Planning a first trip back into a supermarket, bus, café or other feared place can feel easier when there is a simple panic and anxiety exposure diary to record what happened. The printable sheet captures the situation, safety behaviours, expected anxiety, anxiety ratings at the start and end, session finish time and brief comments, making it useful for CBT exposure practice at home or in therapy.
The Graded Exposure Diary Log for Panic and Anxiety PDF is a printable worksheet for recording planned exposure practice in a clear, structured way. The diary table includes eight columns: date and time, situation, safety behaviours, predicted anxiety, anxiety at the start, anxiety at the end, finish time and comments. Worked examples show repeated supermarket visits, moving from going with a friend to going alone, and then gradually reducing safety behaviours while noting how anxiety changes over time.
It may be useful for people working on panic attacks, agoraphobia, social anxiety or avoidance as part of CBT, guided self-help or therapy homework. Adults and older teenagers can use it to plan small, manageable steps, track anxiety ratings, review feared predictions and discuss progress with a therapist, support worker or trusted person.
- Use it before an exposure task to write down the situation and expected anxiety.
- Complete it afterwards to compare starting and ending anxiety levels.
- Keep copies in a folder for revision, reflection or future planning.
Download or print the sheet to support regular exposure practice and make each session easier to review. This resource was created by MindWell Leeds.
