PTSD Coping Skills worksheet

• What is Progressive Muscle Relaxation? It is a calming technique that uses deliberate tensing and relaxing of different major muscle groups in the body in a structured sequence. You tense each muscle for 10-15 seconds and then relax for 10 seconds. In this period you focus on how the muscle feels as it tenses and relaxes.

As you practise, you learn to recognize the signs of how a tense muscle differentiates from a relaxed muscle.This ultimately means that as you become more aware you will gain control of your automatic physiological reactions to your anxiety or stress and be able to relax your body when needed.  Practice for at least two weeks.

References

Jacobson, E. (1938). Progressive Relaxation: A Physiological and Clinical Investigation of Muscular States and Their Significance in Psychology and Medical Practice (1st ed.).Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

Bernstein, D. A., Borkovec, T. D. (1973). Progressive relaxation training: a manual for the helping professions. Champaign, Illinois: Research Press.

Anxiety Canada. (n.d) How to do progressive muscle relaxation.

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Please note: There may be a more up-to-date and editable version of this worksheet available here which may be more suitable to present to clients if you are a therapist or to use in a classroom as a teacher or guidance counsellor.