Back to Module Intro
Metacognitive Training
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IntroductionIdentify your fire
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Choose your own adventure
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Self-Esteem & StigmaIntroduction
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What are self-esteem and stigma?
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Self-esteem, stigma and substance use
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Activity 1- Communication tools
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Activity 2- Creating a positive self-concept
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Activity 3- Focusing on your strengths
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Summary
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Quiz
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Explaining SituationsIntroduction
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What are attributions?
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Attributional styles and substance use
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Activity 1- Balanced explanations Part 1
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Activity 2- Balanced explanations Part 2
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Activity 3- Practicing explanations
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Summary
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Quiz
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Worrying & CopingIntroduction
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What is rumination?
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Worrying and substance use
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Activity 1- Observe your thoughts
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Activity 2- Postpone rumination
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Activity 3- Shift your attention
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Activity 4- Sensory grounding
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Activity 5- Relaxed breathing
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Summary
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Quiz
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Attention & thinkingIntroduction
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Terms are related to thinking and memory
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Attention and substance use
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Activity 1- Card games
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Activity 2
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Activity 3- Problem Solving
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Summary
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Quiz
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RelapseIntroduction
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What is relapse?
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Cravings, triggers, and relapse
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Activity 1- Managing triggers
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Activity 2- Alternative strategies
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Activity 3- Emergency plan
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Activity 4- Learning from each relapse
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Summary
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Quiz
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Lesson 20 of 45
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What is rumination?
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It is natural to think over and over about certain life events or painful experiences. However, when this thinking goes on for too long without reaching a solution, it can make things worse.
Rumination is when you repeatedly think about negative emotional experiences. When you feel like your worrying is uncontrollable, you are ruminating. Rumination can often be automatic and intrusive.
Here are some examples of these thoughts:
- Why do I have problems other people don’t have?
- Why can’t I handle things better?
- What am I doing to deserve this?
- Constantly wishing a recent situation had gone better.
People ruminate for a variety of reasons. Some believe that rumination is beneficial.
Below is a list of common positive beliefs about rumination:
- I need to ruminate about my problems to understand my feelings.
- I need to ruminate about the bad things that have happened in the past to make sense of them.
- Ruminating about my problems helps me to focus on the most important things.
- Ruminating about the past helps me to prevent future mistakes and failures.
Are these beliefs accurate?
- Most of these beliefs associate problem solving with ruminating. Problem solving focuses on actions that can be taken in a future situation, whereas ruminating focuses on the “what-ifs” of problems. You can go to the Problem Solving module to learn about how to work through problem productively
- Ruminating does not lead to solutions but increases negative mood.
Some also believe that rumination is harmful.
Below is a list of common negative beliefs about rumination:
- When I ruminate, I can’t do anything else.
- Ruminating means I’m out of control.
- Ruminating will turn me into a failure.
- Ruminating means I’m a bad person.
- It is impossible not to ruminate about the bad things that have happened in the past.
Are these beliefs accurate?
- The belief that rumination is harmful can cause even more rumination to occur.
- Rumination is often thought to be uncontrollable, but there are strategies that help against ruminations.