slowing down your breathing), and Paired muscle relaxation (tensing and relaxing muscles to ease tension).
Temperature: Cold Water
This strategy involves splashing cold water on your face or hold a cold object to your skin. This helps calm your body quickly by triggering a reflex that slows your heart rate and reduces feelings of intense stress.
Intense Exercise
Intense exercise means doing fast, strong movements, like running or jumping, to help you feel less overwhelmed. It works because the exercise uses up extra energy from your strong emotions, which helps your body relax and feel calmer.
Paced Breathing
By breathing slowly and deeply, you can reduce feelings of anxiety and gain better control over your emotions in stressful situations.
Paced breathing is good for distress tolerance because it helps slow down your heart rate and calm your nervous system.
Paired Muscle Relaxation
Paired Muscle Relaxation is a technique where you tense a muscle group in your body, hold the tension for a few seconds, and then relax it. This helps release physical tension and makes your body feel calmer, which can also help reduce stress and anxiety.
When practicing Paired Muscle Relaxation, be careful not to tense your muscles too hard, as this could cause strain or discomfort. It’s important to listen to your body and only apply gentle pressure to avoid any pain or injury.
Distraction
Distraction distress tolerance is a technique where you focus your attention on something else to take your mind off intense emotions or stress.
Distraction is part of a range of strategies reccomended by Lifeline Australia for managing intrusive and distressing thoughts.
Probably the one that first comes to mind is finding an activity to do, however here are some distraction ideas you probably haven’t thought of:
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is available at Daybreak Psychology from our Geelong Psychologist. Contact us to find out more or to make a referral.