I created these Circle of Control worksheets, originally on Patreon! If you're unfamiliar, the Circle of Control is often used as reference material to showcase what we have control over and what we do not have control over. You've probably seen it on social media but there's an inside circle named "Things We Can Control" which has things like my feelings, my words, my decisions, my actions.
(I've written about how, as someone with anxiety I LOVE being in control)
Then it has a bigger circle that says "Things Out of My Control" and that lists things like war, death, weather, traffic, the economy, and what other people say/do/think. I have only seen it used as reference material.
And then I realized how absolutely invaluable it would be to break it down and apply it to specific, individual, situations. And that's exactly what I did! I've created several Control Circle Worksheets based on different situations, with examples!
One of the first ones is mental illness. We can't control our diagnosis, the wait times to get help, resources in our area, and what medications will or won't work for us. BUT there are things that we can control, like learning coping skills, advocating for ourselves, and showing up for appointments (and for some people, some of those things might even fall into the 'can't control' circle if they don't have access to transportation, etc).
There's one for relationships that talks about how we can't control the effort other people put into a relationship, how they deal with trauma, and how they give and receive love BUT we are in control of communicating our wants and needs, enforcing our boundaries, and whether we stay in the relationship. (Of course, abusive relationships change that dynamic but you get the point)
The Circle of Control Worksheets provide a great exercise in how we can redirect nervous/anxious/worried energy toward something more productive.
