The Distraction Coping Style

Children will experience a variety of different emotions as they live and play in the world. They will need coping skills to help them manage their feelings in safe and healthy ways. But there isn’t a “one-size-fits-all” strategies. Not all skills will work for all kids or all the time. The strategy that will work will be different, depending on their emotions, where they are, and their personal preferences.

The Distraction style focuses on playful and fun activities. Sometimes kids have a lot of thoughts and feelings, and it can feel like too much, so they just need to take a break. Or sometimes, they can’t stop thinking about something that’s making them worry, and they may have a hard time focusing. These are good times for kids to use a coping skill to distract yourself. This break will help them feel calmer and ready to get back to a task or face the problem. Distraction is not meant to avoid, or suppress, or deny feelings. Instead this allows kids to take a break until they are ready and able to process, or help relieve stress naturally. Some examples of the Distraction Coping Style:

Playing

Play board games or card games, or games on paper like sudoku, word searches, tic tac toe, dots,etc. Kids can think of ways to play independently, or find games that can be played with a group. Online play can count too!

Fun Activities

Make your own comic strip, write a story, create knock-knock jokes, plan fun events for the future, etc.

Creativity

Building with LEGOs, K’Nex, KEVA blocks, or playing with open ended toys. Kids can use their imagination, think outside the box, and maybe even invent something new!

Distraction Coping Style Products

To see research studies about coping skills that fall into the category of distraction, visit the evidence-based page.

*Please note, while I do place coping skills into styles, but these are not hard and fast categories. Something like drawing could fall into either distraction or relaxation. The styles are there to help bring order to the mountain of coping skills ideas, but aren’t meant to be rigid categories that can’t be changed.