Prompt Pairs
I made these as a doorway into the therapy process. How you react to circumstances tells you something about yourself. This exercise is not to “diagnose where the problem is”. Rather, it’s a way to jump start our conversation or a writing exercise.
Instructions: Below are some common circumstances we find ourselves in, put into pairs. Select a pair that you find interesting. You have to pick both sides of the pair, not just one.
If part of your answer is 'it depends' then write about both possible scenarios.
Sentence starter: How do I react - both internally (thoughts and feelings) and externally (how I present myself and what I do) - when the following happens …
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I've made a mistake
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I am being accused - untruthfully - of having made a mistake
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Someone does something that makes me slightly irritated
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Something does something that makes me very, very angry
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I have to talk with someone in authority
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I get a compliment from someone in authority
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I am in a social situation where I don’t know anyone
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I am with my family or close friends
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Someone I trusted disappoints me
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I have disappointed someone whose opinion I value
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I really need something and have to ask for it
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Someone asks me to do something that I really don’t want to do
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I am trying something that I cannot do very well
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I have just done something well for the first time
Really put yourself into those situations. What would you want to say to the other person? What would you actually say? How would you feel? Would you be critical of yourself - and what form would that take? Would you let yourself feel positive if the situation was positive (or negative in a negative situation)? How would you want to present yourself to the other person? Would you actually be viewed that way by the person? Would you avoid or try to escape the situation entirely? What would happen if you couldn't avoid it?