Write an article based on this "Identify your triggers and avoid them. Take a moment to yourself. Tune in to your emotions. Challenge negative thoughts that arise. Take a more reasonable action. Reflect on how you handled the situation."
One way to keep your reactions under control is to steer clear of situations and people who provoke strong reactions from you. You may not be able to avoid certain people and situations, but you can find ways to limit your exposure or make these experiences more pleasant. For example, if you tend to react in an overdramatic way if you are running late for work, then try to leave 10 minutes earlier than you usually do. Or, if you have a friend who makes you crazy, then try to limit your contact with him or her. If you bump into the friend, then you can just say something like, "Hi! I wish I could stay and chat, but I am in a hurry. Have a good day!" Before you do or say anything, you might find it helpful to take a moment to yourself and process your emotions a bit. For example, you could go into another room and do some deep breathing to calm yourself down, listen to a soothing song, or just examine how you are feeling. To excuse yourself, try saying something like, "I have to run to the bathroom. Just give me a few minutes and we can keep talking." If you receive some disappointing news, you may have some string negative emotions coming up. If you want to make sure that you do not overreact to the situation, then you may need to allow yourself to feel these feelings and think about what they mean. For example, if you have just learned that you are failing a class, then you might notice a knot in your stomach or trembling hands. Take a moment to consider why you are feeling this way. For example, you might be fearful about what your parents might say or disappointed in yourself. One reason that some people overreact to certain situations is because they have negative thoughts that go unchallenged. For example, if you learned that you are failing a class, then you might think to yourself, "I am a failure!" However, this thought is not an accurate reflection of the situation. It is a dramatic reaction. When you notice yourself overdramatizing a situation like this, take a moment to identify and challenge the thought. For example, you might reframe the thought "I am a failure!" to something like, "I thought I was passing the class, but I am not. However, I am still doing well in my other classes, so this is just a temporary setback." After you have challenged any negative thoughts, you can begin to look for solutions to your problem. For example, instead of punching a locker or sobbing openly in the hallway, you might decide to schedule an appointment with your teacher to ask if there is anything you can do to bring up your grade. Even if the action you take does not lead to a positive outcome, keep looking for solutions! For example, if your teacher says that there is nothing you can do, then start making plans to improve your grades for the following semester or school year. To ensure that your reactions are appropriate, it is also important to reflect on how you handled the situation. You can ask yourself some questions to determine whether you handled the situation well. If you answer yes to any of these questions, then you may still need to work on some things: Is there anything that you regret about your response or that you wish you could change? Did you lash out at anyone who was trying to comfort you or help you? Do you feel the need to apologize for anything you said or did? Did you feel like you were out of control at any point? Did you make any unfair assumptions about anyone? Did you feel the need to withdraw from others to deal with the situation?