Cognitive reappraisal techniques are a cognitive change strategy. They’re used to regulate emotion and represent ways to reinterpret events through your own lens.

This is different from suppressing an emotion which involves keeping a lid on the emotion and hiding the emotion from others.

Here’s my checklist to remind myself to do this when intense emotions surface:

1. Observe your intense emotions.
   • HALT acronym.
   • H in HALT acronym represents hunger.
   • A in HALT acronym represents anger.
   • L in HALT acronym represents loneliness.
   • T in HALT acronym represents tiredness.
2. Orient yourself by re-regulating.
3. Decide which reappraisal strategy to use.
   • Decide if this is normal.
   • Decide if this is humorous.
   • Decide if this is at the right priority.
   • Decide if this is the right perspective.
4. Act on your decision.
   • Normalize the event.
   • Find humor in the event.
   • Reprioritize the event.
   • Change your perspective of the event.

External links

1. OODA loop - Wikipedia

See also

1. Mindfulness of emotions and feelings
2. Reinterpreting ideas through your own lens