Embracing your worries with humor

Chronic worriers, OCD-spectrum intrusive thoughts, clients who have tried cognitive restructuring without much movement. Not appropriate for trauma content, suicidal ideation, or worries about real ongoing crisis. Use with worries the client recognises as disproportionate but can’t stop.

The form has 3 fields. “Playful techniques you’ll try” is a repeating block with at least 3 rows, each with 1 sub-field (long-text).

A clinical note worth holding: clients who refuse to try because the worry feels “too important” to be silly with. That refusal usually is the working material. The exercise often unlocks something specifically because it bypasses the seriousness defense. Start small (one playful thing once) rather than insisting on the whole list.

In my-cbt, the form is in the system templates and ready to send. The personal message field is where you frame the task for this client. Submissions show up in the case file alongside the session notes. The repeating sections expand on screen instead of running out of room in a margin.