This is the coping plan you have been looking for.

Are you ready for a coping plan that is relevant to your personality, interests, and values? If so, grab a pen & paper or pull out the notes app in your phone! The following plan is your new go-to coping guide.

If you struggle to complete some of the categories, fret not! Simply highlight those categories and know that you can come back to them later. My last piece of advice is to not put any cliché options on your plan unless they actually work for you. Don’t feel pressured to fill every category since some ideas will emerge with time.

Okay, ready? Let’s get started.

Here is the outline, now all you have to do is fill in your answers. I gave you some additional activities at the end that you may have learned in therapy. Feel free to take what you need and discard what you don’t. Have fun!

Activities that…

1. Make me laugh:

2. Relax me:

3. Get me moving:

4. Give back / help someone:

People who…

1. I can be unfiltered with:

2. Support me emotionally:

3. Hype me up (because we all need a cheerleader):

4. Add life to my existence:

Places that…

1. Bring comfort:

2. Spark creativity:

3. Remind me of who I am:

Songs/ anthems that…

1. I can cry to:

2. Speak to me:

3. Turn my mourning into hope:

4. Take me back to good times:

Books and podcasts that…

1. Entertain me:

2. Educate/ inspire me:

The 5 senses:

List things in each category that help soothe and get you grounded. Ex: Weighted blankets, citrus candles, furry pets, mint tea, sound machines, sunrises, kids playing etc

1. Touch:

2. Taste:

3. Sight:

4. Smell:

5. Hear:

Immediate interventions:

List healthy actions you can take immediately that you know will help during triggers and moments of fear or intense sadness. Ex: Calling a specific person, going to the gym, planning a trip, buying a coffee, etc

1. Immediate action -

2. Immediate action -

3. Immediate action -

4. Immediate action -

5. Immediate action -

Journal Prompts

1. What really matters right now?

2. What burdens am I carrying? Who do they belong to?

3. What do I need to know / believe to get through this?

4. What am I impressed by? What is taking up my attention?

5. How is freedom and peace connected? How is freedom and peace tapped into?

Psychological Activities

1. Paced breathing (Inhale through the nose for 5 seconds, hold for 4, exhale through the mouth for 7 seconds)

2. Radical Acceptance (Click here)

3. Lower your heart rate & induce a calm state (here's how)

4. Identify your emotion urge and check if acting on it is effective. If it is not, do Opposite Action (Really kind person explaining how to do this :) )

5. Meditate (Download the Calm app or peruse Youtube for guided meditations)

6. Make a gratitude list (People, experiences, tangible items, personal qualities, etc)

7. Schedule an appointment with a therapist

If you made it to the end of this, good for you! Now go put this coping plan to use. Feel free to use it however you need. If you find it at all useful, please share with others. The more tapped into our own unique and healthy coping we all are, the more connected we can all become. Thank you for reading!

- Juliet :)