Emotionally focused therapy / EFT-A01-2
Naming the Interaction Cycle — Practice worksheet
Map an ordinary trigger, each person's protective response, and how the responses feed each other.
15 minutes · Worksheet · Adults; supported use as appropriate
Fictional example: Alex asks repeatedly about plans while Sam gets quieter, increasing Alex's urgency.
Use an ordinary or fictional example, with a clinician when appropriate. The recurring cycle can be described without making either person the enemy.
1. Choose a workable example
Use the fictional example below or an ordinary situation of your choosing. Keep identifying details out of shared copies.
2. Try the practice
Map an ordinary trigger, each person's protective response, and how the responses feed each other.
3. Compare possibilities
Generate at least two interpretations or options. Mark what you know, what you are guessing, and what remains outside your control.
4. Decide together
What happens between you that each person alone cannot explain? Choose one small action, a support request, or no action. Review the fit with your clinician when relevant.
Prompts for this resource
- My chosen or fictional situation, and what I know about it:
- My response to the practice task above:
- What happens between you that each person alone cannot explain?
- An optional next step, support, adaptation, or reason to stop:
Conceptual background
What is EFT? — International Centre for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy
Background on the approach only. Original exercises and wording are by More Than Therapy with AI assistance; the source does not validate or endorse these materials.