I will be very honest. I have NEVER seen an episode of Steven Universe. I’ve read some Wikipedia articles and watched some Youtube videos about the show, but never watched a single episode myself. I do like the music for it though and I’ve listened to a ton of the songs via Youtube music videos.
This song literally is a mindfulness exercise. I shared it once back when I was still in my DBT group/class. If you take a look at the lyrics, it seriously is just a guided walkthrough to work on mindfulness. I absolutely love it. It’s one of those songs that I could listen to over and over again because this is the sort of ear worm that SHOULD get stuck in your head.
[Intro: Garnet]
Take a moment to think of just
Flexibility, love, and trust
Take a moment to think of just
Flexibility, love, and trust
Use the STOP skill from the Emotion Regulation module.
[Verse 1: Garnet]
Here comes a thought that might alarm you
What someone said and how it harmed you
Something you did that failed to be charming
Things that you said are suddenly swarming
Use the “Wise Mind” skill from the Mindfulness module.
[Pre-Chorus: Garnet]
And, oh, you’re losing sight, you’re losing touch
All these little things seem to matter so much
That they confuse you
That I might lose you
Use the “How” Skill from the Mindfulness module.
[Chorus: Garnet]
Take a moment, remind yourself
To take a moment and find yourself
Take a moment and ask yourself
If this is how we fall apart
But it’s not, but it’s not, but it’s not, but it’s not, but it’s not
It’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay
You’ve got nothing, got nothing, got nothing, got nothing to fear
I’m here, I’m here, I’m here
[Verse 2: Stevonnie]
Here comes a thought that might alarm me
What someone said and how it harmed me
Something I did that failed to be charming
Things that I said are suddenly swarming
[Pre-Chorus: Stevonnie]
And, oh, I’m losing sight, I’m losing touch
All these little things seem to matter so much
That they confuse me
[Bridge: Both]
And it was just a thought, just a thought, just a thought, just a thought, just a thought
It’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay, it’s okay
We can watch, we can watch, we can watch, we can watch them go by
From here, from here, from here
[Outro: Stevonnie]
Take a moment to think of just
Flexibility, love, and trust
Take a moment to think of just
Flexibility, love, and trust
Use the “Positive Self-Talk” Skill from the Emotion Regulation module.
I don’t know if that was helpful to understand what I mean about the song. It seems like it’s primarily Mindfulness exercises and Emotion Regulation exercises, but there’s some Distress Tolerance sprinkled in there. Sometimes when you’re under duress you can’t really think straight and working your way through these kinds of situations becomes even more difficult. I know we’ve said this in the Podcast a few times, but …
We might know the skills and what they’re called in DBT. Sure. Knowing versus being able to practice them is a huge difference. Just because you know how to do something doesn’t mean that you’ll be able to perform under pressure. It’s often times why you’re forced to practice things so many times. If you ever take a CPR class, even just the basic one, they’ll teach you a few songs to sing while you’re doing CPR on someone. Because it’s really easy to speed up and do things wrong in an emergency situation.
In this case, part of me is very happy that there’s a song to help when you’re having overwhelming thoughts and emotions. I might not be able to actually sing this song myself, but at least I know to go to my phone, pull this up, and hit play so that I can listen to it and unwind.
I hope this was able to help someone! By the time this post actually goes live on the blog, it’ll be after the big mental health week entries. At this point, I’ve got a huge amount of buffer going for my posts. I’m going to keep writing every day though to stay in the habit of writing. I’m not always able to write in a physical journal like my therapist asks, but these entries online are always accessible by computer, tablet, or even phone so it’s one of the best ways to keep up.
What events happened? What emotions followed that event? What thoughts did you have during all of this?
That’s basically what I attempt to record each day when there’s something happening. Not always consistent, but at least I’m aware and trying. Thanks for reading, guys! See you tomorrow.
Atelier Whootique 