Emotional Processing Module Although cognitive behavior therapy stresses the

importance of cognition or thought in activating or maintaining negative mood or anxiety, there is a lot of importance in considering the role of emotional processing. In this module we will teach you the techniques related to activation of emotion through experimental or emotional focused therapy exercise.

In addition, we will examine how cognitive behavioral techniques can be utilized to explore and understand how we process and conceptualize emotion.

Let’s start with a recently event that made you very upset: Think about that event. Do you feel something?

Certain issues seem to bring up specific emotions for you. Let’s stay with these issues, try to focus on situations that represent or symbolize these issues. Close your eyes and try to feel the emotion that come with these memories or images.

As you focus on these emotions, try to notice any feeling in your body, notice your breathing, notice your physical sensations, are you noticing any feelings? Any thoughts? Any images?

Example: John had recently gone through a breakup with a

woman. In addition to being sad he feels sensations in his

body, he wants to cry and his heart is racing. When he closes his eyes and tries to concentrate on

his body he feels: There is a feeling in my chest …a feeling of

heaviness and I can feel my heart racing then I feel I am going to cry, but I do not cry because I would look like I lost control and people would think less of me, this is the way I am feeling right now and about my thought, I think that I cannot stand being alone, I want her to come back but I have to hide my emotion because it seems so pathetic.

Exercise 1: It is very important to be aware of your emotions.

They can be emotion of any kind –sad, happy, afraid –anything. Try to notice these emotions during the week and record them in your emotion log. We can use this log later to see the range of feelings you are experiencing.

Emotion Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday

HappyCurious Excited Angry Hurt Sad GuiltyJealous Irritated Regret Shame

 

Exercise 1: Check All That Apply

Exercise 2: Written Ventilation Technique In free expression of emotion, recall a troubling

event and write down a detailed description of it, paying close attention to the emotions that surface and meaning of event. Maybe the immediate effect may be an increase in negative feelings. As the negative events and the memories become more noticeable, there is often a decrease in negativity and a reduction in stress within days or weeks.

I’d like you to think back about the event that bothered you so much. Try to get a very clear recollection of the event and the experience you had. You could take about 20 min and write down all of your thoughts and feelings about the event.

Describe your memory of your story in as much detail as you can…

What feelings or emotions did you experience in this story? 

What thought do you have looking back at this story? 

What parts of this story –what memories-were the most painful?

 

How do you feel after writing down this story? 

As we remember things that happen, we often hone in on specific details. Specific things that made us laugh or made us upset.

Hot Spots As you recall your painful story or images, try to

notice if any specific details or parts of story that are especially difficult for you. Notice if there is any change in your emotions as you might become more upset with a specific image or detail. You might even find yourself “spacing out” on a specific detail. Perhaps one that is too difficult to pay attention to.

As you repeat that detail or image, ask yourself what about it is especially upsetting. What thoughts does this detail generate? What feelings?

Exercise 3:

Write down a memory of a traumatic or upsetting event with as much detail as possible. Read story several times, noting parts that are most upsetting, then go back over these most upsetting parts and write down any feelings and thoughts that go with these hot spots.

Exercise 3: Continued Describe the story or image in as much detail as you can.

Which specific parts of this story are most upsetting?

What feelings and thoughts do you have at these hot spots?

Identifying Emotional Schema

When we feel anxious, sad, angry, or confused, we may have different thoughts and experiencing these feelings. For example, some people may believe that these feelings will last a long time; whereas others believe they are temporary. Some people believe that they should not have certain feelings, whereas others accept these feelings.

Example:

Mary: I notice that I get upset about being anxious, when I notice that I am breathing rapidly and my heart is pounding, I think I am losing control. To avoiding losing control I try to take a deep breath. Then I think: “I should not feel this way, I am intelligent and rational not emotional. This does not make sense, I am in relationship and I am doing well at work. I should not be so anxious. I think no one can understand my problem. People see me on the top of things…

The goal of this section is to identifying these kinds of emotional schemas (the way we view our emotions), correcting them, and to help you experience and accept these emotions.

Exercise 4: We are interested in how you deal with your feelings or

emotions. For example, how do you deal with feelings of anger, sadness, anxiety, or sexual feelings. We all differ in how we deal with these feelings. There are no right or wrong answers. Please read each sentence carefully and rate it, (using the scale below) as how you have dealt with your feelings during the past month. Put the number of your response next to the sentence.

1=very untrue 2=somewhat untrue 3=slightly untrue 4=slightly true 5=somewhat true 6=very true

Exercise 4: Continued1=very untrue 2=somewhat untrue 3=slightly untrue 4=slightly true 5=somewhat true 6=very true Response Number1. When I feel down, I try to think about a different way to view things.2. When I have a feeling that bothers me, I think of why it is not important.3. I respond with feeling that others would not have.4. Some feelings are wrong to have.5. There are things about myself that I just do not understand.6. It’s important to let myself cry in order to get my feelings “out”7. If I let myself have some of these feelings, I fear I will lose control.8. Others understand and accept my feelings.9. You cannot allow yourself to have certain kinds of feeling10. My feelings do not make sense to me.11. If other people changed, I would feel a lot better.12. I think I have feelings that I am not really aware of.13. If I allowed myself to have strong feeling, it would not go away.14. I feel ashamed of myself.15. Things that bother other people do not bother me.16. I feel that I can express my feeling openly.17. I often say to myself “what’s wrong with me?”18. I accept my feelings.19. I often feel numb emotionally, like I have no feeling.20. I think that I have same feeling other people have.21. I think of myself as a shallow person.

Imaginary Descripting Technique

A traumatic experience may persist in memory for years, resulting in stress, anxiety, and lowered immunity. Attempting to modify traumatic images by relying solely on verbal disputation may not adequately activate the fear structure and provide you with a powerful enough encounter to the thoughts and feelings contained in the image.

The imaginary descripting technique lets you recreate your story in detail, so you can change the nature of the original traumatic event. It helps activate a stronger, more competent emotional component of the self that counters the defeated and victimized weaker self.

Example Bruce: I have a memory of my abusive and aggressive father. He used

to beat me and lock me in basement. I felt that he was like a piece of shit, I felt weak and I thought that no one cared about me. My father was always drunk and there was no escaping him….

We can ask Bruce to imagine his father really small, about 2 feet high and that he has a tiny, high–pitched voice. We can then ask Bruce imagine himself big, strong, and ferocious, clench his fist, and towering over his father.

Bruce: I can see him as a little midget with the squeaky voice, screaming at me, that I am not doing what I am supposed to be doing….

Example: Continued

We ask Bruce tell his father why he is nothing compare to Bruce.

Bruce: You are just a drunk and failure and a lousy father. I went to college _no thanks to you-

I raised a kid and I am a decent person and you are nobody.

We ask Bruce tell his father what he will do if his father hits him again

Bruce: I will kill you, I will throw you out of the window.

Exercise 5: Please recall a former traumatic experience and write down the

detail of it. Then imagine yourself in new reencounter as a strong, confident, aggressive, and confrontational.

When you initially experienced a trauma or stressful event, you may have viewed the other person as superior or more powerful. In the left hand column, write down a detailed description of what happened, what other person or event looked like, sounded like, said, did, ect. In the right hand column, rewrite the story. This time you are more powerful, while the other person is weak and scared. You are bigger, while the other person is smaller. You are the one in control while the other is afraid. Rewrite the story in a way that is going to make you the dominate one. Then write your thoughts and feelings about doing this exercise

Exercise 5: Continued Describe the original traumatic and stressful event.

What thoughts and feelings did you have about the other person and yourself when this happened?

Describe the event from a new perspective.

What thoughts and feelings do you have now?