Psychological Flexibility Mental Health Continuing Education

Continuing Education CEUs are available for this presentation at AllCEUs counselortoolbox a https 3A 2F 2Fwww allceus com 2Fmember 2Fcart 2Findex 2Fproduct 2Fid 2F1031 2Fc 2F a Want to listen to it as a podcast instead Subscribe to Counselor Toolbox Podcast Psychological flexibility is one of those life hacks from cognitive behavioral therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy that can help improve mental health and depression anxiety and addiction recovery Objectives Define psychological flexibility Explore how to apply psychological flexibility Identify the shortcut question What is Psychological Flexibility The willingness to accept things as they are in the moment make a conscious choice to act purposefully choose behaviors thoughts and feelings that move them toward a rich and meaningful life as they define it Step 1 Define what a rich and meaningful life looks like Values Goals Clarifying collage Relationships Who is most important to you Which people What do you want those relationships to be like Values Goals Clarifying collage What events things experiences are meaningful to you Work Health Personal Growth Clarifying Values What values do I want to embody Choose 4 and write them on the top bottom and sides of your collage Step 2 Visualize options Like a cell phone battery you only have so much energy you have to decide how you are going to use it to achieve your goals for the day AWAY Thoughts and Feelings All feelings are normal It is what you do with those feelings that can be harmful Think of an emotion like the smell of dog poop When you smell it you get up to check if the dog crapped in the house If not you chalk it up to gas and go about your day If you find dog poop you don t just get angry and leave it there You do something about it or it will make the whole house stink Negative emotions are like the dog poop of the soul If you don t address them they will permeate your whole being and repel others AWAY Thoughts Feelings Questions What thoughts do you regularly have that keep you from being happy make a list keep a journal so you can start addressing them Include your inner critic s commentary When you get angry what thoughts do you have that keep you stuck in the quicksand of anger Remember resentment jealousy envy and guilt are all forms of anger When you are sad or grieving what thoughts do you have that keep you stuck Emotion Focused Coping Have clients identify all the things they do when they get upset reasons and what they could do instead Have clients identify all the things they do when they are acting purposeless which prevents them from moving toward their Happiness playing hooky binge watching television poor time management lack of sleep or poor nutrition disorganization spending time with unhelpful people reasons and what they could do instead Cognitive Distortions Unhelpful Thoughts All or Nothing Overgeneralization Mental Filtering Magnification of the Negative Minimization of the Positive Exaggeration Mountain from a molehill High and low probability Personalization TOWARD Activities Prevention Sleep Nutrition Exercise Ergonomics Social Support Recreation Relaxation Positive Triggers TOWARD Problem Focused Coping Changing the situation fix it Changing how I think about the situation through Acceptance Compassion Evaluating old beliefs Choosing to let it go Getting social support help TOWARD Thoughts and Feelings Make a list of empowering thoughts I ve got this I ve been through worse Add triggers for positive emotions to your room car office common areas Step 3 Becoming Mindful Becoming aware of thoughts feelings and urges in the present moment Fly on the wall Once they have Observed Accepted Unhooked Then they are more able to sort through their thoughts and feelings and start to see options Shortcut Question Are my current thoughts feelings and actions moving me closer to or further away from my goals and values Summary Every event is an opportunity to choose thoughts and behaviors that will help you use your energy to move toward your goals and values Acceptance means accepting without judgement how you feel and the situation as it is instead of fighting against it Commitment and purposeful action mean that you choose to use your energy on thoughts and behaviors that move you closer to your goals addiction and mentalhealth counselors socialworkers and marriage and family therapists can earn CEUs for this and other presentations at AllCEUs com AllCEUs courses are accepted in most states because we are approved as an education provider for NAADAC the States of Florida and Texas Boards of Social Work and Mental Health Professional Counseling the California Consortium for Addiction Professionals and Professions ACT is in the realm of dbt and CBT lmft

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