Calm Body · Regulate Practice
TIPP
A practical skill for moments
of high activation.
When your body is highly activated, thinking your way out of the moment may be difficult. TIPP is a set of skills from Dialectical Behavior Therapy designed to work with the body first.
Developed by Marsha M. Linehan as part of DBT. This CFC guide helps you consider when and how these skills may fit.
When TIPP Fits
When activation makes
a useful response harder.
You might feel tense, restless, flooded, or pulled to react quickly. If that state is getting in the way, a suitable body-focused skill may help create more room for your next choice.
Start with Notice and Evaluate. Sometimes activation fits. Sometimes you need support, recovery, a change in demands, or action on the situation itself.
Four skills. Choose what fits.
These are options, rather than a required sequence. The downloadable guide contains the full instructions, adaptations, and check-in prompts.
Temperature
Facial cooling is the original DBT temperature skill. The guide offers a gentle adaptation and explains how it differs from the full protocol.
Check suitability first. Facial cooling and whole-body cold immersion are different practices.
Intense exercise
A brief period of vigorous movement is one option when it suits your health, capacity, and setting. Pause afterward and check your response.
Skip this option if vigorous activity is unsuitable. Exercise can initially raise activation.
Paced breathing
Gently slow your breathing at a comfortable pace. A slightly longer exhale may be useful if it feels easy.
Avoid forcing big breaths. Choose another option if breath focus increases distress.
Paired muscle relaxation
Pair gentle muscle tension with an inhale, then release with the exhale. Notice the contrast without straining.
Skip painful or injured areas. Releasing existing tension is another option.
The CFC Principle
More room for useful choice.
The goal isn't to eliminate discomfort. The goal is to respond to your state deliberately enough that you regain useful choice.
TIPP can help you explore ways to influence your state. You still need to decide what the situation calls for and take the next useful step.
Important Context
Choose a suitable skill.
Pay attention to your response.
Different bodies and circumstances call for different choices. You can skip any option, stop, or choose another response.
Cooling and exercise need care.
Seek medical guidance before facial cooling or vigorous exercise if you have a heart or other relevant medical condition, an unusually low resting heart rate, take medicines that slow heart rate, have a cold allergy, or have an eating disorder.
The guide's gentle cooling adaptation does not assume the same effects as the full DBT cold-water and breath-holding protocol. Learn that protocol with a qualified clinician.
Respond to what is happening.
Stop if a skill makes you feel worse, dizzy, faint, or in pain. New or severe chest pain, fainting, or severe breathing difficulty needs urgent medical assessment.
If there is immediate danger, prioritize safety and appropriate help. This is an educational resource; it does not replace DBT treatment or medical care you may need.
Origins, evidence, and sources
TIPP comes from DBT skills training developed by Marsha M. Linehan. CFC created this guide's wording, adaptations, and reflection prompts. The original DBT handouts are not reproduced.
These skills offer options to try when appropriate. A particular technique cannot guarantee immediate calm, and evidence about one breathing, exercise, or cold-exposure protocol should not be treated as proof for every version.
Take It With You
The full
TIPP practice guide.
Learn the options, choose a suitable skill, and record what happens. Use your observations to make a more useful choice next time.
- When TIPP may fit, with important suitability and safety guidance
- Four skill options, with clearly identified CFC adaptations
- A guided Notice → Evaluate → Regulate check-in and next step
- A three-opportunity learning log, reflection, and sources
Where TIPP Fits
One tool within Regulate.
CFC develops capabilities through Calm Body → Clear Mind → Strong Life. TIPP is a supporting practice within Calm Body: an option when less activation would help you meet the moment.
Calm Body
Recognize your state and develop appropriate ways to influence it, recover, and keep useful support available.
Clear Mind
Recognize thoughts and patterns with greater perspective.
Strong Life
Make choices that reflect what matters to you.
Notice the activation. Evaluate the fit. Within Regulate, choose a suitable action, which might include a TIPP skill. Maintain helps you keep useful support available.