Cups

Here is an activity submitted by Molly Gilbert, an RT intern at Sycamore Springs in Lafayette, IN.  

Objective/Goals: ­­To improve skills in the areas of stress and frustration management.

Population: ­­higher functioning patients dealing with mental health and substance abuse 

Materials Needed: one plastic cup per patient

Activity:

This is an activity based on the routine/song “Cups” by Anna Kendrick. 

Begin by discussing how patients currently deal with stress and frustration.  Discuss the difference between positive and negative coping skills and ask each patient to identify a positive way of dealing with stress and frustration.  Ask the patients to keep this in mind as they complete the activity, as it has the potential to increase their stress and frustration. 

Before passing out the cups, explain that the group will be learning a routine with the cups and that their end goal is to be able to do it all together as a group. (For even higher functioning groups, you can identify the goal as being able to do the routine along with the song).    Show them this video as an example (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2mawaBrvFg – Anna Kendrick Cup Song Audition - Pitch Perfect).

Teach patients the cup routine step by step:

·         Clap, clap

·         3 hits on table (right, left, right)

·         Clap

·         With right hand, lift cup and set back down

·         Clap

·         Grab cup with upside-down right hand

·         Opening of cup to palm of left hand

·         With right hand, tap bottom of cup on table

·         Place cup, up-right, in left hand

·         Right hand on table

·         Place cup upside-down on table to the right of your right hand

Once the group has the concept, practice the entire routine continuously.  Slowly increase the speed as patients become more confident.  As patients improve, add the challenge of passing the cup to the right at the end of each set.  When done correctly, the cups are passed around the circle.  For higher functioning groups, play the song and have them try to do the routine along with the music.  

Debriefing:

Review the positive coping skills patients identified at the start and discuss any that were used during the activity.  If negative coping skills were used, discuss why those were negative and brainstorm more positive coping skills.  End with a discussion on how it feels to be stressed/frustrated by something, but to keep working on it and then accomplish it. 

Space Ball

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Group Size: 8 to 30

Equipment: a beach ball or a soft ball

Focus: group challenge, energizer, frustration tolerance

Description: Participants either form a circle or place themselves equal distance from each other around the gym. The object of the activity is to keep the ball afloat without letting it hit the ground. Challenge the group to set a goal and try to set their personal best or "world" record.

Discussion: Groups and individuals sometimes become frustrated. Discuss what people do when they become frustrated (escape, sabotage, anger, etc.). Have participants suggest specific behaviors they can do to prevent frustration and its subsequent behaviors. Continue the game and encourage everyone to act on the + actions suggested by the group.

Ways to Improve as a Group: invite the group to suggest ways they can improve and obtain higher scores.

Expected Outcome: group cohesion, understanding of frustration and reactions to frustration, laughter, physical exercise

Concerns: encourage participants not to dive for the ball if playing on a rough surface

submitted here

Group Rock, Paper, Scissors

Submitted here by Jessica Hohenberger, CTRS of Hawthorn Center on February 21, 2003

Size: 6+

Equipment: large area for running

Objective: provide opportunites for good sportsmanship, team work and group cooperation

Description: Have group sit in a circle and group leader will ask who knows how to play rock paper scissors? Ask an individual to visually demonstrate to the group the objectives of the game. After sample rounds between leader and volunteer ask group to identify which player "won" each round to be sure everyone understands. Divide group into 2 equal groups and explain that they will choose a collective group signal. They will return to center of room and line up across from the other team. Be sure that they are standing about an arms length apart from the people on their sides and one step apart from the person in front of them. On the count of "rock, paper, scissors" each team will flash their signal. Depending on the outcome of the encounter, participants must attempt to capture opposing team members using a light tag (if they win) or retreat to their safe zone (if they lose). Be sure to review this process carefully with participants as it can be confusing. Game ends when one team successfully captures all members of the opposing team.

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Mindfulness

This handout is also from Pinterest!  Enjoy!

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Emotional Regulation

This week's handout is also from Pinterest.

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Exercise: Cardio

Here are some ideas for doing Cardio exercises.  We try to make it as interactive as possible, calling on patients to choose exercise to do, having patients lead, etc.

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Exercises:

·        Jump Rope (one minute)

·        Cross Jabs (x20 each side)

·        Front Lunges (alternating, x20)

·        Arms High/Low

·        Side to Side legs wide (touch toe)

·        Side Lunges (alternating, x20)

·        Jumping Jacks (x20)

·        Punch down

·        Knees in air

·        Running laps (x5)

·        Knees out running

·        Knees down heels out

·        Skiing Run

·        Shake out

·        Jump side to side- forward to backward

·        Squat and hold while bringing arms back to front

·        Punches, kicks

·        Jog in place

·        Squats up and down

·        Cherry pickers (legs apart, bend forward and reach back three times, x20)

·        Grapevine (back and forth length of gym, x2) 

How to Deal with Rude People

I saw this on Pinterest and there was no way I could not post it!

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Crisis Intervention Model

Found this on Pinterest!

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Blindfold Tag

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Here's another activity submitted by Jill Sederberg.


Begin by making some sort of perimeter (I usually take two ropes and make them into a circle on and use duct tape to make a circle on the gym floor).  Then have patients team up into pairs.  One person is blindfolded and the other is their "guide."  You then play tag.  The person who is "it" holds a pool noodle and is guided by their partner to where the other people are.  All guides try and direct their partner away from whoever is "it."  If hit by the noodle, that person is the new "it."  Guides MUST be out of the perimeter and the players cannot step out of the perimeter.  Have patients switch roles at some point.

Sometimes to make it harder you can stand in the middle and yell random directions. :)

Processing Ideas:
*Trust - Could you trust your partner?  How were you able to pick out their voice?  What makes someone trustworthy? Do you have someone you can trust in your life?
*Teamwork
*Communication Skills
*Addiction - How is the blindfold like an addiction in our lives?

Cornstarch Goo

Jill Sederberg did this activity at our facility!  It's a great sensory activity.

Description:
Put Saran Wrap over the table to avoid making a mess.  Mix the cornstarch and water together.  When you squeeze it hard it goes into a ball and if you just hold it in your hand it melts.  Talk about how that relates to anger management.

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The "Um" Game

Brinda Green, CTRS also found this activity for our facility, but it was originally submitted by Anna Mallard (Activity Therapist at New Hope for Children - Jedburg, SC).

Materials:
A small bag of random, familiar items
Horn/Buzzer

Description:
-Sitting in a circle, have each individual take turns describing an item given to them from the bag.  The person has one minute to describe the item.
-If the person says the word "um" or pauses for more than five seconds, they will sit down and wait until the next round to participate.
-If the person successfully describes the item, he/she will receive a point.
-Peers will be encouraged to use the horn/buzzer or make a buzzer sound if they hear "um" or count five seconds of silence.

There are several different ways to process this activity:
-Anxiety/public speaking
-Concentration
-Listening Skills
-Expand vocabulary

Straw Blown Paintings

Here is an activity submitted by Heidi Bolster, CTRS.

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Materials:

·         Paper (preferably thicker paper for painting

·         Acrylic paint

·         Water mixed with acrylic paint to thin the paint for the straw-blowing portion of the activity

·         Paint brushes

·         Drinking straws

Description

·         Patients will paint a background using whatever creativity they like onto the paper until the whole page is painted

·         Patients will use straws to blow the “water thinned” paint across the background painting

·         Patients can create trees with this technique, or they can make spiders/monsters, etc. for a Halloween activity.

Processing questions:

·         How well were you able to control the paint when you were blowing it with the straw? Was it frustrating when it didn’t go the way you wanted? Were you able to create the image in your mind, or did it turn out different than expected? Was it frustrating, and how did you deal with those emotions?

·         Does this happen in life sometimes? (When things don’t go as planned?) How do you deal with this in your life? What are emotions you feel when things don’t go as planned? How do you deal with those emotions? How do you want to deal with those emotions? What can you do right now, while you are in the hospital, to help you manage your emotions and choices when life seems to go a different way than planned?

Building Bridges

This is an activity submitted by the Activity Therapists at Provo Canyon Behavioral Hospital.

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Materials:
Newspaper or Magazines (LOTS!!)
Tape
Something heavy (i.e. textbook)

Tell patients that they need to build a bridge taht will hold the heavy object.  The specifications for the bridge are that it needs to be at least 6 inches tall and 10 inches long.

The rec therapist can add variations as needed, for example:
   -If a person is bossy, tell him he can't talk anymore
   -Give a time limit to create tension
   -Tell someone she has to say "banana" in between each word she says

Processing:
Talk about the experience.  What went well?  What was frustrating?  Consider the following questions:
   -How do you react to stress?  Is that healthy or unhealthy?
   -How do you react to success?  Failure?
   -How do you treat people under pressure?  Is there anything you need to change?
   -How can you diffuse a stressful situation?

For a large group, you can also make it into a competition.  Which team can build the tallest bridge that holds the book?  The most aesthetically pleasing bridge?  Etc.

Anger Management Art Activity

Here is another activity we frequently use at Provo Canyon Behavioral Hospital.  It's great for lower functioning groups!

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Materials:
Anger Management handout (if applicable)
Colored pencils, markers, crayons, etc.
Blank Paper

Description:
Give each patient a blank piece of paper.  Have them draw what anger looks like, feels like, etc. for them personally.  Afterwards, have patients share their drawings with the group.

On the back of the paper, have patients draw or write the answer to the following questions: 1). How have I dealt with anger in the past and 2). How I want to deal with anger in the future.

Discuss the patients responses.  Go over the anger management handout and talk about different coping skills patients can use to deal with anger.

Anger Management Jenga

Here is another fun version of Jenga!  Submitted by the Activity Therapy department at Provo Canyon Behavioral Hospital.

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Directions:

Play Jenga as usual. Based on the color of the dot on the end of the Jenga cube, pt. will be instructed to do the following:

     Red: name a symptom of Anger
     Green: Name a coping skills you can use when angry
     Blue: Name something that makes you angry
     Purple: State a goal you can make now to manage anger in the future

Afterwards, process with the group about how this activity required anger management skills. Talk about what was good about the group and what could be improved. Talk about why anger management is
important in life.

Don't forget to check out the Feelings Jenga, Social Skills Jenga, and the Communications Jenga!