Planning tool
Plan for Hard Moments: If-Then Plans for Parties, Travel and Stress
Most slips happen in situations you can see coming: a celebration, a work trip, a stressful week. Plan for hard moments helps you decide ahead of time what you will do, while you are calm.
How it works
- 1Name a situation that tends to derail you, or pick one: a party, eating out, travel, a stressful week, holidays.
- 2Write an if-then plan: “If I’m at Friday drinks, then I eat a proper snack first and start with sparkling water.”
- 3Add a minimum for days like that: the smallest version of your habits you can still keep.
- 4Keep your plans in one place and read the right one before the situation arrives.
Why it helps
- Planning how to cope with specific obstacles, sometimes called coping planning, helps people keep a new habit going when things get hard.
- A decision made in advance takes the negotiation out of the moment.
- A minimum version keeps the habit alive on bad days, so you never have to start from zero.
Questions
How many plans should I make?
Start with the one or two situations that trip you up most often. A short list you actually read beats a long one you forget.
What if the plan doesn’t work?
That is useful information. Use the weekly review to adjust it, and try again next time.
This tool is for education and encouragement, not medical advice. Talk to a qualified healthcare professional before changing your diet, activity or medication. If you are in crisis, call or text 988 (US and Canada) or your local emergency number.