Tipp Skills
Learn the four TIPP skills from DBT to calm your body fast when emotion becomes overwhelming. Practice temperature, intense exercise, paced breathing, and paired muscle relaxation, then build a plan you can reach for in hard moments.
When emotion takes over
Sometimes emotion rises so fast and so high that thinking your way through it stops working. Your heart pounds, your thoughts race, and the urge to do something right now feels enormous. In those moments, the fastest way to calm your mind is through your body. TIPP is a set of four skills from dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) that change your body chemistry within minutes: Temperature, Intense exercise, Paced breathing, and Paired muscle relaxation. Use TIPP when your distress is very high, around 7 or more out of 10, and you need to come down before deciding what to do next.
The four TIPP skills
Temperature: Cold calms your nervous system quickly. Fill a bowl with cold water, hold your breath, and dip your face in for 15 to 30 seconds, or hold a cold pack against your cheeks and eyes. This triggers a natural reflex that slows your heart rate. Intense exercise: Burn off the surge of energy that comes with strong emotion. Sprint, do jumping jacks, climb stairs, or dance hard for 10 to 20 minutes, then let your body wind down on its own. Paced breathing: Slow your breath and make the exhale longer than the inhale. Try breathing in for a count of 4 and out for a count of 6, aiming for five or six full breaths per minute. Paired muscle relaxation: While breathing in, tense one muscle group. While breathing out, let it go completely and silently say the word relax. Move through your body one area at a time.
A quick note on safety
Cold water and intense exercise change your heart rate quickly. If you have a heart condition, low blood pressure, an eating disorder, or take medication that affects your heart, check with your medical provider before using the temperature or exercise skills. TIPP works best when you learn it alongside a therapist who knows your situation. If you are in crisis or thinking about harming yourself, call or text 988 in the US to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You do not have to ride out the worst moments alone.
Your distress right now
Before you practice, rate how intense your emotion feels in this moment.
Pick a skill and try it now
Choose one or two options and give them a real try before moving on. Check off what you did.
Your distress after
Rate your emotion again now that you have practiced. Any drop counts, even one point.
What worked best
Which skill moved the number most for you?
Your TIPP practice plan
TIPP works far better in a crisis if you have rehearsed it while calm. Plan the details now: what you will keep ready, where, and when you will practice this week.
What did you notice
Take a moment to reflect on this practice.
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