Deciding Which to Use. When emotions fit the facts, changing the situation through 
problem solving can be the most effective way to change the emotion. At other times, changing how you feel about the situation through opposite action is the best course of action. The flow chart on this handout can help you figure out what skill to 
use to change frequent but unwanted emotions. Use Emotion Regulation Worksheet 
6: Figuring Out How to Change Unwanted Emotions to work out which skill to use. This worksheet has the same flow chart format as Handout 9.
••Emotion Regulation Handout 10: Opposite Action and  Emotion Regulation 
Handout 11: Figuring Out Opposite Action. Opposite action is acting opposite to your emotional urge to do or say something. Opposite action is an effective way to 
change or reduce unwanted emotions. The action urge is one of the parts of an emo -
tion (see Emotion Regulation Handout 5), and each emotion has a typical action 
urge (see Emotion Regulation Handout 6). Handout 10 lists the steps for how to do 
opposite action. Handout 11 is a guide for identifying opposite actions for nine spe -
cific emotions. The opposite actions on Handout 11 are, however, only suggestions. 
It’s important to identify your own action urges and figure out actions opposite to those urges. To record your practice of opposite action, use Emotion Regula -
tion Worksheet 7: Opposite Action to Change Emotions. The “Before” and “After” spaces are for rating the emotion’s intensity before practicing opposite action and afterward. When you are analyzing whether the emotion is justified (i.e., whether it fits the facts), focus on the emotion’s prompting event.