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Module 8, Keeping It Going: a pocket map and a plan. You are here.

Module 8week 8 of 8

Keeping It Going

Take what you've learned with you

Created by Dr John Forbes, Clinical Psychologist, and Hannah Nyx, registered arts therapist (AThR)

or download the workbook as a PDF

Module 8week 8 of 8

Welcome to Keeping It Going

This is the last module. Across the course, you may have made a calm place, met your modes, and given your Healthy Adult a shape, a voice and the last word. This week, you'll gather what helps into something small enough to carry.

You'll make a wallet-sized pocket map and a one-page plan for the times old patterns come back. If you like, you can also draw your mode map again and set it beside your first one. You can skip anything that doesn't suit you.

Time

About 45 to 75 minutes in total. Most people spread it over two or three sittings.

You'll need

Thin card or paper, scissors, coloured pencils and a pen, or the printable card in your workbook. You can also make your card on screen.

Art skill

None needed. Tiny symbols, stick figures and a few words all count.

Your workbook

This week's pages as a PDF, with a printable pocket card the size of a bank card, a quick card for the low-energy version, an early warning plan and a page for your mode map now. Print the pages you'd like to use, or write on them in a PDF app.

Print the pocket card page at actual size (100%), not 'fit to page', so the card comes out the size of a bank card. You're welcome to print the workbook for your own personal use.

Bring your toolkit

  • Your 0 to 10 scale, and your own words for a 3, a 5 and a 7
  • Your pause rules, so you know when to stop and settle
  • Your calm place image, or a colour or object you like
  • Your container, for anything that needs to wait
  • The small stamps from the end of each module, if you filled them in
  • Your first mode map from Module 2, if you'd like to compare

Not quite ready? If Module 7's checklist isn't ticked off yet, spend a little longer there first. This module will wait for you.

Nothing you type, draw or choose on these pages is saved or sent anywhere. It all clears when you leave or refresh the page, so keep anything you'd like in your workbook or journal, or save your card and plan as pictures.

Before you begin

Is this right for you right now?

This course asks you to slow down and get to know some tender sides of yourself. For most people that feels interesting and manageable. For some people, at some times, it can stir up more than is helpful.

Please wait, or use this course only alongside a therapist, if any of these are true for you right now

  • You're in crisis, or you're having thoughts of suicide.
  • You're currently harming yourself.
  • You often lose track of time, or feel unreal or outside your own body.
  • You're having flashbacks, where a painful memory feels as if it's happening again.
  • You're experiencing psychosis (for example, hearing or seeing things other people don't) or mania (for example, very high energy, racing thoughts and little need for sleep).
  • You're living with an eating disorder that is active at the moment.
  • Something traumatic happened to you recently, in the last few months.
  • You're in a relationship or a living situation where you don't feel safe.

Draw It Out is designed for adults aged 18 and over.

If any of these apply to you, it doesn't mean the ideas here aren't for you. It means the timing or the setting needs care. You could wait until things feel more settled. You could work through the course alongside a psychologist, counsellor or arts therapist. Or you could talk to your GP about what kind of support might suit you now.

If you're thinking about suicide, or you're not safe, please contact someone now. Call Lifeline on 13 11 14 at any time, 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 if you're affected by domestic, family or sexual violence, or 000 if anyone is in danger. There are more options on the Support page.

Before this module

This module looks ahead to the times old patterns come back. Thinking about your early signs can bring back memories of hard times. You don't need to go back over them. Notice the signs, and leave the stories out.

Finishing a course can bring mixed feelings, such as relief, pride, sadness or worry about keeping going on your own. All of these are common, and you can come back to any module, any time.

If things have been hard lately, start with the Struggling part of your plan, and talk to your GP. If you're having thoughts of suicide, call Lifeline on 13 11 14 now, or 000 if anyone is in danger.

Check in30 seconds

Check in

Check in at the start of every sitting, not just the first one. Notice how you feel right now, and rate your distress from 0 to 10.

How distressed do you feel right now?

0 to 6: carry on, and keep checking in7 or above: skip the art and settle

Tap your number. You can also write it in the tracker in your workbook, or in your journal.

Use these anchors, and your own words for them from Module 1

  • 0calm and settled
  • 3a bit unsettled, but easy to manage
  • 5stirred up, but you can think clearly
  • 7very upset, hard to think clearly or stay present
  • 10the most distressed you can imagine

If you're having thoughts of suicide, or urges to harm yourself or someone else, don't start today. Call Lifeline on 13 11 14 now, or 000 if anyone is in danger.

This sitting

Start ?End ?

These pages don't keep your numbers. Write them in the tracker in your workbook, or in your journal, if you like.

Learnwith John

When old patterns come back

About 8 to 10 minutes to read

Hi, it's John. Over these weeks, you've got to know your modes. This last lesson is about what comes next, including the days when old patterns come back.

Modes don't disappear

Your modes have been with you for a long time, and they don't go away when a course ends. That's true for everyone. Each one formed for a reason, and most keep their job ready. The Harsh Judge is the exception. It only hurts, so it still gets a firm limit.

Most modes switch on more at certain times: when you're tired, unwell, stressed or lonely, or when something reminds you of old hurts.

Tap the kinds of day you know

On an ordinary day, your modes stay much the same size.

On days like these, your Critic might get louder, your Tender Child might feel smaller, or a Protector might step in fast. It can feel like going backwards. What's different now is that you know your modes, and you have ways to respond.

A setback is a signal, not a failure.

A setback tells you something needs care, such as more rest, more support or a kinder voice. It doesn't cancel what you've learned.

In this lesson

Your early warning signs

Modes don't always take over all at once. Often there are small signs first, in your thoughts, your feelings, your body and what you do.

These are your early warning signs. Everyone's are different, and they can be quiet at first: a tight jaw, a shorter temper, or a sudden urge to clean the whole house.

Whose signs to show
Some signs that a mode may be starting to take over, and some signs that your Healthy Adult is around. Yours may look different.
ModeThoughtsFeelingsBodyActions
Inner Critic'Not good enough, again.'tense, ashamedtight shoulderschecking and re-checking
Tender Child'Nobody gets it.'small, lonely, sadheavy, tearygoing quiet
A Protector'I'll deal with it later.'numb, flat or on edgerestlessscrolling for hours, saying yes to everything, snapping
Healthy Adult'One thing at a time.'steady enoughshoulders looseasking for what you need

You know your own signs better than anyone. In Make, you'll write down two or three of yours.

You don't need to go back over hard times to find them. Think about the last week or two, or about what tends to happen. A word for each is plenty.

Notice the signs, and leave the stories out.

Signs other people notice

Sometimes the people around you notice your signs first, such as going quiet or cancelling plans. If there's someone you trust, you could ask what they notice. Sharing your plan is always your choice.

If your Critic's words turn harsh, your Healthy Adult can set a limit, such as 'That's enough.' If it says you're a burden, or that others would be better off without you, call Lifeline on 13 11 14 now, or 000 if anyone is in danger.

A plan for wobbly moments

When you spot an early sign, you don't need a big plan. Four small steps are enough.

Notice, name, settle, ask. Tap a step to stay on it.

Notice the sign, then name the mode, out loud or in your head. Settle with a practice you like. Then ask, 'What would my Healthy Adult do now?' The answer is often small: a glass of water, an early night, a kind word or a call to a friend.

Three stretches of the path

Your plan has three parts, like three stretches of a path. Most people move back and forth along it, sometimes in the same week.

Go to a stretch of the path

Steady

How things look when you're doing okay, and what keeps you there.

Wobbly

Your early signs, and two or three things you'll do.

Struggling

When you'll reach out, and to whom. This part always has your GP and the support lines.

When more support helps

Draw It Out is self-help. Sometimes the kindest next step is working with someone trained to help.

Therapy might be a helpful next step if:

  • your modes feel strong, or switch on often
  • your relationships, work or health are being affected.

Please talk to your GP soon if:

  • your distress often reaches 7 or above
  • painful memories keep coming up
  • you're coping in ways that harm you or someone else
  • you've had thoughts of suicide or self-harm lately, even if they've passed.

If you're having thoughts of suicide now, call Lifeline on 13 11 14, or 000 if anyone is in danger. More support lines are on the Support page.

Choosing therapy is a sign of strength and care.

Needing more support doesn't mean you've failed at self-help. It means you're taking your needs seriously, which is what your Healthy Adult does.

Finding support in Australia

Your GP is a good place to start. They can talk with you about a referral to a psychologist and any Medicare support you may be eligible for.

The professional bodies for psychologists, counsellors and arts therapists each keep an online directory, so you can search for someone near you or online.

If you don't have a regular GP, the free Medicare Mental Health service can help you find support. Call 1800 595 212, 8.30 am to 5 pm on weekdays, or go to medicarementalhealth.gov.au. Outside Australia, start with your local doctor or health service.

Questions you could ask before you book

Tick the ones you'd like to ask. If the first person you see isn't the right fit, it's okay to try someone else.

Keeping going

The course ends here. What you've learned comes with you.

Whatever you made along the way, and whatever you skipped, it counts. Here are three ways to keep going.

  • Return to any moduleIf your Critic gets loud again, Module 3 is there. If you need your calm place, go back to Module 1.
  • Do the course againYou might notice new things the second time around. One module a week is still a good pace.
  • Keep using your journalA few lines, a colour or a quick map now and then can keep you in touch with your modes.

Try this once a month

Pick a day each month to look at your pocket map and plan. Ask which mode has been around lately, and what helped. Add anything new. Rate your distress from 0 to 10 too. If it's often 7 or above, use the Struggling part of your plan.

Next, Hannah will show you how a pocket map comes together. Thank you for spending these weeks with us.

JohnDr John Forbes, Clinical Psychologist

Seewith Hannah

How a pocket map comes together

About 5 minutes

Hi, it's Hannah. This week you'll make two small things: a pocket card to carry, and a one-page plan. Here's how they come together. The numbers match the steps further down this page.

Your turn.

Here, the front has a coral circle, a small grey cloud, a teal wall, a tiny calm place and a sun for the Healthy Adult. The back says 'Steady. One step at a time.' and names two settle practices: Kind Hand and Five Things.

A few tips from Hannah

  • Tiny is fine. A symbol the size of a fingernail is plenty.
  • Use the stamps you filled in at the end of each module, or borrow a symbol from the list further down this page.
  • Symbols only you understand keep your card private.
  • If thinking about your early signs stirs up a lot, stop and go to Settle.

A card, a plan and two maps

These examples were made for this course, to show how different a pocket map and a plan can be. John has added a note on what each one shows.

Kai's pocket card

Kai drew the scribble Critic from Module 3, small and behind a line, with a big warm circle for their Healthy Adult. The back says 'I've got you. Feet, seat, breath.' It's small enough to carry, and clear enough to use.

Grace's plan

Grace kept each stretch to a few words. 'Snapping at people' is an early sign of their Fighter, the Protector they drew in Module 4. A plan works best when it's specific and in your own words.

Ruth's two maps

Ruth drew their mode map again and set it beside their first one from Module 2. The cloud is smaller and further off, and the wall has a gap. The green circle for their Healthy Adult has grown, and moved closer to the yellow one for their Tender Child. Noticing what has changed in size and distance can tell you a lot. If your two maps look much the same, that's common too.

Slide between the two maps to see what moved.

Example artwork made for this course. The people described are fictional.

Your card and plan will look different from all three. Every one does.

Makewith Hannah

Your pocket map and plan

About 35 to 40 minutes. You can split it into two sittings: the card first, then the plan.

Before you start. Stop and settle if your distress reaches 7 or above, if a painful memory starts to come back, or if you feel foggy or far away. Put your art away and go to the Settle page. You can come back to it another day, or not at all.

If you have thoughts of suicide, or urges to harm yourself or someone else, stop and call Lifeline on 13 11 14 now, or 000 if anyone is in danger.

Starting a new sitting? Check in first. If you need to stop, go to Settle.

Go gently

  • Keep to signs and plans. There's no need to go back over hard times, or to write about them.
  • On your card and your map, a very harsh Critic can stay small, or stay off. Leave off any way of coping that harms you or someone else, and talk to your GP about it.
  • Your card and plan are private. You can show someone you trust if you like, but you never have to.
  • If your early signs bring back a painful memory, stop, put the plan away and settle. You can fill in only the Struggling part for now.
  • If you have thoughts of suicide, or urges to harm yourself or someone else, call Lifeline on 13 11 14 now, or 000 if anyone is in danger.

Choose your version

Full version (35 to 40 minutes)

Follow the steps below: a card with tiny symbols, then a plan in three stretches. Make them on paper, in your workbook or on screen.

Low-energy version (about 10 minutes)

Fill in the quick card in your workbook with three words and one phrase. On the plan, fill in only the Struggling part.

No-materials version

Make a note on your phone with your Healthy Adult's phrase, two early signs and what you'll do about them. Add when you'll reach out, your GP's number, Lifeline on 13 11 14, and 000 for an emergency. If someone else might look at your phone, keep the note somewhere private, or learn the phrase and 13 11 14 by heart.

What you'll need

  • thin card or paper, or the printable card in your workbook
  • scissors
  • coloured pencils and a fine pen or pencil

No art skill is needed. A dot, a circle or a single word can stand for a mode. The card only needs to make sense to you.

Optional extras

Clear tape to protect the card, and a glue stick to join its two sides. If a material feels unpleasant to touch or smell, leave it out, and take care with scissors.

Part one: your pocket card

About 15 minutes

  1. 1
    Cut your card

    Check in first. Cut a card about the size of a bank card, 85 by 55 mm, or use the printable card in your workbook. Tracing around a bank card works well.

  2. 2
    The front: your modes

    Draw tiny symbols for the three or four modes you meet most, plus your Healthy Adult. Use your stamps from earlier modules, or borrow from the pieces below. Your calm place can go here too.

  3. 3
    The back: your words

    Write your Healthy Adult's phrase. Leave room for your two favourite settle practices, which you'll choose on the Settle page. If you like, add a number you can call.

  4. 4
    Make it last

    If you're using the printable card, glue its two halves together. Once the back is finished, you can press clear tape over both sides so it lasts.

Borrow

Gather your pieces

At the end of each module, you may have filled in a small stamp. These are the pieces for your card. Use any you like, and leave out any you don't.

  • Module 1My calm place
  • Module 2Child modes
  • Module 2Inner Critic
  • Module 2Protectors
  • Module 2Healthy Adult
  • Module 3My Critic, in its corner
  • Module 4My Protector's door
  • Module 5My need's symbol
  • Module 6My Healthy Adult
  • Module 7One line from my comic

These stamps are filled in with the course's own symbols, as examples. Yours will look different.

Missing a piece?

If you skipped a stamp, that's fine. Borrow a tiny symbol, or make one up. Tap a symbol to put it on the front of your card on screen, further down this page.

The Child modes

The Inner Critic

The Protectors

The Healthy Adult

Your calm place

Words for the back

Tap one to put it on the back of your card on screen, or write your own there.

Make your pocket card here, on screen

The symbols and words you tap above go onto this card. You can also draw on it with a finger, a pen or a mouse, and drag a symbol to move it. Turn the card over for the back.

Pens

The back

Two settle practices

Choose two. They match your Settle Menu, at the end of this module.

Your card stays on this page. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere, so save it as a picture if you'd like to keep it, or copy it onto card.

Stopping here for today? Put your card where you'll find it again, then finish with Settle and the check-out.

Part two: your early warning plan

About 20 minutes

Starting a new sitting? Check in first.

  1. 5
    Your plan, one stretch at a time

    Use the plan in your workbook, the one below, or a sheet of paper in three parts. A few words in each is plenty.

    • Steady: what Steady looks like for you, and what helps you stay there. Small, everyday things count, such as sleep, a walk or a friend.
    • Wobbly: two or three early signs, and two or three things you'll do. Notice, name, settle and ask can be the first.
    • Struggling: when you'll reach out, and who you'll contact. Write in your GP's name and number, and someone you trust if you'd like to. On your own paper, copy in everything printed in the Struggling part below.
  2. 6
    Carry it with you

    Tuck your card into your wallet, phone case or pocket. Keep your plan where you can find it, such as with your workbook or as a photo on your phone. If someone else might look at your phone, keep it on paper instead.

My early warning plan

Fill in as much or as little as you like, and add to it whenever you notice something new.

Steady

Ideas to borrow:

Wobbly

Signs to borrow:

Notice, name, settle and ask: 'What would my Healthy Adult do now?'

Small things to borrow:

Thoughts of suicide, or urges to harm yourself or someone else, go under Struggling.

Struggling

Thoughts of suicide, or urges to harm yourself or someone else? Call Lifeline on 13 11 14 now, or 000 if anyone is in danger.

I'll reach out when

my number is still 7 or above after settling twice, or stays high for more than a day or two

Who I'll contact

Support lines, any time

Your plan stays on this page. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere, so save it as a picture, or copy it into your workbook, if you'd like to keep it. If someone else might look at your phone, keep it on paper instead.

Stopping here for today? Finish with Settle and the check-out.

Part three, if you like: your mode map now

About 15 minutes

  1. 7
    Draw your map again

    Draw your mode map on paper, or on the page in your workbook, the same way as in Module 2. Add a key: a tiny version of each shape, with its name. Then set the two side by side and notice what has changed, and what hasn't: size, distance, colour and the arrows between modes.

  • Bigger means it takes up more of your life these days

  • Closer to the middle means it shows up quickly

  • Arrows show which modes tend to follow each other

  • Your Healthy Adult can go anywhere, however small

For one way two maps can compare, look back at Ruth's two maps.

If it doesn't go to plan

If you can't think of an early sign, leave it blank. You might notice one in the weeks ahead and add it then.

If writing your signs brings back a hard time, stop. You don't need to look back. Picture the plan going into your container, and go to Settle.

If your two maps look much the same, or a mode looks bigger now, that's common, and not a failure. A hard few weeks can make any mode look bigger. If the maps stir things up, turn them over and go to Settle.

If finishing the course feels flat or wobbly, that's common too. Your Settle Menu, your journal and every module are still here. If it lasts more than two weeks, or starts to feel hopeless, talk to your GP.

If you're already in the Struggling stretch, use that part of your plan now. Call your GP, or Lifeline on 13 11 14 at any time, or 000 if anyone is in danger.

Reflectwith John

Looking back

About 10 to 15 minutes

Answer as many or as few prompts as you like, and skip any you'd rather leave. Words, colours and marks all count. If a prompt stirs up more than you expected, leave it and go to Settle.

Starting a new sitting? Check in first.

  1. 1

    A word, a colour or a mark is enough. 'Not much yet' counts too.

    Words to borrow:
  2. 2

    Which mode do you understand best now?

    Circle as many as fit.

  3. 3

    Which practice or image has helped most?

    Circle as many as fit.

  4. 4

    For example, a busy week, or your Critic saying it's pointless. The Wobbly part of your plan can help here.

  5. 5

    Any answer is fine, including 'not now'. A first step might be a GP appointment, or looking at a directory. If a reason under 'Please talk to your GP soon' fits you, start with your GP.

    Words to borrow:
  6. 6

If your Critic says the course was pointless, or that you've let yourself down, your Healthy Adult can answer it, such as 'That's enough. I'm still learning.' If it says you're a burden, or that others would be better off without you, call Lifeline on 13 11 14 now, or 000 if anyone is in danger.

Nothing you write here is saved or sent anywhere. Copy anything you'd like to keep into your workbook or journal.

From both of us

Thank you for making room for this course. Whatever you made, skipped or came back to, it counts. Your map can keep changing, and you can keep adding to it. Keep it close.

John and Hannah

Settleabout 5 minutes

My Settle Menu

Every module has ended here. This time, you choose: pick your two favourite practices from the course and do them now. If your check-in was 7 or above and you've come straight here, you made a good decision.

  1. 1

    Choose two practices from the menu, or one if that's plenty today. Keep your eyes open if that feels better.

  2. 2

    Do each one slowly, for 2 or 3 minutes. Then write their names on the back of your pocket card, and tape it if you like.

  3. 3

    Finish by looking at your calm place image for a few moments. If it isn't nearby, look at a colour or an object you like.

The two you choose here also go on the back of your pocket card on screen.

Your two practices

Choose two practices from the menu, or one if that's plenty today. Keep your eyes open if that feels better.

Check out

Rate your distress again from 0 to 10, and compare it with your number from the start.

How distressed do you feel now?

6 or below, and no higher than at the start: that's it for todayHigher, or 7 or above: settle once more

Tap your number when you've finished the practice.

This sitting

Start ?End ?

If you've been at 7 or above at most check-ins over a week or two, pause Draw It Out for now and talk to your GP or a therapist. You can come back to it later.

Write your numbers in the tracker in your workbook, or in your journal, if you like.

Keep closeany time

If things get hard

If you have thoughts of suicide, or urges to harm yourself or someone else, stop now and get help. Call Lifeline on 13 11 14 at any time, or 000 if anyone is in danger.

Pause rules

Stop and settle if, at any point:

  • your distress reaches 7 or above
  • a memory of something painful or frightening starts to come back
  • you feel foggy, far away, numb or as if things aren't real
  • you feel a strong pull towards an old coping habit that harms you or someone else, such as drinking, using drugs or lashing out

What to do instead:

  • put the art away: turn it over, fold it, or picture it going into your container
  • do the Settle practice, then look at your calm place image
  • do something ordinary: make a warm drink, step outside, or call or message someone
  • leave the rest of the module for another day, or skip it altogether

When to get help:

  • your distress is still 7 or above after settling twice, or stays high for more than a day or two
  • you've been at 7 or above at most check-ins over a week or two
  • painful memories keep coming back

Your GP is a good first step for ongoing support. Crisis and support lines are below.

When something comes up

If a memory starts to come back

Stop. If your eyes are closed, open them. Look around the room and name what you can see. Put the art away, picture it going into your container, and do the Settle practice. If memories keep coming back, talk to your GP or a therapist.

If your calm place stops feeling calm

This is common and not a failure. Switch to a colour, an object, an animal or a plant, or rest your eyes on something in the room.

If you feel foggy, far away or unreal

Ground yourself first. Press your feet, or your hands, against something solid. Name five things you can see, hold something with an interesting texture, and say today's date and where you are. Keep your eyes open for every exercise if this happens. If it happens often, pause Draw It Out and talk to your GP or a therapist.

If you have thoughts of suicide or strong urges

If you have thoughts of suicide, or urges to harm yourself or someone else, stop and call Lifeline on 13 11 14 now, or 000 if anyone is in danger. If a pull towards an old coping habit that harms you gets strong, stop and use the support options straight away.

Support

If you need to talk to someone, or you're worried about how you're going, please reach out.

  • Lifeline13 11 14any time, day or night
  • 13YARN13 92 76crisis support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, any time, day or night
  • Suicide Call Back Service1300 659 467any time, day or night
  • 1800RESPECT1800 737 732for anyone affected by domestic, family or sexual violence, any time, day or night
  • Emergency000if anyone is in danger
  • Outside Australiafindahelpline.comto find a line in your country

Your GP is a good first step for ongoing support. If you're already seeing a therapist or counsellor, you're welcome to bring your pocket map and plan to a session.

Before you close this module

Tick these off when you can.

If most of your check-ins this week were 7 or above, talk to your GP or a therapist. The Struggling part of your plan is there for times like these.

You can come back to any module, any time. Your map comes with you.

About Draw It Out

Draw It Out is an art-based, evidence-informed self-help course in eight modules, created by a clinical psychologist and a registered arts therapist.

Dr John Forbes, Clinical Psychologist (PhD), is a Fellow of the APS College of Clinical Psychologists and is Ahpra-registered. He works in Perth, Western Australia, and has more than 25 years of practice in schema therapy and CBT.

Hannah Nyx, AThR, is a registered arts therapist (ANZACATA) at Creative Minds Art Therapy. Hannah designed every art process in the course.

Draw It Out is educational self-help. It is not therapy and does not replace professional care. If you need support now, call Lifeline on 13 11 14, or 000 in an emergency.

The eight modules

  1. 1Safety First
  2. 2Meet Your Modes
  3. 3The Inner Critic
  4. 4The Protectors
  5. 5The Child's Needs
  6. 6The Healthy Adult
  7. 7Conversations
  8. 8Keeping It Goingyou are here

Keep going. Your map comes with you.

The people described in this module are fictional composites, and the example artworks were made for this course. Support details were checked in October 2026.