Taking the Escalator

12/09/2025

New Group Activity: Traffic Signs for Change 🚦

This engaging worksheet uses familiar road signs to help clients explore patterns, build insight, and strengthen decision-making skills. The session ends with a creative art component where participants design their own “life signs” for areas like relationships, work, health, and boundaries.

A simple, flexible tool for outpatient groups, IOP, or individual sessions.

VIDEO INTRODUCTION - https://youtu.be/fGKSB99wYaI?si=wR1IWdalfmfuU5L7 Every day, we face decisions that can move us forward, pull us backward, or send us down the same old roads we’re trying to avoid. “Traffic Signs for Change” is a therapy activity designed to make those decisions easier to s...

12/02/2025

We just released a new counseling worksheet called “If It Could Speak.”

This activity invites clients to complete prompts such as:

“If my anxiety could speak…”

“If my cravings could speak…”

“If my fear could speak…”

It’s a simple externalizing technique that helps clients separate themselves from the problem, reduce shame, and reflect with more clarity and compassion. It also works especially well in groups, where it often sparks quick connection and deeper discussion.

We published a new blog post explaining how clinicians can use this approach in sessions. - The full worksheet is for Taking the Escalator members, but the blog breaks down the concept:

👉

VIDEO INTRO - https://youtube.com/shorts/yisms_k6qaQ?si=LqYZBXHCc0yZoWrgThere are moments when we know something is stirring inside—stress, hope, insecurity, motivation—but we can’t quite put the feeling into words. The If It Could Speak exercise was created to make that process easier. It off...

11/25/2025

New Worksheet: Traveling Through Time with Gratitude - A structured, time-based approach to exploring gratitude through past lessons, present strengths, and future hopes.

Designed to support:

• Motivation
• Cognitive reframing
• Insight
• Group discussion

You can read more about this worksheet on our blog:

📄 Gratitude Timeline – Overview & Concepts -

(Worksheet + Short Video)Before diving into today’s topic, check out the quick introductory video created to accompany this worksheet. It sets the tone, explains the core ideas, and helps viewers get the most out of the activity:👉 Watch the Gratitude Timeline Intro VideoWhy Gratitude Needs More...

11/18/2025

New Free Worksheet + Member Bonus Resource - This season brings gatherings, anniversaries, and emotional reminders that can be tough for people in recovery or managing mental health challenges. To support clinicians and clients, Taking The Escalator is offering a FREE worksheet to help prepare for upcoming events and prevent setbacks.

📄 Free Worksheet: Events – A Worksheet for Preventing Setbacks - Helps clients:

>Identify stressful upcoming events

>Spot risks and triggers

>Build realistic coping strategies

>Strengthen support before, during, and after events

✨ Member Bonus:

📄 Events and Trauma – Digging Deeper…Covers trauma reactions, SOS Reset grounding, emotional regulation, and planning for trauma-linked reminders.

Download both here:

EVENTS Worksheet Video Introduction - https://youtube.com/shorts/AJK1JcRwKiE?feature=share This time of year brings holidays, gatherings, anniversaries, and emotional reminders that can make things especially challenging for people in recovery or managing mental health concerns. To support you and y...

11/11/2025

New Release: The “Emotional Landmarks” Worksheet

Every person’s recovery and growth journey has key turning points - moments that leave an imprint and shape the path ahead. The Emotional Landmarks worksheet helps clients explore those defining experiences with insight, perspective, and purpose.

This interactive tool encourages meaningful discussion in group or individual sessions by helping participants:

→ Identify emotional turning points

→ Reflect on lessons learned along the way

→ Recognize progress and envision new directions

Like all Taking the Escalator resources, this worksheet is designed to make self-awareness and motivation-building approachable, conversation-based, and clinically meaningful.

🎬 Taking the Escalator Video Introductions are Back! It’s been a while, but I’m excited to bring back these short video intros that help set the tone for each new worksheet. This one — Emotional Landmarks — looks at the key experiences that define us and how reflection on these moments ca...

11/04/2025

New Worksheet Release: Reentry – Staying Safe on the Outside

When people leave a controlled environment like jail or treatment, the real challenge begins — rebuilding life on the outside.
“Reentry: Staying Safe on the Outside – Coping, Thriving, and Surviving” is a new activity designed to help individuals prepare for that transition with honesty, awareness, and practical coping skills.

This discussion-based worksheet explores the gap between promises to change and the pressures of real life, focusing on risk factors, motivation, and the supports needed to stay safe and move forward.

Perfect for counselors, reentry programs, and recovery groups looking to bring meaningful conversation and planning into their sessions.

“The real test of freedom isn’t breaking out — it’s learning how to live once you’re free.”— Adapted from Viktor Frankl’s principles on resilienceRecently, several people reached out who work in the jail system, sharing stories about the unique challenges individuals face when transi...

10/28/2025

New Worksheet: “Masks”

We all use subtle ways to hide the truth—denial, deflection, blame, or humor. The Masks exercise helps clients identify these “truth-hiding” behaviors and begin practicing emotional honesty and accountability.

This activity is a practical tool for group discussion, relapse prevention, and insight-building in recovery work.

🧠 Download or explore it on Taking the Escalator. https://www.takingtheescalator.com/post/taking-off-the-mask-learning-emotional-honesty

This time of year, people tend to have masks on their minds but the most important ones aren’t made of plastic or paint. They’re the emotional masks people wear to hide what’s really going on inside.These masks can take many forms: sarcasm, deflection, anger, or pretending not to care. They ca...

10/21/2025

New Release: The Addicted Mind Unplugged

A fresh Taking the Escalator worksheet with seven interactive activities to help clients break down addictive thinking, recognize patterns, and rebuild healthy decision-making.
Creative, practical, and designed to make recovery work more engaging.

🔗 Click to view more- https://www.takingtheescalator.com/post/the-addicted-mind-unplugged

Addiction doesn’t just affect behavior - it rewires how we think. One small decision can trigger a chain reaction of thoughts and choices that spiral out of control before we even notice.The Addicted Mind: Unplugged is designed to help break those thought loops by making them visible. Through shor...

10/14/2025

Discover a new way to spark creativity and reflection with our “Wrong Answers Only – Holistic Healing” exercise.

This interactive activity encourages participants to explore everyday life challenges—stress, relationships, self-care, decision-making—by first considering “wrong answers.” This approach promotes creative thinking and highlights practical strategies for overall well-being across mind, body, emotions, relationships, and environment.

► 25 prompts to challenge conventional thinking

► Guiding examples and discussion points

► Closing reflection to apply insights in daily life

Ideal for group settings or individual reflection, this exercise provides actionable ideas to support holistic health.

We’re excited to share a new, interactive exercise exclusively for our members: “Wrong Answers Only – Holistic Healing.” This activity is designed to get participants thinking differently about challenges in everyday life, from managing stress and improving relationships to making healthy li...

10/09/2025

Internship Opportunity – Marketing Support for Mental Health & Addiction Recovery Website

Part-Time | Remote | Portfolio-Building Experience

I’m looking for a marketing or communications student (or recent grad) ready to gain hands-on digital marketing experience with an established mental health and addiction recovery platform.

About Me:
I’m a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and addiction counselor (LCADC) with 30+ years of experience, and I run TakingTheEscalator.com, a nationally recognized resource for therapists, group facilitators, and people in recovery. Our site recently transitioned to a paid membership model, and I’m looking to expand engagement, grow digital reach, and add creative energy to the team.

What You’ll Gain:
Real-world experience and mentorship in a meaningful niche
Flexible 5–8 hour/week schedule
Portfolio-ready work with visible results
Potential commission or paid role for the right candidate

Who I Am Looking For:
Strong writer and communicator
Comfortable with social media strategy and content marketing
Interested or experienced in video editing and short-form clips
Self-motivated, reliable, and eager to learn
Interested in mental health, recovery, or social impact

Sample Projects:
Creating and scheduling posts for LinkedIn, Facebook, and Pinterest
Editing and repurposing video content for social media
Assisting with newsletters or email campaigns
Modernizing or repackaging existing content

If you’re a student seeking credit or a recent grad building your portfolio, let’s connect. This is a chance to do meaningful work that helps people while building skills that employers value.

📩 Message me on LinkedIn or email [email protected] to get started.

10/07/2025

Free Therapeutic Resource for Group Sessions - Simple Self-Assessment 1–3: Progress

This new worksheet from Taking The Escalator is designed to help clients reflect on where they are in the recovery and change process across key life areas — including motivation, relationships, mental health, relapse prevention, and self-care.

The format is structured, yet user-friendly:

✔ Three-choice self-assessments that promote honesty and insight

✔ A 1–10 “Progress Meter” to gauge overall direction

✔ Open-ended questions that drive meaningful group discussion

✔ Ideal for early and middle-stage recovery groups

Download the worksheet free at:

👉 https://www.takingtheescalator.com/post/free-worksheet-simple-self-assessment-1-3-progress

For members: There’s also a second bonus worksheet available that focuses on group cohesion and rapport-building. Members can log in to access both tools.

Looking for an easy, honest way to get your group members reflecting and talking? The Simple Self-Assessment 1–3 worksheet is a free tool designed to help participants check in with themselves — without pressure or perfection.This practical, discussion-friendly activity walks through five key ar...

09/30/2025

🌟 New Worksheet & Blog Post: Mixed Emotions 🌟

We’ve all had those moments where two feelings collide—joy mixed with sadness, fear tangled with excitement, or calm layered with frustration. Life rarely delivers emotions one at a time, and learning to identify, express, and cope with mixed emotions can be a powerful part of growth and recovery.

I just released a new worksheet, Mixed Emotions, along with a companion blog post. This tool is designed to:

Spark meaningful conversations in groups or individual sessions

Build emotional awareness and insight

Encourage creativity and self-reflection in exploring how feelings overlap

What I love about this one is that it’s fun and engaging on the surface—but it can also open the door to some very deep, valuable discussions.

🔗 Check it out here: https://www.takingtheescalator.com/post/mixed-emotions-understanding-the-complexity-of-our-feelings

“Emotions are not a puzzle to be solved—they are a landscape to explore.”Have you ever felt happy and anxious at the same time? Or maybe excited yet scared about a new opportunity? These are examples of what psychologists call mixed emotions—experiencing two or more feelings simultaneously. ...