PTSD Discrimination 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 PTSD Discrimination Worksheet?
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is an intense reaction to an extremely traumatic and painful experience. A key symptom of PTSD is recurrent flashbacks of the event that are triggered by cues in the present that act as painful reminders for the suffering individuals. ‘Stimulus Discrimination’ is a CBT intervention used to help clients with PTSD to learn to differentiate and break the link between the present cues and the ones from their traumatic past that are somehow similar.
How will the worksheet help?
The worksheet can help clients differentiate between their memories and the present cues that trigger those memories by helping them realise the cues in the present are in a safe environment and do not represent the presence of any danger. This exercise will gradually help them realise the cues they keep reconnecting with their past are not linked to it in any way.
How to use the worksheet?
Instruct the client to use the worksheet shortly after a traumatic memory is triggered. Tell them to write down a brief description of the situation that triggered the memory then take note of the ‘THEN’ and ‘NOW’ cues. They can utilise the coping strategies they have learned in therapy to calm down before attempting the worksheet.
