Tool · Distress tolerance

Wise Mind ACCEPTS

A gentle distracting toolkit from DBT for the moments a wave of distress arrives. Fill it in slowly — there are no wrong answers. When you're done, we'll send a soft, printable plan to your inbox.

What is this, really?

Distress tolerance is the ability to ride out a crisis without making things worse. ACCEPTS is a way to remember seven small, kind things you can do to distract from unbearable feelings — long enough for the wave to pass. This tool walks you through each one and asks you to plan what you will do, in your own words.

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Activities

Do something that occupies your mind and body — a small activity you can start within the next hour.

Need ideas?

Focus attention on a task you need to get done
Rent movies, watch TV, or listen to a podcast
Clean a room in your house
Go walking or exercise
Play a game, cards, or a puzzle
Read a book, magazine, or comic

What activity will you try?

Contributing

Shift your focus outward — do something small and kind for someone else.

Need ideas?

Send an encouraging message to a friend
Help a friend or family member with something
Do a small favour or thoughtful gesture
Volunteer, even for 15 minutes
Give away something you don't need

Who could you reach out to, and how?

Comparisons

Compare gently — to a harder moment you got through, or to people also coping. Not to shame yourself, but to widen perspective.

Need ideas?

Remember a time you felt worse and got through it
Think of others coping with something similar
Notice small ways you're already coping right now

What perspective helps you feel a little more steady?

Emotions (different)

Read, watch, or listen to something that stirs a different feeling than the one you're stuck in.

Need ideas?

Watch a comedy or a comforting film
Listen to music with a different mood
Read a funny or moving story
Look at photos that bring warmth

What will you play, watch, or read?

Pushing away

Leave the situation mentally for a while. Not to avoid forever — to give your nervous system a break.

Need ideas?

Imagine putting the worry in a box on a shelf
Build a mental wall between you and the situation
Refuse to think about it for the next hour
Notice ruminating and gently say 'not now'

What will you set aside, and for how long?

Thoughts

Fill your mind with something else that requires attention.

Need ideas?

Count to 10, or count colours in the room
Do a puzzle or a sudoku
Repeat the words to a song in your mind
Read something absorbing

What thought-task will you use?

Sensations

Give your body a strong, safe sensation to anchor you back into the present moment.

Need ideas?

Hold an ice cube in your hand for a minute
Take a hot or cold shower
Squeeze a stress ball hard
Step outside into fresh air, rain, or sun
Listen to very loud (or very quiet) music

Which sensation will you try first?

Send my ACCEPTS plan

Enter your email and we'll deliver a printable PDF. It'll also download right away so you have it close at hand.

Your answers stay private. We only use your email to send this plan and the occasional gentle note. Unsubscribe any time.

Adapted from Marsha M. Linehan, DBT Skills Training Handouts & Worksheets, 2nd Ed. — Distress Tolerance Handout 7: Distracting. For personal use, not a substitute for professional care.