Five Coping Skills

These are five emotional coping skills that I have found helpful to people in dealing with different stressors and life problems. Please feel free to make copies and pass this on to anyone you would like.

1. Confront Negative Thinking
   Negative thinking drains our emotional energy. Under stress we are all prone to becoming more negative in our view of ourselves, the world and the future. Becoming aware of this tendency and working hard to confront those negative thoughts is a good skill to help maintain our emotional health.
   
2. Take Medications as Prescribed
   Sometimes under stress or prolonged life problems we experience changes in the chemicals in our brain. These chemicals are called neurotransmitters and they are directly related to our emotional well-being and overall physical functioning. Some of the common neurotransmitters are serotonin, dopamine, and noradrenaline. Medications help restore these brain chemicals back to their normal level. Your medical provider can help identify which medications may work best in your particular situation. Not everyone needs or responds positively to medications. However, for many individuals medications are an important part of their treatment plan.
   
3. Associate with Healthy Supportive People
   When under stress it is important to have people in our life we can talk to and who understand our situation and support us. Until things stabilize try to avoid long contact with individuals or family members who tend to be negative or critical. These people take a lot of energy to be around when we’re strong and are even more difficult to be around when we are emotionally vulnerable. On the other hand, spending time with positive, optimistic friends can be just what we need to help us get back to our normal selves.
   
4. Participate in Fun Planned Activities
   When we are depressed, anxious, or just overly stressed it is common to withdraw socially or to avoid other activities by telling ourselves it is just too stressful to do them. By setting some small reasonable goals we can work toward getting back into a normal life routine. The key to success here is to start small and don’t overdo it. A fun activity could simply be watching a favorite tv program, buying a favorite magazine, checking books out at the library, listening to music or going for a walk in the mall with friends. To get started think about what you have enjoyed doing in the past and pick one of those activities to do this week. As an alternative you could also think about something you’ve always wanted to do and begin gathering information on how to get started doing that activity. Many people find taking a personal interest class a good way to learn a desired skill and meet new people.
   
5. Develop Healthy Life-Style Habits
   People who develop healthy life-style habits are more resistant to the negative effects of stress and more able to fight depression and anxiety when those emotions are encountered. Here are some good habits to help you work toward being emotionally healthy.

• Exercise: Try to do some kind of simple exercise two or three times a week. Stretching, a short walk, or even more strenuous activities are ok if your doctor okays it.

Other articles by Stephen M. Huggins, Psy.D.:

Understanding Adult ADHD