Self-Regulation and Balance

We are often walking through experiences that bring up self-doubt and anxiety. Conceptualize experiences with anxiety and self-doubt where our Self-Regulation and Balance have been at their highest and lowest.

Walking along the line of “overwhelm” shows us why we want to shut down or self-medicate when we become flooded with anxiety, fear, or other types of overpowering emotions and body sensations.

Walking along the line of “open” shows us how we are with a balanced send of self, experiencing sincere and real feelings without running to extremes, finding and staying in a middle ground with conscious intention.

Exercise

Create an “X” on a piece of paper with two of the sides jutting out from the center “X” and one dotted line(“- – – – – -“) straight through the “X” on both sides. Label the line on the top left “shutdown”, top right “overwhelm“, bottom left “open”, and bottom right “active.”

The “X” = the trigger event. Write down the name of the event e.g., someone shouting, rejecting, ignoring, laughing at you, and so on.

The “- – – – – – “= self-regulation and balance

Go to whatever edge you feel warmed-up to and write down your feelings of overwhelm, shutdown, open or activated one after another. When you have finished writing about this then go down the dotted lines of “balance and self-regulation.”

Write about how you really feel (not how you would like to feel, but what really comes up for you) when you walk a balanced mid path through your triggered feelings.

Elizabeth Kapstein

Wednesday, October 14, 2015