101 Ways To Cope Guide

When You Feel Overwhelmed or Anxious

• Put your feet on the floor and notice pressure
• Hold something warm
• Name five neutral objects around you
• Sit with your back against a wall
• Breathe out longer than you breathe in
• Lower your shoulders
• Wrap up in a blanket
• Step outside for one minute
• Look at the sky
• Touch something textured

When Your Thoughts Won’t Stop

• Write one sentence and stop
• Put the thought in quotation marks
• Say “not now” to your mind
• Name today’s date
• Count backward slowly
• Read something familiar
• Listen to instrumental music
• Turn on white noise
• Focus on one sound
• Close your eyes briefly

When You Feel Numb or Shut Down

• Press your hands together
• Stretch one body part
• Drink water slowly
• Change rooms
• Sit near a window
• Notice temperature
• Hold something heavy
• Move your toes
• Rock gently
• Stay still on purpose

When You Feel Sad or Heavy

• Let yourself sigh
• Sit quietly without fixing anything
• Watch something comforting
• Look at photos of nature
• Pet an animal (or imagine one)
• Light a candle
• Let tears come or not
• Listen to a familiar voice
• Rest your head
• Allow quiet

When You Feel Angry or Activated

• Clench and release your fists
• Stomp your feet
• Tear paper
• Write uncensored and delete it
• Throw ice in the sink
• Take a fast walk
• Shake your arms
• Breathe sharply out
• Name what crossed a boundary
• Pause before responding

When You Feel Disconnected or Dissociated

• Say your name out loud
• Name where you are
• Touch something solid
• Smell something strong
• Splash cool water on your face
• Describe one object in detail
• Look for right angles in the room
• Count your breaths
• Hum quietly
• Sit near something grounding

When You Feel Lonely

• Sit in shared space (even silently)
• Read others’ words without replying
• Listen to a podcast
• Watch people pass by
• Write a letter you won’t send
• Remember someone kind
• Hold a pillow
• Sit with your phone face-down
• Join a space without speaking
• Let proximity be enough

When You Need Containment (Not Processing)

• Imagine placing the feeling in a box
• Set a five-minute timer
• Write “later” on the page
• Close the notebook
• Change the subject gently
• Ground before sleeping
• Turn the lights down
• Sit in silence
• Give yourself permission to stop
• Decide nothing

When You’re Exhausted

• Lie down without sleeping
• Cancel one non-essential thing
• Eat something simple
• Drink something warm
• Lower stimulation
• Be bored on purpose
• Turn off notifications
• Rest your eyes
• Stretch gently
• Do less than planned

When You Need Reassurance (Without Advice)

• “I survived hard things.”
• “Nothing is required right now.”
• “Slow is allowed.”
• “Rest is not quitting.”
• “I can pause.”
• “I don’t need to explain myself.”
• “This will change.”
• “I am not behind.”
• “Enough is enough.”
• “Being here is enough.”

One Last Option

Close this list and do nothing.

A Gentle Reminder

If you are in immediate danger or crisis, coping tools are not enough.

Please reach out to emergency services or a crisis line such as 988 (U.S.). Just dial 988 for help.