ONE VERY SIMPLE exercise that alleviates stress – you need a pencil, paper and a moment for yourself

OHMYGOSSIP – Nowadays there is no such destroyer of health, eater of energy or mood killer than stress. We have for you a simple and efficient exercise that will help you alleviate stress on your own – that is the making of an MBB card! Just grab a pen, a paper and that’s all. When sometimes it just is so that something will remain there to disturb you, the shoulders will become tense and there is a lump in the throat, then you know that you will be able to help yourself.

Probably you have heard that some people are keeping a diary? When it seems that you are not that type: no worries, because with a pencil and paper you can also do something else. One possible way of calming your mind is the so to say mapping. It is one of the Mind Body Bridging methods. First lets just make it clear what Mind Body Bridging is.

Mind Body Bridging (MBB) is a method founded by professor of psychiatry, psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Stanley H. Block and his wife Carolyn Bryant Block. In MBB method there are similarities with dialectic behavior therapy and cognitive behavior therapy based on consciousness.

The aim of MBB exercises is to increase the skills of self regulation, the skills of observing and controlling emotions, thoughts and conduct, and through that support the growth of the person’s consistency.

What are MBB cards and how is one created?

1. In the middle of the card, draw a circle and in it write down the thing, event or situation that causes stress.

2. Around the circle write down the thoughts that this thing, event or situation reminds you of. Take a few minutes for that.

3. What is going on in your mind while you are writing down these things around the circle? What kind of feelings in your body did it create? What do you think, how you are doing in that situation now? Answer these questions and write them down on the paper.

Congratulations! The first card has been completed!

Still, the full task has not been completed yet, since you seek to get rid of those feelings. Therefore begin filling out the second card.

1. Again, draw a circle in the middle of the paper, and write down the same thing, event or situation inside it, that you also wrote down on the first card.

2. Pay attention to your surrounding. Listen to the sounds and feel how your hands are feeling when you hold the pen. What does it feel when your back is against the chair, your foot soles against the floor… Don’t hurry, remain in the moment until you feel that you have become calm.

3. Keep filling the card just like the first one: list the feelings that emerge because of the thing, event or situation written inside the circle.

4. What is going on in your mind, when you list them? What are the sensations in your body? Answer these questions and write down the answers. Are the answers similar or different as compared to the first card?

Possibly the second card displays at least somewhat different answers as compared to the first card. If that is the case, it means that you have silenced your identity system.

What is identity system?
MBB method is based on the idea that people have the so called identity system that can be either dormant or active.

An active identity system makes the person identify themselves with the circulating thoughts and physical stress. During that time you feel that your mind and body are going through stress. When identity system is dormant, there is enough attention to notice other emotions and minds.

MBB is a safe method for taking care of yourself and it is suitable for people undergoing and suffering from stress. Using this method does not presuppose prior courses. Our goal is to raise awareness about this efficient method and convince people that they will be able to help themselves.

Photo: Pexels
Source: Ohmygossip.ee

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