Behavior Chain Analysis Prompting Event What was the event that started the chain? Thoughts What thoughts went through your head? Feelings |Long-Term| Lesson What did you What were the | What did you feel after that long term learn about behavior? results? yourself?What is the Behavior Chain Analysis® I've always talked about how much | absolutely love DBT (iolectical Behavior Theraqy), DBT is a type of cognitive behavioral therapy and it works. |+ focuses on helping you to live in the moment, create healthy ways to deal with stress and emotions, and it helps you learn how to relate to others even when you're going through stuff (unfortunately we often take our emotions out on the ones we love). | credit DBT as a big reason as to why | am the way that | am today. | love sharing it with other people and encouraging them +o seek out a DBT program or trained professional, or to research it on their own. These worksheets are going to cover what is commonly called Analysis. |'m sharing my own interpretation of it and the way that it best helps me. The BCA can do several things! - |+ can help us follow the process of how we cope with a specific event. - |+ can help us analyze why we act the way we do. - |+ can show how our behavior affects the short term and long term. - |+ indicates what coping skills work best for us. - |+ allows us to change our behavior and the way we react to stressful events. When stressful things are happening, it often feels like they're happening all at once. It’s hard to pull ourselves out of the moment and see how we got to where we are.That's why the behavior chain analysis often happens [ePrer, an event has already taken place. Sometimes the event is small like a disagreement with your partner, and other times it’s something big like relapsing or doing some hing EEESNESTRETVE The BCA lets you see the feelings and thoughts that lead you to that place so that you'll hopefully be able +o modify your behavior the next time you feel those things. | also love using the BCA for positive reinforcement, especially when it comes to anxiety. There will be times when I'm responding to a stressful event but | haven't yet acted on it. | get to choose my behavior, and the BCA helps me do that in a healthy way. (We can choose self-care!) An example: My emotionally abusive ex reached out to me. We had a very co-dependent relationship that involved me trying to save them from themselves and unintentionally enabling their alcoholism. They sent me a message that they had just ended a relationship, relapsed, and needed my friendship. My Vulnerability: Wanting +o help, people-pleasing, difficulty saying no, and enforcing boundaries. Thoughts: Maybe it will be different this time. | can be a supportive friend without being used. Action: | gave myself a day to think about it and that allowed me to examine the chain. | asked myself what would happen if | said yes and what would happen if | said no, and then | looked at the probable consequences and outcomes. | decided on no. | knew if | said yes, my boundaries wouldn't be respected and it would cause me so much stress, Being able to see the chain really helped me accept that it was the best, healthiest, decision.Let's Break |+ Down! — Vutnerability This is the first link in the chain, What things (before the event happened) made you vulnerable to the stressful situation? Here are what vulnerabilities might look like? Physical illness Bottling things up Lack of sleep Drugs or alcohol High stress levels Skipping self-care A previous conflict A past triggering event Skipped medication Feeling unsupported This is the second link in the chain and it's the specific event that started this chain, We want to describe that situation in a neutral and detailed way. Here are some examples of events that might start a chain: My partner ignored me | caught my partner cheating My boss criticized my work | forgot an important task My child wouldn't listen | made a mistake at work A friend canceled on me My partner and | argued These events can be big, life-changing events, or smaller events. What we want to do is regulate our response to those stressors and handle them in a healthy way and if we can'+ do that, then to understand the consequences of our behavior so that we can make a game plan for the next time we encounter similar stressors.Now describe what thoughts you had in response to the event. What was your self-talk like? What did you think about? Here are some examples: | am unlovable | am worthless | can’t do a good job {am stupid | am a bad parent | can’t do anything right | can’t trust anyone No one ever listens to me Feelings And next, we're going to talk about how that event made you feel. Here are some examples from the Gottman Institute. Rejected \gnored Trapped Unwanted Lack of Affection Unloved Heartbroken Betrayed Frustrated Powerless Judged Unsafe Excluded Blamed Like the bad guy Unheard Disrespected Belittled Lonely Manipulated Scored Actions When stressful situations pop up, we usually have our default reactions or urges to deal with that stress. What did you immediately want to do to cope with those feelings? Lash out Yell Use substances Withdraw Hit something Journal Self-harm MeditateNext, you want to write down how you ultimately reacted to the situation. This is the behavior that we're analyzing to learn how it affects our lives in the long and short-term, You can also add positive behaviors! Maybe you meditated or journaled, or called someone to talk i+ out with. It’s important to document those behaviors too! Short-Term Consequences Now we talk about the consequences! This is really going to help us understand ourselves. What was the immediate effect of your behavior? You woke up hungover \+ helped you forget Your relationship was damaged You were able to zone out You were in pain You continued to be upset \+ temporarily relieved stress The situation improved You hurt someone you care The situation did not improve about What were the emotions that you felt after the behavior? Guilt Sadness Shame Judged Relief Frustrated Now we want to evaluate the long-term consequences of our actions. How did that behavior affect you, your life, and the people around you, days, weeks, or months into the future? What damage did it do to your life?And finally, what did you learn from the whole chain? What can you do differently moving forward? |f you used a healthy coping skill like journaling or meditation, did it help you? If your behavior had a destructive effect on your life, how can you repair that damage? That's how the chain works. You want to start the chain at either the BEOMBEBSNEVERE or the behavior. You then fill in the information from there, Let me share another example! Vulnerability: | often felt ignored growing up and had to fight with my siblings for attention. Prompting Event: My partner didn’+ hear what | said because they were on their phone and not paying attention, [RBUBAFEY What | have to say is not important. FeeliAgSs| | feel rejected and unloved. Actions: | want to accuse my partner of not loving me or caring about me. Behavior: | leave the room without saying anything and then am distant and withdrawn the rest of the day Short-Term: My partner is upset because they don’t know what is wrong, We spend the day tense and silent. Feelings: | feel worse. | spend the whole day upset. Longe Term! Because | didn’t talk about my feelings | continue to doubt my partner's feelings for me. [RSEBAE Maybe | should try telling my partner that | am bothered by them being on their phone during conversations and how that makes me feel.Let's Look at Your Links Vulnerability Prompting Event Thoughts Feelings ctionsShort-Term Consequences Feelings Long-Term Consequences LessonsThe Missing Links As you can see, the BCA is mainly used to understand problem behaviors. |+ allows us to see where the problems originate, but it doesn’t really tell us how to change those behaviors. That's where the missing links come into play. After a while, you'll see common themes in your vulnerabilities. Let's talk about those. What are your most common What would help you work on vulnerabilities? those vulnerabilities? What experiences or events seem to have the most influence on your problematic or destructive behaviors?Prompting Event You'll also start seeing a trend in the things that stress 9 9 you out, bother you, or negatively impact your life. List some of the events in — |s there a connecting theme recent memory that have led throughout those events? +o problem behaviors. Thoughts What negative things do you Focus on your self-talk. think about yourself when What are some kind or you're upset? encouraging things you can say to yourself“\" statements are a great way to express your feelings in journaling, in therapy, and with the people in your life. | feel _-_ when | feel ____ becouse Actions What acts of self-care help you feel better when you feel overwhelmed by emotions? What are some behaviors that you can replace with healthier coping skills?Behavior Chain Analysis Vulnerability Prompting Event Thoughts Feelings ctionsShort-Term Consequences Feelings Long-Term Consequences LessonsBehavior Chain Analysis Vulnerability Prompting Event Thoughts Feelings ctionsShort-Term Consequences Feelings Long-Term Consequences LessonsBehavior Chain Analysis Vulnerability Prompting Event Thoughts Feelings ctionsShort-Term Consequences Feelings Long-Term Consequences LessonsBehavior Chain Analysis Vulnerability Prompting Event Thoughts Feelings ctionsShort-Term Consequences Feelings Long-Term Consequences LessonsBehavior Chain Analysis Vulnerability Prompting Event Thoughts Feelings ctionsShort-Term Consequences Feelings Long-Term Consequences LessonsBehavior Chain Analysis Vulnerability Prompting Event Thoughts Feelings ctionsShort-Term Consequences Feelings Long-Term Consequences LessonsBehavior Chain Analysis Vulnerability Prompting Event Thoughts Feelings ctionsShort-Term Consequences Feelings Long-Term Consequences LessonsThank you so so much for supporting Blessing Manifesting! Thank you for being whe you are. Thank you for going on this journey with me. | hope that you've learned and experienced new things and that you've developed a greater understanding of who you are and what makes you happy. You deserve to be happy and you deserve to be loved. Always. \# you want more of all things self-love and self-care, be sure to check out my website [Link]! You'll find videos, meditations, and even more worksheets! We also have an amazing and free Facebook group that focuses on self-care and personal growth, If you'd like to get in touch with me, you can email me at Dominee@[Link]! All content is © to Dominee at BlessingManifesting,com Please do not share or distribute without written permission from me.