Module 6: Testing Expectations during Mission Plans

Last time we saw Sally, she and her mom worked on a Mission Plan where she challenged herself to touch a dirty shirt and not wash her hands. This was a very big deal for Sally, because germs cause her a lot of anxiety, and get in the way of her being able to do things she wants to.

But! During last week’s video, Sally was able to overcome part of that fear by doing something she normally avoids doing, and was even able to challenge her need to always wash her hands.

During the exposure, Sally noticed that she felt really anxious at first. But the more she focused on touching the dirty shirt, the easier it was to touch it. She felt a little anxious and scared once she was done, but she wasn’t as anxious as before. Before the exposure, Sally thought that if she would touch the laundry, she might get sick and feel so dirty that she just could not handle it. But, after she spent five whole minutes touching the laundry, she noticed she was not as scared of getting sick and dying anymore. She also started to learn how brave she was! Exposures not only help us to feel brave, but they can change the way we think about our fears. For example, what if something did happen while Sally was doing the exposure? What if germs actually got onto Sally’s hands after touching the dirty shirt? Would the germs mean something bad would happen? Maybe, but we can’t ever know for sure. By challenging her fear, Sally is able to tell herself that it’s ok to not know what would happen if she touches a dirty shirt. Exposures help you learn new things about your fears. Sally learned that: 

• Even if she touched the dirty shirt, it was not as hard as she thought it would be.
• She did not get sick.
• Even if some germs passed onto her hands, it was not as big a deal as she expected.

This does not mean your anxieties and fears will immediately go away after you face them. The more exposures you do, the easier it will be to overcome your fears.

For Sally, the more she’s able to practice touching things that her anxiety tells her are “dirty”, and the more she’s able to practice NOT washing her hands, the easier it will be for her to go to reach her goals.