Resources to Focus Your Attention on Your Intention

I believe therapy can be a space for insight, a space for feeling heard and understood, a space to process certain experiences, a space for you to be you. Therapy can also be a space to explore what shifts you want to make in your day-to-day life including building a better sense of who you are, soothing anxiety, increasing emotional regulation, and working on broader life goals. 

Below are some resources* to help support your mental health goals outside of therapy.

Staying attentive to your intentions when setting goals is an ongoing process. Regular reflection, self-check-ins, and adjustments are important to ensure that your goals remain aligned with what truly matters to you.

Intention: Reducing Anxiety
Anxiety may feel like fear or dread, without even knowing what you are fearing or dreading. Feeling high levels of anxiety on a regular basis generally points to some level of nervous system dysregulation. Therapy can help you understand the roots of your anxiety but a daily practice of checking in with your thoughts, feelings, and body outside of session is crucial for nervous system regulation.

Let’s focus your attention on…

Establishing a Daily Practice For Soothing the Nervous System

• Body Scan Meditation
• 10 Minute Meditation to Start Your Day
• 4-7-8 Calming Breath
• Easy Qi Gong For Tension in The Body
• Joyn - free movement classes that celebrate body diversity
  
  

Grounding in The Here and Now:

• 5 Senses Grounding Exercise

Getting Better Sleep

• Bed Time Story: Nordland Night Train
• Yoga Nidra for Sleep

Intention: Establishing a Stronger Sense of Self 
Establishing a stronger sense of self means knowing who you are and what is going on inside. Insights gained in therapy can be transformational and self-inquiry has been demonstrated to increase satisfaction in relationships. Here are some ways to keep that momentum going after therapy.

Let’s focus your attention on…

Establishing a Relationship With Yourself Through a Daily Check-In

• 15 Minute Meditation For Self-Love
• Morning Pages
• Gratitude Journal

Understanding What Makes You You

• Personifying Emotions
• What Are Your Core Beliefs About Yourself
• Your Values
• What Do You Want From Your Life

Deeply Understanding What You Are Feeling and Thinking

• Self-Investigation Exercise 
• Feelings and Needs
• Thought Distortion Tracker 

Unlearning The White Cisheteropatriachy

• Trauma Informed Conflict Transformation for Social Justice and Spiritual Growth
• Whiteness on the Couch
• Affirmations for Activists
• The Gender Wheel

Intention: Increasing Ability to Self-Regulate
Increasing your ability to self-regulate helps you find calm and clarity when you’re feeling overwhelmed. Being able to self-regulate is a critical skill in helping us act in accordance with our authentic selves in friendships, romantic relationships, in community, and at work. Inability to self-regulate is highly correlated with trauma. Working with a trauma-focused therapist and practicing skills focused on mindfulness literally helps to rewire the brain, making emotional regulation more accessible and natural, which can help you move through the world in the way you, well, intend to.

Let’s focus your attention on…

Being Kind to Yourself

• Self-Compassion During Emotional Difficulty
• Speaking to Yourself Like a Friend

Thinking Logically

• Radical Acceptance
• What Do I Have Control Over in This Moment

Practicing Regulating During An Emotional Crisis

• Distress Tolerance
• Progressive Muscle Relaxation (if feeling urgent, skip the first 2 mins 40 seconds)
• Paced Breathing (if feeling urgent, skip the first 3 minutes 50 seconds)

***Resources are not a substitute for therapy and are not intended for making diagnoses or providing treatment. Not all practices and tools are suitable for every person. Please discuss exercises, practices, and tools with your individual therapist or health care provider. ​

Looking from a trauma therapist in Oakland, CA? Learn more here.

Looking for a queer couples therapist in Oakland, CA? Learn more here. ​

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