TIPP: Calm Your Body Fast
A DBT crisis skill that uses your body to bring down very high distress quickly. The four tools - Temperature, Intense exercise, Paced breathing, and Paired muscle relaxation - change your body chemistry fast so the wave of emotion becomes easier to ride.
Written by Tarun Vermani, Trainee Clinical Psychologist Last reviewed
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TIPP: Calm Your Body Fast
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T - Temperature
Cool your face. Splash cold water on your face, or hold a cold pack or a bag of frozen peas (wrapped in a cloth) over your eyes and cheeks, or hold your breath and lower your face into a bowl of cold water for about 30 seconds. The cold slows your heart and helps your body settle quickly. SAFETY: skip this step, or ask your doctor first, if you have a heart condition or an eating disorder. Keep it brief.
I - Intense exercise
Move hard for a short burst, about 60 seconds or a little more - run on the spot, do star jumps, jog up and down stairs, or fast walk. This burns off the stress chemicals flooding your body. Only do what is safe for you, and stop if you feel unwell.
P - Paced breathing
Slow your breathing right down, aiming for around five or six breaths a minute. Breathe in for a count of about four, and breathe out for a count of about six or more. Making the out-breath longer than the in-breath tells your body it is safe to calm down.
P - Paired / Progressive muscle relaxation
Work through your body, tensing and then releasing each muscle group. Tense as you breathe in (for example your fists, then arms, shoulders, face, stomach, legs), hold for a few seconds, then let go fully as you breathe out and notice the muscle soften. Pair the release with the word 'relax' in your mind.
Which tools will I use?
You do not need all four. Tick the ones you want to try in a crisis, then keep this somewhere easy to find.
Plan and record a practice
Try one or two of the tools now while you are calm, so you know what they feel like. Rate your distress before and after.
Try it here — nothing you type is saved. Sign up to assign it and let clients complete it on any device.
When to use ‘TIPP: Calm Your Body Fast’
‘TIPP: Calm Your Body Fast’ is an interactive cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) worksheet. As a core CBT skill it is used right across the model, with presentations including depression, anxiety, OCD, trauma and low self-esteem, rather than being tied to a single diagnosis.
It is designed to be used within therapy rather than as a standalone self-help tool: a therapist introduces it, works through it collaboratively, and helps make sense of what it surfaces. You can preview the full worksheet above, then assign it digitally for clients to complete between sessions on any device — or download it as a print-ready PDF.
How it works
Most people work through it in around 7 minutes. It moves through six short steps:
- T - Temperature — Cool your face. Splash cold water on your face, or hold a cold pack or a bag of frozen peas (wrapped in a cloth) over your eyes and cheeks,…
- I - Intense exercise — Move hard for a short burst, about 60 seconds or a little more - run on the spot, do star jumps, jog up and down stairs, or fast walk. This…
- P - Paced breathing — Slow your breathing right down, aiming for around five or six breaths a minute. Breathe in for a count of about four, and breathe out for a…
- P - Paired / Progressive muscle relaxation — Work through your body, tensing and then releasing each muscle group. Tense as you breathe in (for example your fists, then arms,…
- Which tools will I use? — You do not need all four. Tick the ones you want to try in a crisis, then keep this somewhere easy to find.
- Plan and record a practice — Try one or two of the tools now while you are calm, so you know what they feel like. Rate your distress before and after.
Completed on the Formulate platform, your client's answers are saved automatically and shared straight back to you, so you can review them before the next session rather than waiting for a paper copy to come back.
The CBT approach behind it
In common with other CBT methods, ‘TIPP: Calm Your Body Fast’ works by putting clear, personalised coping steps in place for difficult moments. The aim is not positive thinking but a clearer, shared understanding of what keeps a difficulty going — and practical, testable ways to change it.
Because it is a CBT tool it stays focused on the here-and-now links between thoughts, feelings, the body and behaviour, and it works best as one part of a wider course of therapy rather than as advice or a diagnosis.
Evidence & sources
This worksheet is grounded in established cognitive behavioural therapy theory and practice. Key sources include:
- Linehan, M.M. (2015). DBT Skills Training Manual (2nd ed.). New York: Guilford Press.
- Linehan, M.M. (1993). Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder. New York: Guilford Press.
For use alongside professional support
Formulate provides educational CBT resources for use with a qualified therapist. They are not a substitute for professional assessment, diagnosis, or crisis care.
If you need urgent help now:
- Emergency services: 999 — if you or someone else is in immediate danger
- Samaritans: 116 123 — free, day or night, 365 days a year
- SANEline: 0800 689 5555 — 4:30pm–10:30pm, every day
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