Jenny - Module 10

So, I started my hierarchy by asking people at the store questions. It seemed like a bit of a tough one, since I couldn’t really keep talking to a store clerk for 30 minutes, because that would be really weird. Instead, I figured I would go to the mall, and aim to go into a bunch of stores in a row, asking the store people a question. Anyone following me would have thought I was being a bit weird going from store to store, but again, how likely is it that someone’s following me (see, I’m using my skills! ☺ ) Before venturing on this, I completed the exposure form:

• Exposure task: Asking store clerk for help looking for something or another question

Before the exposure:

• How distressed you think you’ll be (0-100) : 70
• Thoughts, feelings, behaviours you notice before the task (i.e., what’s the worst the thing that can happen?): They’ll tell me I’m stupid; roll their eyes at me; laugh after I walk away
• Likelihood of the worst case happening: I guess not that likely
• Evaluate the evidence for or against the likelihood of this happening. Has it happened before? Have you always feared this situation? What are some reasons you should not fear the situation? What are some other explanations for your feared thoughts?:
  No sales clerk has ever told me I’m stupid before (though I can’t really remember the last time I asked a question of one); it would be pretty unprofessional; it’s likely just my anxiety getting in the way

After the exposure:

• Thoughts, feelings, behaviours you noticed during the exposure: After completing the first part of the form, I wasn’t quite as anxious as I initially feared; it certainly got easier as I went along
• Number of minutes you did the exposure: 45
• Maximum level of distress experienced (0-100): 65
• Distress when you stopped the exposure (0-100): 10
• Anything you did to avoid your emotions (distraction, safety signals): I had to remind myself to look at the people when I was asking the questions initially, but then it seemed to get easier
• What did you learn from this exposure? Did your worst case happen? If yes, how did you cope with it?: I had a pretty good sample, about 15 stores in total. Most of the sales people were actually pretty nice and didn’t seem to mind helping me. In some cases, I think they were actually happy to have someone to talk to. And, no one laughed at me, called me stupid, or really did anything to make me feel badly about myself. Interesting. I think I’ll do this another day just to make sure I’m actually okay with this now.

Read Module 10 reports from the other learners.

Mark	Ann-Marie	Steven