Illness Management and Recovery / IMR-A03-3
Stress and Vulnerability Map — Clinician dialogue
Guide a collaborative conversation about stress and vulnerability map while checking fit and participant choice.
15 minutes · Clinician script · Mental health professionals
Fictional example: Casey notices a crowded living situation makes routines harder.
Use within your training and assessment of readiness. Experiences are affected by interacting stressors, supports, and individual vulnerabilities.
Invite and obtain permission
Offer: "Would it be useful to explore stress and vulnerability map using an ordinary or fictional example? We can adapt it, observe, or stop." Ask what the person wants from the conversation.
Elicit before teaching
Ask: "How does this show up, if at all, in your own words?" Offer this idea tentatively: Experiences are affected by interacting stressors, supports, and individual vulnerabilities. Ask what fits and what does not.
Guide the task
Map current stress, environmental demands, coping resources, and supports without assigning blame. Ask for permission before giving an example. Use this fictional illustration if useful: Casey notices a crowded living situation makes routines harder.
Reflect and check accuracy
Reflect only what was offered: "I heard you describe ___. What did I miss?" Ask: Which part of the environment or support system could change? Avoid assigning motives or interpreting silence as agreement.
Respond to a mismatch
If the person rejects the frame, say: "Thank you for correcting it. What would be more useful?" Return to their language or choose a different approach.
Close with agency
Ask which observation, question, or support request the person wants to keep. Confirm a manageable ending and appropriate follow-up; do not turn a tentative possibility into a homework obligation.
Prompts for this resource
- Readiness, permission, cultural context, and access needs to check:
- Which part of the environment or support system could change?
- What would tell me to adapt, stop, or seek supervision?
Conceptual background
Illness Management and Recovery Evidence-Based Practices KIT — SAMHSA
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.