What is the theory behind this Therapy Worksheet for Adults with Anxiety?

The state of anxiety brings along with it a host of unpleasant physical and emotional symptoms. It is an inevitable part of life but can interfere with daily functioning if it gets too overwhelming to bear. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy helps clients with anxiety to observe and record the unhelpful beliefs and strategies that make their anxiety worse so they can be challenged and replaced with helpful ones. 

How will the worksheet help? 

This worksheet will help clients observe and record the thoughts and behaviours that make their anxiety worse and the ones that help them manage their anxiety for a week. This will enable them to focus on behaviours that are helpful in managing their anxiety. 

How to use the worksheet?

Instruct the client to observe their thoughts and behaviours that follow after an anxiety provoking situation for a week. Tell them to make notes of which thoughts and behaviours maintain or exacerbate their anxiety and which help to calm their anxious state. 

Therapy Worksheet for Adults with Anxiety 

Observe the thoughts and behaviours that proceed after an anxiety provoking situation. Write down the ones that make your anxiety worse or maintain it on the left and the ones that help to manage it on the right. 

Thoughts and Behavior that make my anxiety worse/maintain it	Thoughts and behaviours that help lessen my anxiety/keep me calm

Reference

Kaczkurkin, A. N., & Foa, E. B. (2015). Cognitive-behavioral therapy for anxiety disorders: an update on the empirical evidence. Dialogues in clinical neuroscience, 17(3), 337–346. https://doi.org/10.31887/DCNS.2015.17.3/akaczkurkin

You can download this worksheet here.