Managing physical reactions, emotions, thoughts and behaviours

Open Arms is an Australian provider of mental health assessment and counselling for veterans and their families. On its website is a range of useful resilience tools for staying at the top of your game, based on the SMART model.

Just like going to the gym for physical fitness, you can train and build up resilience fitness using these tools. You can also find similar tools on the ADF HiRes app and NZDF ResCo app.

The Open Arms SMART model tools are shared here, with permission.

The SMART model - As you may know, or be learning, reactions to a particular situation are likely to include physical responses, thoughts, emotions and / or behaviours.

Click on this link for tips and tools about managing each of these areas, or use the smart tool finder.

The steps in the SMART model are:

  1. Determine how you are reacting to a situation. Is the reaction mostly affecting your emotions, your thoughts, your physical reactions, or your behaviours?
  2. Test your perceptions and your reactions by asking two questions:
    • Is this reaction reasonable, given the situation I am in right now?
    • Is this reaction helping me deal with the situation I am in right now?
  3. Adjust your reaction to achieve a more optimal performance as required.

Managing your reactions

For more information on managing emotions, thoughts and behaviours in a COVID-19 environment, see the 'Trouble in your bubble' resource below