IMPROVE

Use your imagination to create a mental experience that feels calmer, safer, or more manageable than what your mind is currently focused on.

You might imagine:

• A peaceful place
• A favorite outdoor setting
• A comforting room
• Someone supportive sitting with you
• Yourself getting through the situation effectively
• The difficult moment eventually being over

Try adding details:

• What do you see?
• What do you hear?
• What does the air feel like?
• What do you notice in your body?

If visualization is difficult for you, use a photograph, memory, music, or written description instead.

Look for something that gives the difficult moment a larger context or connects it with something important to you.

Meaning does not mean telling yourself that something painful “happened for a reason.”

You do not have to believe that suffering was necessary or good.

Instead, you might ask:

• What matters to me while I go through this?
• What kind of person do I want to be in this situation?
• Is there anything I can learn from this?
• What am I trying to protect or work toward?
• What makes getting through this worthwhile?

Sometimes meaning is as simple as:

“This is difficult, but getting through it matters because of what I want for my future.”

If prayer or spirituality is meaningful to you, use it as a source of support, perspective, acceptance, or strength.

This might include:

• Prayer
• Meditation
• A spiritual reading
• Connecting with a faith community
• Asking for strength or guidance

If you are not religious or spiritual, this part of IMPROVE can still be approached as quiet reflection.

You might pause and ask:

“What do I need to remember right now?”

or:

“What would help me meet this moment with patience or wisdom?”

Use this part of the skill in whatever way fits your own beliefs.

Emotional distress often comes with physical tension. Try giving your body a signal that it does not need to remain as tightly wound as it is.

You might:

• Take several comfortable, slower breaths
• Relax your shoulders
• Unclench your jaw
• Stretch gently
• Take a warm shower
• Listen to calming music
• Use Progressive Muscle Relaxation
• Rest somewhere comfortable

You do not need to become completely relaxed. Look for even a small reduction in physical tension.

Narrow your attention to what is happening right now.

Distress can become much larger when your mind tries to handle the past, present, and future all at once.

Ask:

“What is the one thing I am doing right now?”

If you are walking, focus on walking.

If you are eating, focus on eating.

If you are waiting, notice what is around you while you wait.

If you are completing a task, focus only on the next step.

When your mind jumps ahead, gently return to this moment.

In IMPROVE, “Vacation” means taking a brief break from the demands of the moment.

You do not need to travel anywhere.

A short vacation might be:

• Step outside for a few minutes
• Sit somewhere quiet
• Take a short walk
• Make a cup of tea or coffee
• Listen to a few songs
• Lie down for a short rest
• Spend a few minutes with an animal
• Put your phone away temporarily

The important part is that the break is temporary.

If something still needs attention afterward, return to it when you are better able to cope.

Talk to yourself in a way that helps you keep going.

Encouragement does not need to be overly positive. In fact, realistic statements may be easier to believe.

Try:

• “I can get through the next few minutes.”
• “This is hard, but I do not have to solve everything right now.”
• “I have gotten through difficult moments before.”
• “One step at a time.”
• “I can feel this and still choose what I do next.”
• “I don't need to handle this perfectly.”

Choose words you can genuinely believe.

Imagine that something upsetting happened earlier in the day. There is nothing you can do about it tonight, but your mind keeps returning to it.

You might use:

Relaxation: take a warm shower and deliberately relax your shoulders and jaw.

One Thing in the Moment: focus only on making dinner instead of trying to figure out tomorrow at the same time.

Vacation: give yourself 20 minutes to watch something familiar and comforting.

Encouragement: remind yourself, “I don't have to solve this tonight. I can deal with tomorrow when tomorrow gets here.”

The problem has not disappeared. You have simply changed how you are getting through this part of it.

ACCEPTS mainly helps you temporarily direct attention away from distress.

For example, you might become involved in an activity, think about something else, or use a strong sensory experience.

IMPROVE is more about making the moment itself easier to tolerate.

You might relax your body, focus on one thing, encourage yourself, take a brief break, or find a source of meaning or support.

You do not need to decide which skill is “better.” Use whichever approach seems more helpful in the moment.

You do not need seven different strategies ready every time you are distressed.

Try identifying one or two options that work for you in advance.

• Imagery: What image or place helps me?
• Meaning: What helps me remember why getting through this matters?
• Prayer: Is there a spiritual or reflective practice that helps me?
• Relaxation: What reliably helps my body loosen up?
• One Thing: What can I bring my attention back to?
• Vacation: What is a healthy brief break for me?
• Encouragement: What words actually help me keep going?

That may be exactly when IMPROVE is useful.

The skill is not asking you to fix the whole situation.

Ask instead:

“Can I make this particular moment a little easier to get through?”

Do not force meaning onto something painful.

You do not have to believe that a bad experience was necessary, helpful, or meant to happen.

Skip this part of IMPROVE if it does not help, or focus simply on what matters to you as you move through the situation.

That is okay.

DBT includes prayer as one option, but IMPROVE does not require religious belief.

You can skip it or use quiet reflection, meditation, connection with your values, or another practice that fits you.

The Vacation skill means a short, intentional break, not abandoning responsibilities indefinitely.

If the issue needs attention, decide when you will return to it.

You do not need dramatic affirmations.

Try something simple and believable:

“This sucks, and I'm getting through it.”

or:

“I just need to deal with the next step.”

Encouragement should support you, not require you to pretend you feel differently than you do.