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Coping mechanisms are not an inherently bad thing. If we can’t avoid or escape something unpleasant or even harmful, figuring out a way to cope with it is a good survival strategy. But sometimes we use coping mechanisms to tolerate things that maybe we shouldn’t be tolerating. In this episode, we explore the difference between helpful and unhelpful coping.
Takeaways:
Takeaways:
- Using external pleasures to help us feel better (or cope) in particular situations is natural and normal.
- When those behaviors start to impair your happiness or your ability to achieve your greater goals, it becomes a problem worth addressing.
- Sometimes our coping mechanisms allow us to tolerate a situation that we’d be better off changing or avoiding.
- The first step in dismantling a coping mechanism is to identify what situation, emotion, or trigger leads to the unwanted behavior and then decide if we can react to it differently or work to eliminate it altogether.
Lab Experiment:
- When those behaviors start to impair your happiness or your ability to achieve your greater goals, it becomes a problem worth addressing.
- Sometimes our coping mechanisms allow us to tolerate a situation that we’d be better off changing or avoiding.
- The first step in dismantling a coping mechanism is to identify what situation, emotion, or trigger leads to the unwanted behavior and then decide if we can react to it differently or work to eliminate it altogether.
Lab Experiment:
1. What problem am I trying to fix with this behavior?
2. Does this behavior actually fix the problem? (Sometimes the answer is yes!…at least for a little while)
3. Does the behavior cause a new problem?
4. How else might I find relief or solve this problem, so that I don’t need this “coping mechanism”?
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2. Does this behavior actually fix the problem? (Sometimes the answer is yes!…at least for a little while)
3. Does the behavior cause a new problem?
4. How else might I find relief or solve this problem, so that I don’t need this “coping mechanism”?
Creators and Guests
Host
Monica Reinagel
Monica Reinagel has been helping people create healthier lives for more than 15 years through her Nutrition Diva podcast, books, online coaching programs and in-person workshops. As a licensed and board-certified nutritionist, her approach is grounded in science but is also practical and realistic. Monica is also a former professional opera singer.
What is Change Academy?
Learn how to cultivate a more productive mindset, form sustainable habits, and create a lifestyle that supports both your goals and your wellbeing with host, Monica Reinagel. Drawing on decades of expertise and experience, Monica provides guidance on navigating the challenging process of behavior change in a fun and accessible way. Learn more and find show notes for every episode at https://changeacademypodcast.com