Distress Tolerance Worksheet
By
HappierTherapy
Author bio
The Happier Therapy editorial team is made up of Masters and PhD counselling psychologists. Each worksheet is created by a team member with exposure to and experience in the subject matter. The worksheet then gets reviewed by a more senior editorial member. This is someone with extensive knowledge of the subject matter and highly cited published material.
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What is the theory behind this Distress Tolerance Worksheet?
Distress Tolerance refers to a series of skills used in Dialectical Behavior Therapy to help individuals manage challenging uncontrollable situations that are a cause of significant distress for them. It teaches them certain skills that they can utilise when in such a situation to increase their tolerance of distress and consciously apply effective coping strategies learned in therapy.
How will the worksheet help?
This worksheet can help clients plan self-soothing activities for their senses which can help them manage their overwhelming emotions in a difficult situation. This exercise helps them compile a list of self soothing activities that can be readily available to them when needed.
How to use the worksheet?
Thi worksheet can be used when teaching the client Distress Tolerance Skills as part of Dialectical Behavior Therapy. Instruct the client to think of activities that can calm and relax each of their senses and are pleasurable as well. They can list them down, both that they have tried and ones that they have yet to try.