ARAES OF PRACTICE
Coping Skills
Coping is about discovering what supports your nervous system and needs, so you can build tools that sustain you through life's challenges.
WHAT IT IS
What Are Coping Skills?
Coping skills are practical strategies that help you manage stress, navigate intense emotions, and handle hard situations without burning out or shutting down. Rather than forcing you into one-size-fits-all advice, effective coping honours your nervous system. Exploring coping skills with our therapists means understanding your nervous system and history to co-create practical, personal tools that sustain you.
Different situations call for different tools, which generally fall into three categories:
Problem-Focused Coping: Taking action to adjust your environment, workload, or routines so daily tasks feel manageable.
Emotion & Sensory Regulation: Using body-based tools, sensory adjustments, and acceptance to calm your nervous system when feeling overwhelmed.
Value-Based Coping: Connecting with your core values and self-compassion to ground yourself through difficult life transitions.
What We Work On
Coping Strategies We Explore Together
Identifying Overwhelm Early: Noticing the subtle signs of dysregulation, sensory overload, or shutdown.
Nervous System Regulation: Srategies for neurodivergent nervous systems to restore balance and protect your daily energy reserves.
Managing Decision Fatigue: Creating flexible routines and environmental adjustments that reduce daily cognitive load.
Unlearning Shame: Building practical self-compassion to counter internalized criticism and pathologizing narratives.
Setting & Honouring Boundaries: Finding practical ways to protect your capacity and advocate for your needs in relationships and work.
Burnout Recovery: Developing intentional plans to restore your mind and body after demanding days or exhausting experiences.
who this helps
Who Benefits from This Work
This area of focus is a good fit if you:
Feel like you are constantly in survival mode
Experience meltdowns or intense nervous system overwhelm
Have tried conventional strategies that did not fit your nervous system
Are a neurodivergent person looking for support from a therapist who gets your experience
Want to build capacity rather than constantly managing distress
COMMON QUESTIONS
Frequently Asked Questions
I have tried a lot of things and nothing works. Can counselling still help?
When the strategies you've tried haven't helped, it usually just means they weren't built for your nervous system, so we start by honouring how you actually operate.
Do I need a diagnosis to work on coping skills?
No. You don’t need a formal diagnosis to access support and services with us.
Will you just give me a list of coping strategies to try?
No. We take time to understand what is actually driving your stress or dysregulation, and build strategies from there.