Steps for increasing positive emotions/reducing negative emotions

Short term: Do pleasant things that are possible now
- Increase pleasant events that prompt positive emotions
- Do one thing each day from the Adult Pleasant Events Schedule (see Emotion Regulation Handout 8)

Long term: Make changes in your life so that positive events will occur more often. Build a "life worth living".
- Work towards goals: Accumulate positives
Make a list of positive events you want
List small steps towards goals
Take first step
- Attend to relationships
Repair old relationships
Reach out for new relationships
Work on current relationships
-Avoid avoiding. Avoid giving up

- Focus attention on positive events that happen.
- Refocus when your mind wanders to the negative.

- Distract from:
Thinking about when the positive experiences will end.
Thinking about whether you deserve this positive experience.
Thinking about how much more might be expected of you now.

This is the Adult Pleasant Events Schedule - Emotion Regulation Handout 8 I mentioned above. I had to take a picture of it because there was just too many to list.
http://i.imgur.com/vZ8LI.jpg 1-62
http://i.imgur.com/6PWme.jpg 63-129
http://i.imgur.com/N6gm4.jpg 130-176
http://i.imgur.com/y10S3.jpg Special interests


PLEASE MASTER
Treat PhysicaL illness - Take care of your body. See a doctor when necessary. Take prescribed medication
Balanced Eating - Don't eat too much or too little. Stay away from foods that make you feel overly emotional.
Avoid mood-Altering drugs - Stay off nonprescribed drugs, including alcohol.
Balanced Sleep - Try to get the amount of sleep that helps you feel good. Keep to a sleep program if you are having difficulty sleeping.
Get Exercise - Do some sort of exercise every day; try to build up to 20 minutes of vigorous exercise.

Build MASTERy - Try to do one thing a day to make yourself feel competent and in control.

Mastery isn't about doing something amazing that you should feel good about. Even if you did a good job of cleaning the dishes, or made a nice meal, or did well getting a replacement or refund at the store. Just something small that you are good at.

Keep a positive and negative jar.
You can do this daily, or weekly. You can also do this with beads, M&M's, anything you like.
Choose a colour for the negatives, choose a colour for the content/middle ground, and choose a colour for the positives.
Each time something positive happens, put a positive colour in the jar. Each time something content happens, put a content colour in the jar. Each time something negative happens, put a negative colour in the jar.
Here is a picture of mine. We got given these in DBT yesterday
http://i.imgur.com/8breG.jpg

It will make you realise that there may be a lot of negative in our lives as people struggling with BPD, but there are stilll a few positives in there.

Hopefully this will help improve the daily life for some people, who are still yet to have DBT treatment.

Other miscellaneous sheets
http://i.imgur.com/KtX8g.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/l7apr.jpg

This is really great...thank you so much.

I really like the M&Ms in a jar idea! What a great way to visualize that positive things do happen! Absolutely going to try this (if I can keep SO's sweet tooth away from the M&Ms )

Thank you for sharing the information that you have. I like the M&M jar idea too and the reaction page.

This is fantastic! Definitely things that I need to keep in mind more often.

I would also like to add, that things like gambling and stuff that is on there, please don't think you can do this if you have a gambling addiction or something.
These types of things are only recommended if you didn't have a problem with them in the first place, so choose something else.

This is what the people told us in DBT on Tuesday, as a patient questioned why something like that would be on there for a bunch of people with BPD.

Shameful bump, for those who haven't seen and hopefully will find useful.

Thank you...I can use all the help I can get right now and will definitely give it a try.

Great summary-- thanks!

Yeh, hey GI, this advice is very valuable here. Any more things you recommend or have experience with will be greatly appreciated. Thanks again

Thanks or sharing

Thank you for post, it is very inspiring

I will try. Not easy to do.