Section III: Effective Coping Skills

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Section III Effective Coping Skills

• For a coping technique to be effective it
  must do the following
• Increase awareness of the problem
• Start information processing
• Modifying behavior
• Work toward a peaceful resolution

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Cognitive Restructuring

• Chapter 8

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• Everything can be taken away from man but one
  thingthe last human freedom, to choose ones
  attitude in any given set of circumstances.
• Viktor Frankl

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Perception Interpretation

• All stimuli received by the brain are processed
  through interpretation and classified as
  negative, neutral, or positive this process is
  called perception.

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Albert Ellis

• The premise of Elliss work was that
  stress-related behaviors are initiated by
  perceptions and that these self-defeating
  perceptions can be changed.

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Cognitive Restructuring

• Cognitive restructuring means changing a
  perception from a negative interpretation to a
  neutral or positive one, making it less
  stressful.
• This process is also called reappraisal,
  relabeling, reframing, and attitude adjustment.

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The Information-Processing Model

• Sensory input
• Sensory manipulation
• Cognitive/behavioral output
• Feedback system

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Toxic Thoughts

• Negative thoughts are often called toxic
  thoughts.
• Research has now substantiated the hypothesis
  that negative thoughts can suppress the immune
  system.
• Borysenko calls creating negative thoughts
  awfulizing, and explains that the way to change
  these thoughts is through reframing.

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Optimism and Luck (An Attitude)

• Maximize your opportunities
• Listen to your intuition
• Focus on the positive
• Find the good in every bad situation

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A Four-Stage Process for Cognitive Restructuring

• Awareness
• Reappraisal of the situation
• Adoption and substitution
• Evaluation

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Additional Tips for Cognitive Restructuring

• Initiate a relaxation technique to calm your mind
• Take responsibility for your own thoughts
• Fine-tune your expectations
• Give yourself positive affirmations
• Accentuate the positive

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Examples of Positive Affirmation Statements

• I am calm and relaxed
• I am healthy and whole
• I am loveable
• I am a college graduate

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Best Application of Cognitive Restructuring

• Use this technique when you find yourself
  continually whining
• Use positive affirmations to boost self-esteem
  throughout the day
• Use positive affirmations during stressful times
  (e.g. traffic, exams, etc.)