The TIPP Skill: A DBT Distress Tolerance Skill for Intense Emotions
How the TIPP Skill Helps With Emotional Dysregulation in BPD
There are moments when emotions rise so quickly and intensely that logic, insight, and coping thoughts simply aren’t accessible. Your heart is racing. Your thoughts feel frantic. Everything in your body is screaming do something now.
This is where TIPP comes in.
TIPP is a Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) skill designed for crisis-level emotional intensity when emotions are at a 7, 8, 9, or 10 out of 10 and traditional coping strategies aren’t working.
Instead of trying to think your way out of distress, TIPP works by changing your body’s physiology so your nervous system can settle enough for wise choices to become possible.
What Is TIPP?
TIPP stands for:
Temperature
Intense exercise
Paced breathing
Paired muscle relaxation
These skills activate the body’s natural calming systems and reduce emotional intensity quickly, often within minutes.
TIPP is not about solving the problem.
It’s about bringing your emotional arousal down so you don’t make the situation worse.
When to Use TIPP
TIPP is most effective when:
Emotions feel overwhelming or unbearable
You’re close to acting on urges you may regret
You feel panicked, enraged, dissociated, or out of control
Talking it through feels impossible
This is a short-term crisis skill, not a daily relaxation practice.
T — Temperature (Change Your Body’s Chemistry)
Cold temperature activates the dive reflex, which slows the heart rate and calms the nervous system.
Ways to use this skill:
Splash cold water on your face
Hold a cold pack or ice wrapped in a towel to your cheeks
Submerge your face in cold water for 15–30 seconds (if medically safe)
This can feel uncomfortable, but that discomfort is what helps interrupt emotional escalation.
I — Intense Exercise (Burn Off Emotional Energy)
Strong emotions come with a surge of physical energy. Intense exercise gives that energy somewhere to go.
Examples:
Fast walking or jogging
Jumping jacks
Stair climbing
Push-ups or squats
Aim for 20–90 seconds of vigorous movement. You don’t need a full workout, just enough to shift your body out of fight-or-flight.
P — Paced Breathing (Slow the Nervous System)
Slowing your breath sends a powerful signal of safety to your brain.
Try this:
Breathe in for 4 seconds
Breathe out for 6–8 seconds
Repeat for 1–2 minutes
Longer exhales are key. Even if your mind is racing, your breath can lead the way.
P — Paired Muscle Relaxation (Release Stored Tension)
This skill helps your body let go of tension it may not realize it’s holding.
How it works:
Tense a muscle group for 5 seconds
Release for 10–15 seconds
Notice the contrast
Move through different muscle groups
Tension often fuels emotional intensity and relaxing the body helps emotions follow.
Why TIPP Works When Other Skills Don’t
When emotions are extremely high, the thinking part of the brain goes offline. TIPP works from the bottom up, calming the body first so cognitive and emotional skills can come back online.
This is why TIPP is often a first step, not the only step, in managing intense emotions.
Once emotional intensity comes down, other DBT skills like problem solving, opposite action, or interpersonal effectiveness become more accessible.
A Compassionate Reminder
Needing TIPP doesn’t mean you failed at coping.
It means your nervous system is doing exactly what it was designed to do and you’re responding skillfully.
Using TIPP is an act of self-respect:
I don’t have to make decisions while my body is on fire.
With practice, you’ll learn to recognize when TIPP is needed and trust that you can bring yourself back to baseline.
