The Change Triangle is based on AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy) and focuses on three corners: Defense, Anxiety, and Core Emotions. It serves as a guide to understanding how we react to stressful situations and helps in identifying the underlying emotions behind our defences and anxieties.
Defences:
These are the emotional reactions we use to protect ourselves from feeling psychological pain. Common defences include denial, projection, and intellectualisation.
Anxiety:
This corner of the triangle represents the physical and psychological responses to subconscious emotional conflicts, often manifesting as stress, tension, or nervousness.
Core Emotions:
These are the raw, innate emotions that we feel deeply, which include joy, anger, sadness, fear, and excitement. Understanding and expressing these core emotions can lead to significant breakthroughs in emotional healing.
Practical Applications of the Change Triangle:
The Change Triangle can be used in various ways to enhance emotional understanding and foster mental health:
Self-awareness:
By regularly applying the Change Triangle, individuals can develop greater self-awareness and learn to identify which corner of the triangle they are in at any moment.
Emotional Regulation:
It helps in managing overwhelming emotions by understanding their sources and finding healthy ways to express them.
Therapeutic Tool:
Therapists use the Change Triangle to help clients understand and work through their emotional responses during therapy sessions.
Resources for Learning and Applying the Change Triangle:
“Note: External content follows. For more details, please see our Disclaimer page“
Books:
“It’s Not Always Depression” by Hilary Jacobs Hendel :
This book explores the Change Triangle in depth and provides practical guidance on using it to transform emotional pain into emotional healing.
Online Courses:
Access a FREE 12-CLASS CURRICULUM With Dr. Hilary Jacobs Hendel
👉🏻 Access Free Instructional Videos
These workshops, often led by certified psychologists or therapists, offer interactive sessions where participants can learn and practice emotional skills based on the Change Triangle model.
The Change Triangle is a versatile and helpful tool that offers a new lens through which to view our emotional lives. By understanding and applying this model, individuals can achieve greater emotional clarity, enhance their mental health, and cultivate deeper connections on every level.
What did you find most enlightening about #thechangetriangle? Share your thoughts with our community!
#ChangeTriangle #SelfAwareness #HilaryJacobsHendel #EmotionalHealing
All contents of the Resource Library will continue to be updated on a regular basis!




