Cognitive-behavioral exercises. Body-oriented psychotherapy

Destructive feelings and stress create psychological discomfort and destroy personality. To relieve internal tension and correct the condition, body-oriented psychotherapy (BOP), based on the interaction of the mind and body, is used. The integrative method is aimed at identifying provoking causes, releasing locked-in emotions, and liberating the mind and body.

Our physical health directly depends on our mental health

The fear of admitting existing problems to oneself and deliberately repressing them from consciousness trigger a mechanism in the body that causes affective stagnation. Unspent energy of emotions and motor impulses creates blocks that prevent the passage of vital energy, which increases the load on joints and organs. Psychological aspects that depress the psyche complement the clinical picture. This:

perinatal distress;
children's fears, complexes;
internal contradictions;
interpersonal and social conflicts.

Internal tension activates the neuroendocrine and autonomic systems, leading to pathological changes in blood vessels, smooth muscles, and the hormonal system. If it is not eliminated through bodily relaxation, it is fraught with:

the appearance of psychosomatic diseases - hypertension, ulcers, asthma, and other serious pathologies;
vegetative neuroses.

Body-oriented psychotherapy is not considered an alternative to traditional medicine, but it greatly increases the chances of recovery.

Who is treated?

Oscar Wilde in Dorian Gray showed by example how life experience and vices are reflected in appearance. If you look closely at the faces of young people, you will notice unnaturally pursed lips, progressive wrinkles on the forehead, and clenched jaws. Stiff movements and scoliosis are also signs of muscle tension. At certain moments, emotional experiences paralyzed areas of the body, imprinting masks and gestures in muscle memory that protected from experiences.

The effectiveness of body therapy has been proven in practice

Body therapy is indicated for:

in protracted conflicts;
chronic fatigue, apathy;
internal constriction that interferes with communication, relationships, and career;
panic attacks;
after divorce, loss of a loved one.

Traumatic experiences disrupt the connection between mind and body, leading to chronic stress and depression. Unlike other techniques, TOP does not censor the mind by identifying ineffective beliefs. With its help, hidden problems that you don’t always want to share with others are delicately resolved.

Modern methods of treatment

Corrective technologies include different areas. The combination of different techniques increases the effectiveness of psychotherapy. Among them:

Massage.
Bioenergy according to the principle of A. Lowen.
Primary therapy by A. Yanov.
Methods of Ida Rolf and Moshe Feldenkrais.
System "sensory consciousness".
Techniques of respiratory self-regulation, muscle relaxation.
Working with images, body diagram.

The creator of the method, V. Reich, was the first to discover that muscle relaxation releases trapped energy. He compared movements, grimaces and habits, and analyzed how emotions are suppressed in the body. As soon as a person accepts the repressed emotion, spasms and energy blocks disappear. He suggested stretching the body with your hands and doing physical activity to relieve muscle tension. According to Lowen, the creator of bioenergetic analysis, a body-oriented approach to psychotherapy is the key to understanding the emotional state.

It is useful to stretch the body with your hands, relieving physical tension.

Bodynamic analysis by L. Marcher is based on the anatomical classification of muscles. It covers the stages of muscle development from the prenatal period and proves that standard reactions lead to disruption of the development of certain muscle groups. For this purpose, a body map with a projection of psychological aspects was created. For example, facial wrinkles express conditions, pectoral muscles are associated with self-esteem. Unrealized emotional energy blocks the development of these zones, creating muscle imbalance. The condition of the muscles allows the psychotherapist to form an overall picture.

From the TOP point of view, the blocks are located in the eyes, jaws, throat, diaphragm, pelvis and abdominal area. They begin to form in childhood from the bottom up, cover the entire body and create a shell - static muscle tension, dulling feelings that interfere with the flow of orgone energy, which affects sexuality and the freedom to express experiences.

The discomfort that arises are signals with the help of which the subconscious tries to draw attention to the problems of the body. To synchronize mental and physical energies, it is necessary to get rid of interference in the body. When normal circulation is restored, positive changes in health and psyche will occur.

TOP trainings allow you to experience traumatic situations and key life events in a new way. Training in body-oriented psychotherapy is carried out individually and in group classes.

What is the specialist’s task?

Working with physics helps to understand and accept repressed problems. A body-oriented psychotherapist destroys muscle armor, helps you relax, eliminating spasms and emotions. Before starting practice, the doctor always evaluates:

pose, posture, gestures;
gait, range of motion;
muscle mass.

To imagine how the method works, we can draw an analogy with Ovid’s Metamorphoses, when a stone statue came to life. Galatea's eyes first opened, her lips began to move, and the stiffness of her body disappeared.

Physical manipulation of the body can stabilize the mental state

When pressing on the points near the eyes, tears begin to flow involuntarily, and after working with the lower part of the face, people begin to naturally react to situations, expressing their internal state through facial expressions.

Physical manipulations with the body allow you to verbally analyze the state. Muscular freedom expands the range of movement, allows you to understand body language, and restore a comfortable moral state. As soon as a person is immersed in transpersonal experiences and gives freedom to feelings, internal liberation occurs.

How to get rid of trauma

Mental shock creates tension in smooth muscles. If a thought and what happened causes a tightening in the throat or discomfort in the body, the localization of the problem can be determined by physical sensations. To get rid of, for example, lumbago in the back, a person attends massage sessions, but after stress the pain returns. Without eliminating the cause, the effect of treatment is temporary.

A good massage helps to cope with mental trauma

Working with trauma in body-oriented psychotherapy consists of several stages:

De-energizing provoking impulses.
Cleansing psychological space.
Restoration of central nervous system reflexes.
Adaptation of the psyche to strong experiences (containment), strengthening natural self-regulatory mechanisms.
Adding new information.

There are no universal technologies that instantly relieve stress. Psychotherapists use:

somatic experiences of P. Levin;
somatic therapy by R. Selvan;
F. Mott biosynthesis;
art therapy;
Jungan analysis and other methods

The most commonly used are massage and relaxation techniques. All practices begin with breathing. Control of the “inhale-exhale” cycle is the basis of all relaxation techniques. According to the Reich method, before the session the patient lies down and breathes, focusing on bodily sensations.

Lowen suggests an exercise to activate the sympathetic nervous system to prepare the systems and organs for emotional experiences. You need to stand with your back to a high stool, put a pillow on top for protection, bend your back backwards, grabbing the back of the chair behind it, and perform several breathing cycles.

Body psychotherapy techniques

Before attending a group lesson, you can master the basic practices at home, which are included in the set of exercises of body-oriented psychotherapy.

Gymnastics for the eyes

The technique consists of 6 parts. We sit down on a chair and place our feet on the floor. Close your eyelids tightly and relax the orbicularis oculi muscle with tapping movements. We open our eyes as wide as possible and look up. Repeat 3 times. We focus at each point for 8 seconds.

Move the eyeballs to the left - to the right, hold for 8 seconds.
Slowly lower and raise the eyeball. We perform the cycle until pain is felt.
Rotate 10 times clockwise and in the opposite direction.
We repeat point number 1.
We sit for 5 minutes with our eyelids closed. During relaxation, discomfort in the throat and jaws is often felt.

Gymnastics for the eyes is another method of body-oriented psychotherapy

This Feldenkrais exercise relieves tension from the eyeballs and synchronizes movements.

We sit on a chair, move our right leg far to the side, and pull our left leg towards us. We turn around, lean on the left hand, raise the right one to eye level, and move it horizontally.
Having closed our left eye, we look away from our right hand to the wall and back to our fingers. Change hands and close your right eye. We perform 10 times on both sides. To make it more difficult, we repeat the pattern with our eyes open, tracking how much the angle of lateral vision has expanded.

"Lowen's Ring"

People suffering from neuroses lose most of their energy to maintain the functioning of their defense mechanisms. This exercise will help you relax your midsection, nervous system, and feel your body.

The stronger the support under your feet, the safer a person feels. We place our feet on the shoulder line with our toes turned inward and perform a deflection. Bending your knees, reach the floor with your hands and transfer your body weight to your toes. We breathe deeply and measuredly. Holding for a minute in a static position should cause trembling.

"Lowen's Arch"

Practice for the stomach. We place our feet wider than 40 cm, turn our toes inward, clench our fists, and press our thumbs up into the sacrum. Without lifting your heels, lower your body, bending backwards. From the center of the foot to the shoulders we stretch the body into a string. If the muscles are in severe spasm, you will not be able to get into the correct position the first time due to pain.

Pelvic deflection

We lie down on the carpet, bend our legs, spread our feet 30 cm apart. We tear off our shoulder blades, stretch forward, and clasp our ankles with our hands. We swing back and forth 10 times. To stretch, place your fists under your heels and raise your pelvis until your thigh muscles tremble. For effect, swing the middle part of the body.

Psychotherapists insist on the benefits of the “bicycle” exercise

Body psychotherapy exercises are not limited to static poses. To finally relieve tension from the pelvic area, lie on your back and actively move your legs in the air, touching the wall or bed. We constantly increase the speed of movement and strength, saying “no” loudly. It is important to consciously perform the techniques and monitor physical sensations.

Releasing Anger

To give vent to anger, we visualize the object of irritation, strike with strong blows with a racket, stick, fists on a pillow, or a punching bag. We breathe through our mouths, we don’t hold back our emotions and words.

According to reviews, body-oriented psychotherapy helps cope with pain, corrects the emotional state, and improves the quality of life. Main, admit to yourself the problem and seek help from a specialist.

Psychological exercises help training participants to better know themselves, see their strengths and weaknesses, and outline paths for immediate development. Another important task of psychological exercises is to learn to better understand other people and to negotiate with them more easily.

Psychological exercises very diverse. But, ultimately, they all help the training participants become more harmonious, more successful, and happier.

Psychological exercises Most often used in personal growth trainings. But not only that. Trainers also often include psychological exercises in their training programs for communication, confidence, stress resistance, and goal setting.

Experts from the largest professional portal for trainers have selected for you 7 interesting psychological exercises, which can be found in the public domain.

Psychological exercise “Gift”

Target: The exercise increases the self-esteem of the participants and stimulates them to work on themselves. Improves the mood of participants and the atmosphere in the group.

Time: 25-35 minutes

Group size: 8-16 participants

Let's sit in a circle. Have each of you take turns giving a gift to your neighbor on the left (clockwise). The gift must be given (given) silently (non-verbally), but in such a way that your neighbor understands what you are giving him. The one who receives a gift should try to understand what is being given to him. Until everyone receives gifts, there is no need to say anything. We do everything silently.

When everyone receives gifts (the circle is closed), the coach turns to the group member who received the gift last and asks him what gift he received. After he answers, the coach turns to the participant who gave the gift and asks what kind of gift he gave. If there are discrepancies in the answers, you need to find out what exactly is causing the misunderstanding. If a group member cannot say what they were given, you can ask the group about it.

Results of the exercise:

When discussing the exercise, participants can formulate conditions that facilitate understanding in the communication process. Most often, these conditions include highlighting a significant, clearly understood sign of a “gift”, using adequate means of non-verbal depiction of a significant sign, and concentrating attention on the partner.

Psychological exercise “My shortcomings”

Target: The exercise increases the self-esteem of the participants and stimulates them to work on themselves.

Time: 25-35 minutes

Group size: Any

It is very important to try to find a new name for your imagined shortcomings. Label them as follows: properties that can be improved. The word "weakness" carries connotations of hopelessness and immutability. By replacing it with something that allows for improvement, you begin to look at life differently.

Take 5 minutes to write a detailed list of reasons why you can't love yourself. If you don’t have enough time allotted, you can write longer, but in no case less. After you write, cross out everything that correlates with the general rules and principles: “Loving yourself is not modest,” “A person should love others, not himself.” Let only those things that are personally connected with you remain on the list of shortcomings.

Now you have a list of your shortcomings, a list of what is ruining your life. Think about it, if these shortcomings belonged not to you, but to some other person whom you love very much, which of them would you forgive him or, perhaps, even consider as advantages? Cross out these traits; they could not stop you from loving another person and, therefore, they cannot prevent you from loving yourself.

Note those traits, those shortcomings that you could help him overcome. Why don't you do the same for yourself? Write them down on a separate list, and cross out those that you can overcome.

With those that remain, do the following: let’s say to ourselves that we have them, we need to learn to live with them and think about how to cope with them.

We will not abandon our loved one if we find out that some of his habits, to put it mildly, do not suit us.

Psychological exercise “I want to change myself”

Target: Exercise helps to develop new qualities in oneself and accelerates the personal growth of participants.

Time: 25-35 minutes

Group size: Any

To begin the exercise, take paper and pen and divide the sheet into two columns.

Traits I want to get rid of

Character Traits I Want to Acquire

Now, placing the prepared table in front of you, try to relax and think about yourself. You can turn off the lights, but leave enough light so you can write. Then look at the first column, start brainstorming, and quickly and without thinking, write down all the traits you want to get rid of. Write down everything that comes to your mind, and don’t try to judge whether it’s realistic for you to get rid of this quality.

For example, if you snore, then most likely you are not able to get rid of such an ailment - this fact does not prevent you from writing it down in the first column. Continue until you write down at least 5-7 character traits. Then turn to the second column, start brainstorming and quickly write down all the traits you want to acquire. In some cases, they may be the opposite of the traits you want to get rid of (for example, instead of being shy, you want to be more outgoing; instead of being intolerant of people, you want to be more tolerant).

Wonderful!

Just continue this process and write down whatever comes to your mind without trying to criticize or evaluate it. In addition, do not try to judge now whether it is realistic for you to acquire this quality. Again, continue writing until you have listed at least five traits or until the process begins to slow down. When you feel complete, you are ready to prioritize the traits you want to get rid of or gain.

Eliminate repetition first. For example, if you wrote down “become less negative and critical,” the opposite trait would be “become more positive and supportive.” Once you've written down that opposite trait, cross out the character trait you want to get rid of. To set priorities, look at each trait on the list one by one and determine how important it is to you by assigning a letter:

A (very important)
B (important)
C (nice to have, but not that important)

Write these letters next to each line. Look at the traits labeled A. If you have more than one trait in this category, rank them in order of priority: 1, 2, 3, etc.

You have now set your priorities and will work on developing the traits that are most important to you first. But work on developing a maximum of three traits at a time. Once you feel confident that you have made them your personality traits, move on to the next traits on your list in order of priority (work on all the A traits in order, then the B traits, and finally the C traits). If you feel like you've changed a lot, make a new list of priorities for yourself.

Psychological exercise “No judgments”

Target: Exercise trains the ability to communicate non-judgmentally, develops a more positive attitude towards people.

Time: 15-20 minutes

Group size: Any

The group is divided into pairs. Partners need to take turns telling each other about mutual acquaintances, avoiding judgments. Statements should be in a descriptive style.

Each partner works for 4 minutes. During his speech, the second partner monitors the presence of assessments and marks (gives a signal) if there are any.

What were the difficulties?
What helped you avoid judgmental statements?
What new qualities have you discovered in yourself?

Psychological exercise “Tangled chains”

Target: The exercise teaches you to communicate effectively with each other and helps unite the team.

Time: 15-30 minutes

Group size: 12-20 participants

All group members stand in a circle, close their eyes and extend their right hand in front of them. And they clasp with the hand they met first.

Then the participants extend their left arms and again look for a partner. The leader helps the hands connect and makes sure that everyone is holding the hands of two people, not just one.

Participants open their eyes.

Now their task is to untangle themselves without unclenching their hands.

As a result, the following options are possible: either a circle is formed, or several linked rings of people, or several independent circles or pairs.

Summing up the exercise:

Are you satisfied with your result?
What helped and what hindered you in the process?
Who would you like to highlight and thank for your results?

Psychological exercise “Taking risks”

Target: This is a very short exercise. Trust exercise.

Time: 5 minutes

Group size: Any

Now we will conduct an exercise that involves a certain risk. I ask you to trust me and join the circle of those who want to help me..."

After everyone has entered the circle, thank them and tell them that the exercise is over.

Summing up the exercise:

Ask those who came out why they did it? For those who did not enter, why? Discuss how the phrase “Trust me” influenced their decision.

Why do people often trust others without thinking about the consequences, etc.?

Psychological exercise “Life goals”

Target: Exercise helps you develop life goals.

Time: 25-35 minutes

Group size: Any

Step 1. Let's talk about your life goals. Take a pen and paper. Take 15 minutes to think about the question, “What do I really want to get out of my life?” Don’t think for a long time, write down everything that comes to your mind. Pay attention to all areas of your life. Fantasize. The more, the better. Answer the question as if you have an unlimited resource of time. This will help you remember everything you strive for.

Step 2. Now, in two minutes, you need to choose what you would like to devote to the next three years. And after that, another two minutes - to add or change the list. Goals must be realistic. As you work through this and subsequent steps, as opposed to the first, write as if these were your last years and months. This will allow you to concentrate on the things that really matter to you.

Step 3. Now we will define goals for the next six months - two minutes to create a list and two minutes to adjust it.

Step 4. Take two minutes to work on auditing your goals. How specific are they, how consistent are they with each other, how realistic are your goals in terms of time and available resources. Perhaps you should introduce a new goal - acquiring a new resource.

Step 5. Review your lists periodically, if only to make sure you are moving in the chosen direction. Doing this exercise is similar to using a map on a hike. From time to time you turn to it, adjust the route, perhaps even change direction, but most importantly, you know where you are going.

Summing up the exercise:

How do you feel after the exercise?
What interesting conclusions have you drawn for yourself?
What was unexpected for you?
What was the hardest thing? Why?
Who has made a realistic plan and is ready to follow it?

So, we have presented to your attention 7 high-quality psychological exercises. But it is worth considering that since these exercises are taken from free sources, they may already be known to the participants of your trainings, since they are available to many trainers.

When you will need:

exclusive and best exercises, known only to a small circle of professional trainers
exercises with detailed instructions coaching methodology for conducting them, which reveals the entire “underwater part” of coaching work, all coaching “tricks” and secrets,

then you can always find such exercises for training on a professional coaching portal

This portal grew out of the largest psychological center “Sinton”. Over more than 30 years of work as a center, Sinton has probably collected the largest database of the best games and exercises for psychological training.

the site is a team of professional trainers who:

they only select the best, brightest and most effective exercises on a variety of coaching topics
describe professionally and in detail a hidden method for carrying them out!

You can purchase our training exercise manuals at the most affordable prices in the section.

The “Traffic Light” exercise is unique because it is the original development of psychology professor N.I. Kozlov.

An exercise incredibly effective in its effectiveness, capable of making a “revolution” in the minds of the training participants in just an hour. A real "pearl".

Many people do not know how to appreciate what they already have in their lives: material, spiritual benefits, relationships with loved ones. If, in an unexpected way, a person loses what he previously had, he finds himself in a state of emotional negativity. And the stronger the degree of negativity the event, the more difficult it is for a person to maintain his positive attitude towards people in particular and towards life in general. Using this tool, the trainer helps participants, without going through a situation of loss in life, take an inventory of their values, while simultaneously reducing their emotional involvement in an unpleasant situation.

What do you think will happen if you invite training participants to learn a technique that allows you to completely understand and feel your interlocutor, right down to his sense of self and train of thought? Most likely, they will think that you are either pranking them, or that you will teach them some complex technique that takes years to learn and has a natural predisposition.

What if you tell them that this is not a joke and that in 30 minutes you will actually teach them simple and accessible technique for understanding your communication partner, a technique that anyone can learn? Of course, they will happily jump at this opportunity.

The “Feeling” exercise gives you the opportunity to practice this very technique and get amazing results in the first stages.

Very effective and “deep” exercise, capable of causing real changes in the self-esteem of training participants.

The “Court” exercise is really similar to a court hearing, so it will most likely become the most striking and important event of the training for all participants, who get the opportunity to publicly hear feedback from their group colleagues. Despite the fact that feedback is given in a constructive form, it still contains both “positive” and “negative” remarks, and therefore will be a real test for the group. But at the end of the training participants will receive the opportunity to see the adequacy of one’s self-esteem, test your ability to calmly listen or voice criticism, and gain a more objective understanding of how their actions and manifestations are assessed by others.

Exercise is a must for everyone confidence training(What confidence can there be without adequate and stable self-esteem?). It will fit perfectly into personal growth training and will be a good addition to stress resistance training.

Game exercise, expanding the training participants’ self-image, increasing confidence and opening up new perspectives. Reveals the creative potential of training participants, sets up and motivates the group for further work. Maybe like warming up, and the main thematic exercise.

Exercise “I can do it very well!” perfect for personal growth and motivational trainings. Would be a good option for teenagers and youth groups. It can be successfully combined with the objectives of team-building trainings, and can be made very indicative of confidence training. In addition, the exercise is indispensable for training in starting your own business and employment training.

A very good and effective exercise in determination, providing training participants with the opportunity to work through their doubts and possible obstacles on the path to their goal. Increases the energy and motivation of the group for further learning.

Suitable for any training related to the topic of achieving goals. First of all, these are, of course, trainings in goal setting, self-confidence, motivational trainings, as well as trainings in personal growth and stress resistance.

The trainer has the opportunity to clearly demonstrate to participants how minor obstacles that arise can interfere with the achievement of goals, and how to easily overcome them simply by having the proper determination.

We recommend unique coaching techniques for the best exercises for training:

Role-playing game "Incident at the Hotel"
A bright and memorable exercise, which clearly demonstrates to training participants the weak points in the ability to negotiate or establish contact in sales, and also shows which techniques and techniques lead to success in sales and negotiations, and which - vice versa. Which ones allow you to quickly establish contact, and which ones are more likely to heat up the situation.

Exercise “Incident at the Hotel” is perfect for sales training, negotiation training, confident behavior training, influence training.

Thanks to an unusual legend, the “Incident in a Hotel” exercise increases the level of involvement of training participants, the energy of the group, motivation for further education.
Warm-up exercise “Unclench your fist”
An effective exercise suitable for many training topics. Taking only 10-15 minutes, the exercise allows the trainer to quickly raise the energy level of the group, in a memorable way to attract the attention of participants to the next topic and increase the motivation of participants for further learning.

The exercise clearly demonstrates to participants that forceful methods of influence give losing results, but we often act out of habit using forceful methods.

The exercise will be a good lead-in to mini-lectures on the following topics: how to deal with client objections; How can a manager deal with employee resistance? how to behave in a conflict situation...

Volume of the coaching manual: 8 pages.

Bonus! An audio recording of the exercise and appropriate music are included.
Challenge exercise "Walk to the chair"

A powerful exercise for goal setting or negotiation training. The exercise clearly demonstrates to training participants their habitual patterns of behavior and helps to reveal negative attitudes, beliefs that prevent them from easily achieving their goals or negotiating. Provides training participants with new resources.

The training manual for the exercise was developed by professionals especially for the Coaching portal. ru and contains a lot of unique recommendations, tips and coaching tricks that allow you to carry out the exercise with maximum results. You won't find this anywhere else!
Volume of the coaching manual: 12 pages.
Bonus! The manual contains 3 exercise options at once (! ), suitable for three different training topics: achieving goals, negotiations and effective communication.

“The truth is always the same, the pharaoh said it,” sang the Nautilus Pompilius group. Although you don't have to be a pharaoh to understand this.

Objective reality is objective because it does not tolerate variability. It is based on fact. And “fact,” as everyone who has read Mikhail Bulgakov knows, “is the most stubborn thing in the world.” By itself, it does not tolerate fantasy and distortion.

But the perception of reality is subjective. Someone will say about their interlocutor: “He has a kind smile.” Another will consider this smile “sinister”, “insincere” or “flirting”. In this case, the only fact is that the smile took place. Law enforcement officials sometimes simply have to solve charades when trying to identify the facts in witness statements. What was this “tall, short, thin, fat man, completely bald, burning brunette with black blue eyes” really like?

Projections force us to distort reality. This is a protective mechanism that works for our benefit, only sometimes this benefit turns out to be dubious... Projection is colored glasses placed over the eyes, as in “Emerald City”. They help us see reality the way we want to see it. If reality appears embellished, such projections are called “positive”; if reality is denigrated, they are called “negative”.

In the case of positive projections, one can remain in blissful idealization. It gives pleasure and gives a false sense of security. It is more pleasant to walk through the dark thicket, considering wolves to be vegetarians. A variety of benefits can be hidden behind positive projections.

I was once in a company in which one woman constantly referred to the opinion of, say, Petrov (she gave her real name). And she did it with great reverence, for any reason. Invisible Petrov acted as an expert in the field of politics, science, art, sports and so on. “But regarding geopolitical processes in the world, Petrov believes... The future of our country, in Petrov’s opinion... Petrov said about the theory of relativity...” I felt embarrassed: I didn’t know who this great man was. “Like who?” – the interlocutor was offended. And she proudly explained: “My husband!” It turned out that her husband is a system administrator without a higher education. But the wife uses it as a “narcissistic extension”: it’s awkward to praise herself, but if she is the wife of “such a person,” then this raises her status.

In the case of negative projections, there is also a hidden benefit: the ability to see the speck in someone else's eye, and not the beam in your own. One’s own denied traits are projected onto another person: that’s who he is, not me!

One of my friends complains that the women around her are constantly jealous of her: work colleagues, roommates, former classmates. Naturally, I asked: “What about you?” - “I’m not the kind of person to envy anyone! I'm not like that! I never envy anyone!” – the friend was indignant. If a person does not want to see something in himself, he begins to see it in others.

Negative projections are no less sweet than positive ones: they help to whitewash oneself, denigrating another, and give the right to righteous indignation, and even revenge.

Projections are sweet and... useless. And sometimes even dangerous.

Once I was at an international seminar on biosynthesis. One of the participants began to make complaints to the presenter: “You don’t respect my projections!” To which the presenter gave a wonderful answer: “Yes, I don’t respect your projections. I don't respect projections at all. I respect facts. And projection distorts the fact.”

Projection disrupts contact with reality, the so-called “testing of reality,” that is, the criticality of perception. And if the violation of reality testing reaches a certain limit, then madness begins, a distortion of the objective picture of the world. This is what distinguishes between “fantasies” and “phantasms”. Everyone has fantasies, this is a preserved children's game, only transferred to the imagination, a game with oneself.

Any fantasies have the right to exist as long as their owner understands that he is imagining them. If “pretend” turned into “really”, then this is already a phantasm - a fantasy in the reality of which a person believed. With fantasy, contact with reality is maintained, but phantasm replaces reality. Phantasms are one of the characteristic features of the picture of mental illness. Imagine yourself as a hero saving the Universe from the next Dark Lord, or even as the Dark Lord himself – it’s a matter of taste. But if you really believe this, you will have to prove your case to psychiatrists.

Projections have the “remarkable” property of being confirmed. Depending on the initial attitude, prejudice, we perceive reality selectively, subjectively, in accordance with our attitude. And then we say: “I knew it!” This psychophysiological mechanism was described a hundred years ago by our world-famous compatriot, Alexey Ukhtomsky, in the theory of dominance.

Adequate reality testing is one of the signs of mental health and psychological well-being and safety. There is no need to run away from reality; there are enough resources to be fully present in it.

Reality testing closely related to “grounding” (“grounding”, if one prefers borrowed words). “Grounding” is a metaphor for contact with reality.

We offer you psychotherapeutic exercises for grounding, helping to be in reality to the fullest and enjoy life.

Exercise 1. Hello body!

(According to the M. Feldenkrais system)

You will need: sheet of paper and colored crayons.

Instructions

Lie on your back on a fairly hard surface (your favorite soft sofa will not work). The arms are spread out freely or lie along the body; it is better not to put a pillow under the head. Listen carefully to your body, run through it with your inner gaze from bottom to top. Pay attention to how the body is in contact with the surface. Find all contact areas. And make a drawing: what imprint would your body leave on the surface? Hint: It will be a combination of spots, not an outline, as the neck, knees and lower back form "arches".

Exercise 2. Improving your gait

(From Bioenergetics by A. Lowen)

You will need: 15–20 minutes of free time.

Instructions

Walk barefoot, feeling your feet touching the floor. Feel how stable they are.

Now play: walk on the outside of your foot, then on the inside, shifting your weight back and forth.

After this, return to your normal gait. Do your feet feel more stable? Has body weight been redistributed?

Exercise 3. Stand on your own two feet

(From biosynthesis by D. Boadella)

You will need: two sheets of paper and colored crayons.

Instructions

Walk barefoot, feeling your feet well. Notice whether the left and right feet differ in stability. Which one seems more reliable? Which carries more load? Are you placing them symmetrically?

Now circle each of them and color the drawing. Which picture of feet is easier to color? Do you like the drawings? Do your feet feel stable and secure?

This exercise helps to establish contact with the feet and optimize grounding.

Exercise 4. Tumbler

(From bodydynamics by L. Marcher)

You will need: some free time.

Instructions

Stand with your feet stable—not too close. Feel the center of gravity in your lower abdomen and feet at the same time. Play with the center of gravity - try to move it in different directions (due to body movements), while keeping your feet in place.

Tip: Stability will increase if you bend your knees slightly and feel your legs springy, like a cat's paws.

These exercises help you understand that the physical and mental are closely connected. The more stable the body, the calmer it is psychologically. The better the body feels, the more complete the contact with reality.

No projections

Feeling reality more fully is wonderful! Freedom of choice becomes more likely, life becomes more interesting. How does it happen that we refuse these benefits? How does projection become pathological? I am convinced that at every moment of time a person does the best of what he is capable of. Surely you rarely have to choose whether to react with a projection or not. It just happens and that's it. And this was once the best thing you could do, the projective defense mechanism helped you. Perhaps, having experienced strong envy in a family where this feeling was frowned upon, the only way to deal with it was to attribute it to someone else. So what? Also a way. But you weren't rejected. Perhaps now, as an adult, you can ask yourself: “Am I jealous of someone?” This way you will find out whether you are able to survive your own envy and feel more fully about yourself and your life. What if the time has come?

Olga Sveshnikova, psychologist, gestalt therapist

"Overcoming Anxiety" (according to Gestalt therapeutic technique)

In order to overcome anxiety, which significantly impairs the quality of your life, you need to do the following:

Step 1. Ask yourself, and most importantly, honestly answer the following questions:

“By worrying and worrying about the future, am I destroying my present?”;
“Am I feeling anxious because my problem is “huge and insoluble” or am I just stalling for time to solve it?”;
“Is it possible to do now what worries me so much?” For example, make an appointment with your loved one, start a serious conversation, make a plan, etc.

Step 2. After you have answered the above questions, try to imagine and transfer your experiences to today and experience them right now. You will see that it is quite difficult to worry and worry about what is already happening “here, at this moment in time.”

Step 3. We focus on our surroundings:

Try to focus on your senses, i.e. listen to sounds, smells and pay attention to colors;
On a piece of paper: “I realize that...” write down everything that you felt.

Step 4. We focus on the inner world:

We listen to the heartbeat, breathing, skin, muscles, etc.;
We take the same piece of paper and write “I realize that...” our feelings.

After this, think: “Did you feel all parts of the body?” If “no”, then do the fourth point several times so as not to leave any part of your body unattended.

By performing this exercise, anxiety will begin to recede, you will calm down, as you will transfer your attention to another activity. Next time, as soon as you start to experience anxiety, perform the 4 points of this exercise step by step.

If your fear is a consequence of an irrational idea (false, without a real basis), then you need to do the following:

Try to laugh at your fear, and at the fear of fear;

For example, why do you need your family's approval for a cooked dinner? Think rationally: if the dish was tasteless (oversalted, undercooked, too fatty, etc.), then they would definitely say so, but since they eat in silence, it means they like everything. Laugh at the fact that you are waiting for approval where it should not be expected?

Honestly and openly tell a trusted person about your fear and show the emotions that you experience;
Try to find the root cause of your fear, i.e. irrational (incorrect, false) idea of what should be and replace it with a rational (reasonable);
Observe your fears, admit to yourself that they are petty and insignificant and find the “correct” idea of what should be, challenge and gradually overcome them.

For example, you feel fear because you are afraid to show others how worried you are about someone or something. Understand that there is nothing shameful or scary in the fact that others see that you are worried. Admit to yourself that your fear of showing your emotions is groundless and unreasonable. Remember that every person has the right to emotions and experiences.

"Increasing creative activity" (according to D. Scott)

This exercise is also called “Brainstorming”.

Step 1. We write down ideas and solutions to the problem - without much thought, take a sheet of paper and write down the first solutions to this problem that came to your mind. This is necessary in order to eliminate all your possible fears and worries about subsequent failure, to eliminate all the “brakes” and the influence of the mechanisms of your consciousness, which can, and worst of all, probably arise during prolonged reflection.

Step 2. Self-assessment of solutions is a critical-analytical part of the exercise, which will identify suitable and unsuitable solutions. You need to evaluate your decisions using a 5-point system, from the most reasonable and correct decision (score “5”) to the most inappropriate (score “2”).

Step 3. Selection of the best solution - this may be one most suitable option, or it may be a combination of several that will lead to a positive solution to the problem.

This is a kind of “cleansing of the brain” from “unnecessary” thoughts.

Step 1. Listen to your feelings that you experience during stress, perhaps you are “breaking out in a sweat” or you are tense from anticipation.

Step 2. Now do it on purpose to feel the moment when you are very tense. Ask yourself a question and answer it: “For what and why am I working so hard?”

Step 3. Now ask yourself the following question: “What do I need to make me feel better?”

Step 4. For 2-3 minutes, exaggerate your sensations, during this time you will “break out in a sweat” or experience colossal tension. Without doing anything, just feel this state and make sure that it takes a lot of energy and strength, and that this energy is wasted.

Step 5. After the observation experiment, answer yourself: “Do I need such tension? Is this good for me? Do I want to get rid of him?

Step 6. The next step is to realize that your demands are creating a feeling of desperation.

Step 7 Let's get straight to relaxation. To do this, you need to imagine that all your muscles have become like pliable dough or foam rubber. Try to catch a state of balance.

Step 8“We clear our brain of unnecessary things” and do something constructive and necessary instead of wasting our strength and energy on useless tension or “pushing through.”

Step 9. The last step will be to consciously replace your requirements with your preferences.

“Resolving a stressful situation using the “Swing” method (according to R. Bandler)

Stand comfortably or sit down and close your eyes. Now imagine that you have one photograph in both hands:

In one hand there is a card with a photograph of your problem or a negative situation that you would not like to see. It is gloomy, everything is negative and blurry;
In the other hand is a card where a pleasant situation is photographed in bright multi-colored colors, looking at which you are visited by positive emotions, such as joy, calmness, happiness, etc.

Now with one stroke, i.e. With lightning speed, lower the negative photo onto your knee so that you stop seeing it, and raise the positive one to eye level.

This exercise must be done at the moment when a stressful situation manifests itself and you feel tense. Such lightning-fast replacement of photographs must be done until the positive image finally displaces the negative one.

“Correction of negative behavior through self-analysis” (according to D. Rayworth)

Be an indifferent bystander– this is the main condition when performing this exercise. You must listen, concentrate your attention, be aware of your feelings, feel them and remember them, but not change anything. Such exercises are done in privacy so that you are not disturbed or distracted.

Step 1. Concentrating on our physical body:

It doesn’t matter whether you are sitting, lying or standing, pay attention to how your legs and arms are positioned, whether your head is lowered or thrown back, whether your back is hunched, etc.;
Concentrate on where you are now in pain or feeling tension, etc.;
We listen to breathing and heartbeat.

Tell yourself: “ This is my body, but I am not the body».

Step 2. Concentrating on our feelings:

We listen to your feelings that you are experiencing now;
Find and separate the positive side from the negative side of these feelings.

Tell yourself: “ These are my feelings, but I am not these feelings».

Step 3. We focus on our desires:

List your existing desires and aspirations, if you have them;
Without thinking about their importance or prioritizing them, list them one by one.

Tell yourself: “ These are my desires, but I am not these desires».

Step 4. We concentrate on our thoughts:

Catch the thought you are thinking right now. Even if you think that you don’t have any thoughts at the moment, this is a thought and you need to watch it;
If there are a lot of thoughts, then watch how one thought replaces another. It doesn’t matter at all whether they are correct and rational, just concentrate on them.

Tell yourself: “ These are my thoughts, but I am not these thoughts».

A similar “Self-Correction” exercise belongs to psychosynthesis techniques and will allow you to observe and see your body, feelings, desires and thoughts as if from the outside.

This exercise also refers to psychosynthesis techniques and consists of external observation of oneself. The purpose of the exercise is to help develop self-awareness and reveal your true self.

Each person is like a multi-layered onion, where our true “I” is hidden layer by layer. Such layers can be masks that we “choose” every day for the appropriate occasion and “put on” on ourselves so that people do not see our true feelings or those qualities that we are ashamed of or that we do not like in ourselves. But there are also positive layers that we ignore and do not admit to ourselves that they are “good”. To see your real essence, your living core, your personality behind all these layers - this is what, thanks to this exercise, you will gradually, step by step, be able to do.

It is necessary that you are not distracted while performing this exercise.

Step 1. In your notebook, on the first page, write the title question “Who am I?” Now set the time and write down a completely honest answer. Discard the opinions of others or what your family says about you, write down exactly how you think. This step can be done several times a day or daily, each time putting a date and answering frankly: “Who do you think you are?”

Step 2. Sit comfortably and close your eyes. Ask yourself the same question and imagine the answer in the form of an image. Don’t correct it or reason, but capture exactly the image that arose in your mind immediately after the question. Having opened your eyes, immediately describe this image that has arisen, remember what feelings you experienced when you saw it and what this image means to you.

Step 3. Stand in the middle of the room and close your eyes. Ask yourself the same question and feel the movements your body will begin to make. Don’t control them, don’t interfere, don’t make adjustments, but trust your body. Be sure to remember these movements, because this is how it answers the question posed.

“Dialogue with yourself for the purpose of emergency self-help” (according to M.E. Sandomirsky)

The main goal of the dialogue is to urgently help yourself relieve the bodily emotional discomfort that has arisen. The exercise should be done in privacy so as not to be disturbed.

Step 1. Close your eyes and imagine a mirror in front of you, and your image in it. Take a closer look: how you look at the moment of discomfort, how this is reflected in the expression of your face, in your posture.

Step 2. Concentrate on the physical sensations and find the places where you experience discomfort.

Step 3. The essence of the next step is as follows: You must say to yourself (i.e. to your imaginary interlocutor, your reflection) all those words that, in your opinion, will calm you down in this situation, encourage you, stop obsessive anxiety, self-pity, self-flagellation, self-blame and will restore your self-respect and dignity. Put as much emotion and feelings into these words as you think will be needed to achieve your goal. Your imaginary “mirror” interlocutor will react to your words and his response will become a signal to you - whether your words hit the mark or were spoken in vain.

Step 4. Switch to your physical sensations. If the words reach the target, then the physical suffering will subside and the discomfort will disappear over time. If this did not happen, repeat step 3 again.

If necessary, this exercise can be repeated several times, the main thing is to make the physical and emotional discomfort subside - this is urgent, instant emergency self-help.

In conclusion, I would like to note that there are a great many similar psychotherapeutic exercises in the practice of psychologists. They are united by one goal - self-help. By doing these exercises, you will learn to independently influence yourself and thereby help yourself: eliminate or reduce inappropriate manifestations of your behavior, overcome anxiety or fear, relieve stress, increase your creativity and better understand yourself.

Psychology

Last update 03:10:37 AM GMT

Psychological exercises

Psychological (psychotherapeutic) exercises for individual and group sessions.

Exercise ‘Thank you for existing’

The exercise can be used to work with people who have low self-esteem and experience internal discomfort and a feeling of loneliness due to this.

The leader divides the group into two subgroups of equal number of people. Participants form two circles - inner and outer and turn to face each other.

Updated 09/27:59

Exercise "Development"

It can be used to work with people who have low self-esteem, who are “not like others” and experience internal discomfort and a feeling of loneliness due to this.

The presenter reads the text intended for active visualization:

Updated 09/27:59

Exercise "I like that you."

Updated 27.09.:09

Exercise “What am I and what do I want to be?”

Updated 27.09.:00

Exercise "Snowflakes"

The exercise can be used in a group to work with people who have low self-esteem, who are “not like others” and experience internal discomfort and a feeling of loneliness due to this.

Each participant receives a napkin and silently, without watching others perform the same operation, performs the following actions:

Updated 09/27:39

Exercise "Feedback"

Goal: team building. Objectives: awareness of your strengths and weaknesses; development of empathy; team building.

Leading: Now I propose an exercise that will help you work more effectively in the future as a team.

This psychotherapeutic exercise is not group, but individual, it does not require any special devices, but only how minimum: an hour of free time, several sheets of paper and a ballpoint pen.

The maximum: This exercise requires the desire to communicate for some time with a number of people in a very relaxed atmosphere - on a landline phone, over a cup of tea in the kitchen or over a cup of coffee in a cafe. But first things first.

This psychotherapeutic exercise is a “mini-training for happiness” or “training for increasing the feeling of overall comfort of being.”

These are the types of exercises that I love most, and these are the types of exercises that are least common in the practice of psychotherapy. Why? I'll tell you. This is not a lyrical digression, it is directly related to the topic of the article and the exercise itself - to a well-functioning technique.

As you know, dear Reader, psychotherapy came to us from the West, where it developed more or less successfully (with internal corporate wars, revolutions and truces) throughout the twentieth century.

Society in the West, whatever it may be, has one undeniable feature - it is civil. Practically, from the point of view of practical benefits for psychotherapy, this means this. In such a society, a wide variety of group psychotherapeutic work is natural and possible.

In such a society, people smile at each other, do not shy away from each other, and in general, are not indifferent to each other.

So, psychotherapy with all its techniques came to us. But our society is completely different. If we speak precisely “according to science”, then the society in which we live is called a society atomized.

An atomized society is a society in which there has been a deformation of horizontal connections between individuals. In practice, this means that in such a society the value of the concepts: friendship, love, family, mutual assistance is lost.

In practice, for a psychotherapist, this means low efficiency and low popularity of any group psychotherapy. Which is what we have.

This is why I so highly value those few practical exercises that do not require working in a group - with the group unconscious, but can be carried out alone.

In fact, our situation has already moved somewhat from its dead point. And in many ways, precisely thanks to the efforts of psychotherapy and attempts to introduce group psychological work “to the masses.”

So my psychotherapeutic exercise (as paradoxical as it sounds) puts its modest brick into this common noble cause - to make our society less atomized, and more socially concerned, more consistent with the concept of “civil”.

But first, you still need to love the world in which you live. Well, for a person specifically, this still means one thing: to love those people who live around you, to simply begin to sympathize with them. Believe that the world, the “planet of people” that surrounds you, is beautiful.

As Voltaire said, through the mouth of his hero from the story “Candide,” to believe that “everything is for the best in this best of all worlds”. Even if you are sitting on fresh ruins after the Lisbon earthquake.

Speaking of “earthquakes”.

As paradoxical as it may sound, again, the understanding that you live among rather - good, and not, rather, bad people, comes to people for some reason precisely in the “time of disasters.”

A difficult, emergency situation shows us the world “as it is”, sharply tears off the dirty gray veil of “boring depression and eternal discontent.” Difficulties and misfortunes always somehow show us the world from its good side. For every ten villains, there is always at least one hero whose timely heroic deed is remembered “longer” and has a stronger impact. It’s not even the “heroes” that are remembered, but simply people who cared at the right moment and who wanted to show simple and, in general, cheap human participation - on time.

However, I don't like this tendency of the Universe to teach us such harsh lessons about "getting things right."

I would like that in “peaceful” times, a time when we practically have ALL the reasons to be happy (but for some reason we rarely are!), that in these ordinary days of our lives we learn to trust the world and lead ourselves in it with dignity - with sympathy for the people around us.

So, let's move on to the exercise. It is very simple, but the effect it produces is almost fantastic.

Psychotherapeutic exercise “Planet of People”

The first part of the psychotherapeutic exercise

Choose ten people from among your friends and acquaintances, those who irritate you in some way, have once hurt you, offended you, or are simply the object of your chronic unkind thoughts or even idle conversations with third parties.

Write their names on ten sheets of plain stationery paper.

And now, on each such “name sheet”, write down in a column (after thinking carefully) all the pleasant things that you can remember about each of these people.

You must remember and write down:

pleasant traits of their nature,
those noble, human or simply good deeds that they once did for you or for someone else,
remember all the people (not related to them by family ties or ties of business, “mutually beneficial” relationships), people who, nevertheless, respond to the people you have in mind Fine and who have something to thank them for.

Important:

Your list should consist of at least ten items!

Write as detailed and vividly as possible about those episodes that deserve it.

The second part of the psychotherapeutic exercise

What to do if the list of “positive traits” does not reach the number 10?

And then the very exciting quest that I promised at the beginning begins!

Now you are faced with the task - by any means available to you, collect as much information as possible about that person whom you, it turns out, know so poorly that you cannot write ten good words about him.

Take this task seriously. Imagine that you are a lawyer or human rights journalist, on whose abilities the fate and good name of a person depends. You must conduct your journalistic and legal investigation in order to end up writing a book or making a documentary film with a shocking exposure of the stereotypes of the crowd!

Ask your friends and acquaintances about the life of the person you have chosen, about how this fate generally unfolded before you crossed paths with her. In other cases, you can talk (“interview”) with this person himself.

If you take your task seriously, then many discoveries await you that will be able to simply turn your previous ideas about life and about the people who live with you side by side in their “boring” everyday life.

The third final part of the psychotherapeutic exercise

Now, after you have compiled complete lists, make a beautiful “wall newspaper” out of them, or rather, just format it properly, rewrite it in a clean copy. Let the result of your painstaking work be at your fingertips for a long time.

(This “anti-compromising evidence” will be easy and pleasant to store - after all, it will not contain anything that could offend someone or destroy someone’s destiny).

Well, now you should think about ten gifts for those ten people with whom you have worked all this time. You worked with someone for one hour, and with someone, let’s say, for a month.

A gift is an obligatory and final chord of our exercise. After all, these people deserve a prize from you - they restored your faith in people. Doesn't such a gift deserve reciprocal gratitude?

Elena Nazarenko, Yakovleva Natalya

psychologists of the center "1000 ideas"

A friend's hand. Psychotherapeutic exercises for teachers

Psychotherapeutic exercises for teachers

Psychotherapeutic exercises help to harmonize the teacher’s inner world, ease emotional tension, and expand professional self-awareness. Regular exercise will help the teacher adequately assess his own mental state and effectively manage himself to maintain and strengthen mental health and achieve success in his professional activities.

The teacher can practice them during breaks between lessons or during lessons, when students independently complete the assigned task, on the way to work or home.

EXERCISE 1. "BREATH"

It is advisable to complete this before the start of the lesson. Sit in a chair or armchair. Relax and close your eyes. At your own command, try to turn off your attention from the external situation and focus on your breathing.

In this case, you should not specifically control your breathing, you should not disrupt its natural rhythm. The exercise is performed for 5-10 minutes.

EXERCISE 2. "PSYCHOENERGY UMBRELLA"

It is carried out from the 1st minute after the start of the lesson, and also, if necessary, periodically throughout the lesson.

The teacher stands in front of the class, preferably in the center of the classroom, and during the process of explanation tries to imagine that, due to his will and consciousness, a kind of “umbrella” is formed over the class, covering all the students. The teacher’s goal is to confidently and firmly hold the handle of this “umbrella” throughout the lesson. Exercise forms the ability to control the situation in the classroom.

EXERCISE 3. "SAGE"

A psychologist's advice will help us in many problematic situations. In many, but not all. You may encounter complex issues for which solutions are difficult to find. What to do in such cases? Who can I ask for wise advice? Experience shows that the best adviser for you is yourself, or rather, your subconscious. How to establish a dialogue with him?

Sit in a comfortable chair. Close your eyes. Perform the “Inner Ray” relaxation exercise. Then imagine a clearing with a large spreading oak tree in it. An old sage sits under an oak tree who can answer any question. Formulate your question (in your mind). Listen (in your mind) to the sage's answer. You can limit yourself to a question and answer, or you can organize a dialogue with a sage. A calendar hangs behind the sage's back. Read and remember the date of your conversation.

EXERCISE 4. "DRUM - VIOLIN"

Imagine that all people can be divided into 2 large groups - “drums” and “violins”. “Drums” are those who have a stable psyche, calmness, are slow to understand and respond, these are the so-called “thick-skinned people.” They are like drums: in order to wait for their reaction, a very strong impact is needed. "Violins" are those for

who are characterized by high sensitivity, emotionality, and quick reactions. They are, accordingly, like violins: you just need to touch the strings of their soul, and the answer arises.

“Drums” are hardy people, and although the sounds they make are somewhat rough-sounding, they are not short of hard work and perseverance. “Violins” are people of a delicate nature; the impact of great force can cause them to be in a state of shock, but they respond to a gentle, affectionate touch with a beautiful, harmonious sound.

The game is as follows. Take the list of your class and assign each of the students to either the “drums” or “violins” group.

Think: how should you communicate with “drums” and “violins”? What can you expect from them? Which group would you place yourself in?

EXERCISE 5. “IVANOV. PETROV. SIDOROV"

A teacher who uses means of pedagogical manipulation usually calls his students only by their last names. This formal, top-down communication emphasizes a businesslike, administrative style of influence; and on the contrary: a teacher who strives for real communication with the children, as a rule, calls them by name. Moreover, the more often he pronounces the name of his student in a conversation with him, the stronger the psychological contact between them is organized.

A manipulative teacher often refers to his student in the third person in his presence. For example: “Just listen to what he says!” The student stands nearby and hears himself being spoken of as an absent person. Can you imagine the humiliation he experiences?

A wise teacher will never allow himself to treat a student in such a way. He will say: “Valera, what are you saying?!” Do you understand the difference in these two phrases?

EXERCISE 6. "THE INVISIBLE THREAD"

Pedagogical manipulation is impossible if the teacher strives for psychological contact with the class, with an individual student.

When you talk to a schoolchild, imagine that an invisible thread stretches between you - from your eyes to his eyes, from your soul to his. Speak in such a way as not to break this thread, hold it and balance on it.

When communicating with the class, stretch this psychological thread between yourself and the guys, track it: at some point in the conversation it weakens, then becomes tense again. Remember: this thread is your mutual contact with your students.

* Psychologists distinguish 5 levels of emotions in a person:

* Anger, resentment, indignation (self-defense).

* Pain, sadness, disappointment (showing vulnerability).

* Fear, anxiety, feeling of danger (manifestation of loneliness).

* Repentance, regret, responsibility (understanding the essence of what is happening).

* Love, understanding, appreciation (acceptance).

So, you need to climb to the 5th floor of emotions in order to overcome all the negative manifestations of a person and make this floor the home in which you live!

Exercises to overcome anxiety

Exercise 1 "Breathing"

Breathing is life. By delaying it, you deprive the body of a need, in comparison with which everything else fades into the background and, at least for a moment, loses its relevance. This moment is your gain. Use it to release yourself from the direct effects of stress. To do this, relax as you exhale and, with the next inhalation, lean back slightly, lift your chin and tilt your head back slightly. Sit up straight and exhale all the air from your lungs. Exhale and relax. Firmly grasp the edges of the seat with both hands and, as you inhale, pull it up, as if trying to lift a chair. Tighten your arms, stomach, and the rest of your body muscles as you continue to lift the chair you're sitting on. While maintaining tension throughout your body, hold your breath. Exhale slowly through your nose, relaxing your body and letting go of the seat. After exhaling, relax completely. There should be no tension anywhere in the body. Perform three to five such cycles. Determine the time of inhalation, exhalation and breath holding in accordance with the state of your health and your breathing rhythm. If you have high blood pressure, then practice only a relaxing breathing method, without a tense phase during inhalation. Then, with each exhalation, free yourself from the remaining tension in you, as if “blowing off” its reading from the scale of your personal meter.

Exercise 2 "Burning Candle"

The relaxing property of exhalation is used even more fully when breathing with a burning candle. Place a lit candle on the table and sit in front of it so that the flame is at a distance of cm from your lips. Round your lips and exhale slowly into the candle flame. Do not put out the fire, but deflect it with a gentle, slow, strong stream of air. Try to blow so that the angle of the flame is the same from the beginning of the exhalation to its complete completion. Do this exercise for five minutes. In this way, you will learn a smooth, long, relaxing exhalation, which will “take out” all the accumulated mental “garbage” from you and burn in the flame of a candle, freeing you from everything that prevents you from being free and calm.

Exercise 3 "Meta-position"

Imagine that you see yourself and everything that happens, as if from the outside, as if you were watching a film about yourself. Set a distance that is comfortable for you. Feel like an observer, distant and at the same time interested in everything that happens. Calmly and dispassionately consider what is happening as an external phenomenon. The distance you set does a service: you begin to see how and what you do without becoming what you see. You may observe your emotions, such as anger, but you do not act on that anger. The main thing is not to let yourself get “drawn” into the situation again. Do whatever is necessary to maintain distance: imagine a glass barrier in front of you, move further away, rise above the situation and look down on it. You can relax and think more rationally from this new perspective. Most of us find the best solutions by leaving all emotions aside. Now you look at external circumstances as a spectator, a silent witness who steps away for a minute to assess the situation. The whirlpool no longer spins you around like a cork in a fast, turbulent stream. Assess the situation and decide on further actions: how you should behave optimally; what resource is needed for this; where can you get it right now?

Exercise 4 "Resource state"

The most reliable source of resources is yourself, because everything you need has already been in you for a long time. It is only important to be able to take advantage of it in time. The technology for updating resource states provides such an opportunity. Let's say you see that to perform optimally, you need a sense of confidence. Think of a situation in which you always feel confident: driving your bike, on the tennis court, or somewhere else. It doesn't matter what the memory is. The main thing is that at the moment it is positive and strong for you. Experience it again in its entirety, as if it were all happening now. Feel confident and strong. With this feeling, enter a stressful situation and act based on your confidence. Act on the basis that what is in the foreground is no longer the drama, but the existing chance to cope with it. Use it. A victory brings a sense of pride in oneself, a sense of strength and the ability to respond to a serious challenge. Your self-confidence increases and you discover that you have enough strength to endure any challenge that comes your way. Using the technique of updating resource states, you can call upon any feeling you need to help you: calmness, competence, concentration, endurance, and so on. All you have to do is take it from where you had it and move it to where you need it now. If you do not have experience of experiencing the desired feeling, use the technique as if you are mastering this feeling. The only thing you can do without, for example, courage, is pretend to be courageous, and coordinate your behavior with it. You can also borrow the required resource from your hero by imitating his behavior.

Exercise 5 "Mood"

Sit at the table and take colored pencils or markers. In front of you is a blank sheet of paper. Draw any plot - lines, color spots, shapes. It is important to immerse yourself in your experiences, choose a color and draw the lines the way you want, in full accordance with your mood. Imagine that you are transferring your anxiety and anxiety onto a piece of paper, trying to throw it out completely, to the end. Draw until the entire space of the sheet is filled and you feel calm. Your time is now unlimited: draw as much as you need. Then turn the paper over and write a few words that reflect your mood. Don’t think too long; it is necessary that your words arise freely, without special control on your part. After you have drawn your mood and put it into words, with pleasure, emotionally tear up the piece of paper and throw it in the trash. All! Now you have gotten rid of your tense state! Your tension turned into a drawing and has already disappeared, like this unpleasant drawing for you.

Exercise “Counter Humor”

You get many unpleasant moments from ridicule of you, jokes from colleagues and other people. How do you react to them? Are you embarrassed, upset, or withdrawing into yourself?

From this day on, try to respond to ridicule and jokes in kind, but don’t do it in an evil way, try to be more good-natured. And in order to always have a few decent jokes at hand, start collecting funny stories, stories, and anecdotes.

So, you need to learn to manage your emotional state, think constructively, so as not to “get stuck” on negative experiences and not hinder your creative growth and search for new alternative ways to overcome professional problems. The ability to think positively and control your behavior is your individual resource that can support you in any difficult and emotionally stressful situations. This is the resource that will prevent you from becoming a victim of burnout.

Exercise “Contemplator”

Learn to treat everything that happens to you, like a gray-haired eastern sage, contemplatively, that is, before reacting to the words or actions of loved ones, colleagues, or just people around you, ask yourself: “What would a wise man do in my place?” Human? What would he say and do?

Make a decision and act only after a few minutes of such calm, contemplative reflection.

Exercise “Candle of Confidence”

Goal: Development of empathy, caring attitude towards each other, trust in the world is formed.

All participants stand in a circle, shoulder to shoulder, with their arms bent at the elbows and extended forward. Palms raised up. One of the participants stands in the center of the circle. The arms are lowered along the body, the eyes are closed. He relaxes and rests on the hands of those standing. The group picks it up and slowly, carefully passes it around. Every participant must visit the center. After the exercise there is a discussion.

Exercise “I am strong - I am weak”

Leading. I suggest you check how words and thoughts affect a person’s condition. To this end, we will perform the following exercises.

For example: Sasha, please extend your hand forward. I will lower your hand down, pressing on it from above. You must hold your hand while saying loudly and decisively: “I am strong!” Now we do the same, but you must say: “I am weak,” saying it with the appropriate intonation, that is, quietly, sadly.

You see how supportive words help us cope with difficulties and win.

Figurative-reflective exercise "Give yourself a name"

Goal: achievement of a resourceful emotional state by each participant.

1) The trainer invites the participants to take a comfortable position, close their eyes and relax.

2) The trainer tells the participants: “Remember a specific event when you felt confident (successful, lucky, achieved a goal, etc.). Remember: where and when this event occurred. Remember your feelings at that moment. Relive this event again."

3) After enough time has passed to complete the task (5-7 minutes), the trainer invites group members to discuss the results of individual visualization.

4) Each participant tells the group about a specific event he saw and experienced in his imagination, with obligatory reflection on the source of his positive feeling (confidence, success, luck, etc.).

5) At the end of the story for each participant, the coach, with the help of the group, comes up with a new name. which would reflect the very essence of obtaining a resourceful emotional state: “I am the one who . (does such and such)” or “I am confident in myself when I. (I do this and that).”

Group discussion (if necessary).

Exercise “Awareness of boundaries.”

The exercise demonstrates the effect of focusing attention and awareness on certain areas - the physical boundaries of the body, which occupy an important place in a person’s internal psychological map and are associated with a stable “image of oneself” (in the language of physiology called a “body diagram”), affecting self-esteem and relationships with others. According to the figurative expression of A. Lowen, a person is “moored” to reality at both ends of the body: below through contact with the ground, and above through the crown of the head. A similar approach is used in Taoist psychotechnics, where keen attention is paid to the three “ends of the body”:

crown - to enhance the feeling of ascending flows of “energy” (the border “man - sky”);
palms – reproduction of the feeling of emphasis in the fingers and palms (the “person-person” boundary);
feet – increased sensation of downward flows of “energy” (the “man-earth” boundary).

It is obvious that in the process of age-related formation of the physical “image of oneself”, the feeling of “boundaries” (or the “I – not-I” distinction) is one of the initial stages associated with early childhood. Therefore, an important point for productive work with “boundaries,” along with concentration of attention, is the transition to a state of child-like contemplative perception. When performing the exercise, a person should strive to feel literally the way a child feels, who for the first time begins to become aware of his own body and the world around him.

Another important point of this exercise is that the feeling of demarcation evoked in it, of separating oneself from the surrounding world, despite the apparent opposite, is close to the meditative feeling of all-pervading unity with the world.

Initially, the exercise is performed in a lying position, after preliminary relaxation (as training progresses, in an arbitrary position). Attention and, along with it, breathing are directed to the area of the body corresponding to one of the listed “boundaries”. Attention is maintained in a given area for several minutes. Observe how with each exhalation the breath is “transmitted” to selected areas of the body, gradually creating a feeling of warmth and “energy” in them. After 3 – 5 minutes, switch your attention and breathing to the next “border” area. After all three “boundaries” have been passed separately, combine them, distributing attention simultaneously to five points corresponding to the figure of a five-pointed star (a modification of the exercise is to direct attention to six points, or two triangles, corresponding to a six-pointed star). It is important to imagine that your body is stretching, as if you are becoming taller. At the same time, a feeling of a “stretched string” appears along the spine. Then imagine that your body is enclosed on all sides in an impenetrable spherical shell. Mentally try to push this “cocoon” apart, resting on it at 5 points: hands, feet, crown of the head.

Distribution of “body-directed” attention simultaneously to a large number of objects close to the maximum capacity of the channel of conscious perception according to G. Miller - 7±2 units (Miller G.A., 1956) or exceeding it, causes so-called sensory overload and contributes to the formation of a special state consciousness. Similarly, it affects the state of consciousness and the alignment of sensations in remote areas of the left and right halves of the body, helping to achieve a balance in the activity of the left and right hemispheres of the brain.

Note. Exercise, in addition to health-improving purposes, has important practical applications in everyday life. It helps a person quickly come to his senses in a situation of sudden stress, when “the earth is floating under your feet” and emotional balance and self-control are lost. It is especially necessary for people who are overly nervous before public speaking (artists on stage, speakers in front of the podium, or athletes before going to the start line). This exercise can be vital for people suffering from panic attacks, for whom it helps get rid of the feeling of “impending loss of consciousness.” To do this, you just need to take a few deep breaths and exhales and switch your attention one by one to each of the described boundaries, starting with the “ground.”

It should be noted that the physical, bodily boundaries of a person (“external body”, according to M.M. Bakhtin) are represented in his inner world (“internal body” according to Bakhtin, or “virtual body” according to N.A. Nosov) in this way, which turn out to be closely related to his communication with others. The boundaries of bodily contacts appear as the boundaries of emotional contacts, empathy and emotional detachment, the boundaries of isolation and sociability, influence on others and susceptibility to the influence of others, autonomy and dependence, as well as various stereotypes and internal limitations that a person can step over in the process of working on himself. As the experience of body-oriented psychology shows, working with bodily boundaries leads to the improvement of aspects of the personality associated with them, and is an important tool for personal growth.

Exercise “Meeting with the Saboteur”

Think of something you would like to do successfully. This could be enrolling in an educational institution, starting a family, organizing your own business, or simply receiving guests.

Now try to come up with something that will damage your enterprise and interfere with its implementation. Imagine this picture.

Draw the Saboteur or the force that pushes for sabotage and opposes the fulfillment of the plan.

Now play the role of a Saboteur yourself and deliberately interfere with the implementation of your project. Tell us how you benefited from it.

From the “I” point of view, imagine meeting the Saboteur and negotiating with him.

A Saboteur can also be called: Stubborn Child, Why Try - Everything Is Useless If You Can't Be The Best - Quit It, Quibbler, Destroyer, Loser. Sometimes a Saboteur is also a Victim, a subpersonality that likes to feel helpless, to gain attention by skillfully appearing inept, awkward, etc.

What would you name your Wrecker?

Remember that subpersonality is a convenient model that allows us to deal with the driving forces of personality, but it is just a model that does not claim to be an original. When they talk about subpersonality, they mean a certain set of attitudes, behavioral stereotypes, beliefs, drives, etc., which takes on a holistic, discernible form only in our consciousness.

Exercise “Dance of Identifications”

“Identify yourself consistently with the four elements: Air, Fire, Earth and Water. Feel the specificity and energy of each of the elements, surrender to it entirely. By performing this exercise, you can also identify with the forest, sky, river, grass, any animals, including fairy tales, the four cardinal directions, etc. In dance, you can identify with anything, even with a doorknob - this greatly contributes to psychological emancipation, blurring the boundaries of the “Ego,” and weakening attachment to oneself. It is very good to identify with a character in a piece of music, such as a song. Play with “pop” - it’s great for developing acting skills and reducing your sense of self-importance.”

Exercise “In the footsteps of subpersonality”

Stand up and try to portray any of your subpersonalities.

In what life situations does this subpersonality appear? How often? What circumstances provoke the emergence of this subpersonality? Does this subpersonality help you act in this situation? How does she help you? Does she hinder you in any way? What's happening to your body? What's going on with your emotions? What's going on with your thoughts?

Write down the answers to these questions to better understand your subpersonality. Recording itself as a repeated reference to the experience gained is an important part of the work and often allows you to notice some factors, nuances that did not appear so clearly when working with the technique of internal dialogue.

Exercise “Dialogue with subpersonalities”

To better familiarize yourself with subpersonalities, the following questions are used:

“What is your goal?” The question allows the subpersonality to talk about the purpose of its existence. This allows us to determine how much the goal of the subpersonality corresponds to the consciously chosen direction of our life. Does the goal of the subpersonality contribute to the realization of our potential, or does it contradict our goals, interests and ideals?

“Why are you here?” – allows you to learn about the actual activities of the subpersonality. The answer to this question makes available valuable information about the actions of the subpersonality. Do these actions help the conscious personality, or do they hinder the personality from fully expressing itself?

“What do you want from me?” – helps to discover the hopes and desires of the subpersonality. As observers, we are aware of the demands of the subpersonality and their manifestation in everyday life (which often happens against the will of the individual).

“What do you need from me?” – reveals the hidden real needs of the subpersonality. The answer points to secret desires deeply hidden in the subpersonality, and to the possibilities of satisfying these desires.

“What are you offering me?” – shows the hidden qualities of the subpersonality. Although they exist, you need to get to them. At the same time, they indicate the possibilities of transformation of the subpersonality and the potential impact of such transformation on the individual.

“What are you protecting me from?” – allows you to understand the motivation of the subpersonality. Its primary motivation is to protect the individual, but the ways and means of protection chosen by the subpersonality often leave much to be desired. Quite often the reaction of a subpersonality is the opposite of its primary intention. Recognition of the primary protective function of the subpersonality is extremely useful. Showing sincere understanding and compassion is especially important when we are dealing with difficult subpersonalities. Recognizing the original defensive function is extremely useful, especially when trying to interact with a difficult and uncomfortable subpersonality, which requires understanding and genuine compassion. The result of this is the acceptance of those qualities that, at first glance, are impossible to accept. What follows is an increased understanding of the very difficult negative parts of our personality. Understanding and being able to face the subpersonality is the most direct and loving way to soften and transform rigid structures.

Exercise "Circle"

List all your desires. Write down everything that comes to your mind. Make sure you include both what you already have and what you would like to have in the future (we're not talking about things or gifts here, of course). Since you can't look at other people's lists, here are the most common wishes:

finish your studies;
not to get sick, and so that none of your loved ones get sick;
have enough money;
love;
to be loved;
achieve success in work (business);
get a good education.

Now focus on how you felt when you read the list. Do you have a subpersonality that tells you that it, too, would like to have all this? Or a subpersonality that judges people who have desires that you don’t have or that are insignificant to you? Now make a list of your own desires.

When you have 20 items on your list (or when you feel like you have written down all your desires), look through the list and select the 5-6 most significant. Maybe you want to change something about it. For example, you might combine the desires “skiing,” “swimming,” “playing tennis,” and “hiking” into one general desire, “playing outdoor sports.” Now highlight your most important desires and do not include those that your “What Will People Think” subpersonality wants to prioritize?

On a large sheet of paper, draw a circle with a diameter of about 20 cm. Inside it is a smaller circle. The result is a ring, the central part of which is your “I”. And in the ring itself, place those 5-6 subpersonalities that are the spokesmen of your desires.

Draw (preferably with colored pencils or paints) symbols that reflect your desires. Lack of artistic ability does not matter in this case. Just draw and color any symbols that come to mind.

When you're done drawing, give each subpersonality its own individual name. Some of them may resemble nicknames: Adventurer, Prudent, Defenseless Baby, Big Man, Hero-lover, Doctor, Expert. Others will be more romantic, for example: Primitive Horse and Hound Lover, Country Girl, Forest Fairy, Miss Perfect, etc. It is important to come up with your own names that have meaning for you.

Now color your “I”.

This exercise first of all allows us to identify positively oriented subpersonalities that correspond to our conscious desires. Negative subpersonalities (Skeptic, Critic), subpersonalities corresponding to suppressed desires, remain in the shadows when performing this exercise.

This exercise can be repeated many times, and the names of some subpersonalities, including the most important ones, can change as you become more clear about what they want, how they act and why they change.

Exercise "Synthesis"

Each of us would like to be a harmonious person. But first you need to identify and realize the polar qualities of your personality (character), and only then try to reconcile them. Often, an adult personality does not have enough mental maturity, and in it, like a teenager, reflection and self-confidence, sensuality and callousness, or even cruelty and shyness coexist and swagger, struggle with authorities and deification of the idol, sensual fantasy and dry rationalism.

It is known that a person cannot be harmonious if he identifies himself with only one of the polar qualities. Choose the polar quality of your psyche that you want to work with.

Divide a blank sheet of paper in half with a vertical line and draw one of the selected polarities on one half of the sheet. On the second half, make a free drawing of the opposite polarity. The quality of the drawing does not matter. So, two poles are opposite each other. Think about their content and the possibility of their interaction.

Now below (or on another sheet) depict the interaction of these two poles. This could be: a conflict encounter, trial contact, disgust, etc.

Continue making drawings and let the interaction of these polar qualities emerge into some form. Synthesis can be spontaneous: two parts are combined into one whole. If a new whole has arisen, do not abandon it, but try to understand what it is and what your state was in which this synthetic image appeared.

Then, on the back of the drawing, write down everything you have experienced and make a guess about how a new synthesis could happen in your life.

Exercise "Workbook"

Such a notebook is intended for regularly recording the processes of development of inner life. External events can be recorded insofar as they are related to the dynamics of the internal world. Record keeping serves several purposes:

teaches you to express your thoughts and inner experiences clearly and clearly;
teaches you to choose one, the main one, from many points of view;
promotes self-disclosure, that is, teaches you to reveal yourself to yourself;
is a stimulator of creativity.

In this notebook, you can express thoughts that have “boiled” and that you would not dare to express even in a psychotherapeutic group, and this helps relieve emotional stress.

In addition to text, you can write drawings, diagrams, and symbols that only you understand in your notebook. Such drawings reflect the work of the subconscious and can be used to better understand oneself.

Exercise “I am not a role”

Sit more comfortably, relax, then mentally tell yourself:

“I am involved in many different activities and play many roles. I have to play these roles and I want to play them to the best of my ability, whether it be the role of husband or wife, father or mother, teacher or student, entrepreneur or politician. These are nothing more than roles - roles that I willingly play. Therefore, these roles are not me. I can watch my performance from the outside; I can be not only an actor, but also the director of this performance.” Focus on the thought: “I am playing the role I need, but I am not the role.”

Exercise “What am I?”

The purpose of this exercise is to help you achieve a high level of self-awareness and discover your true self. It is based on the assumption that each of us is like an onion, that is, it consists of different layers that hide the most important thing: our essence. These layers can be positive or negative. They reflect different aspects of our personality and our relationships with the world around us. Some of these layers are like a facade or mask that hides what we don't like about ourselves. Behind others are hidden some positive qualities that we are unable to fully understand. In any case, somewhere behind these layers, in the depths of each of us, there is a center of creativity and vibration - our true “I”, the innermost essence of our being. The exercise, which consists of answering the question “What am I?”, easily and unobtrusively leads us to the comprehension of this essence, understanding and awareness of ourselves as a person, identity with ourselves.

Choose a place where you can be alone and where no one will disturb you. Take a piece of paper, write a number and a title: “What is “I”?” Then try to give a written answer to this question. Be as relaxed and frank as possible. Stop periodically and ask yourself this question again.

Relax, close your eyes, clear your head of extraneous thoughts. Again ask yourself the question “What am I?” and observe the image that appears before your mind's eye. Don't try to think or draw any conclusions, just observe. Then open your eyes and describe in detail everything you saw. Describe the sensations you experienced in connection with the image and its meaning.

Stand so that there is enough free space around you. Close your eyes and ask yourself again: “What am I?” You will feel your body vibrating. Trust his wisdom, the movement should unfold until you have a feeling of its completion. Perhaps you should accompany what is happening with some kind of sound or singing. When finished, put down on paper what you experienced.

Your personal psychologist in Moscow. Trainings and psychotherapeutic groups in Moscow. Photo ART project Glyanec.