Calming down is a great way to feel happier! Experimenting with a glitter jar, where the jar represents your mind and the glitter represents your thoughts or big feelings, is one way to calm down. Try making your own using these glitter jar directions! See if you can follow the glitter to the bottom - notice yourself calming down as your thoughts and feelings settle.
This activity can teach children how strong emotions can take hold, and how to find peace when these strong emotions feel overwhelming.
Go on a nature walk! Spend 15 minutes exploring your yard or the area right outside your home. See if you can find/notice the following:
Three things that are living
Five round objects
Two different types of insects
A rock with a smooth texture
Three things that start with the letter B
Something that is your favorite color
A solid and a liquid
Three different types of birds
A squirrel or a chipmunk
Something man-made
Something that makes a “crunchy” sound
Something with a smell you enjoy
Something with a smell you do not enjoy
Breathing is not only the foundation to all Mindfulness work; it is also an easily accessible coping skill that individuals of all ages and abilities can take with them wherever they go. Square breathing is a type of breathwork that can shift your energy, connect you more deeply with your body, calm your nervous system, and decrease stress in your body. It is also referred to as box breathing, 4×4 breathing, and 4-part breath.
How to do square breathing:
Begin by slowly exhaling all your air out.
Then, gently inhale through your nose to a slow count of 4.
Hold at the top of the breath for a count of 4.
Then gently exhale through your mouth for a count of 4.
At the bottom of the breath, pause and hold for the count of 4.
For an even more advanced version, try setting an intention or image. You might want to set an intention or invite a neutral or positive image to focus on during your breathing practice. If the image of a square works for you, you can imagine your breath and the pauses/holds in between the breath moving around the image of the square.
Take a break in your day, away from the computer screens and explore a bit. This at home scavenger hunt is a sure way to shake up your day, move around the house and an easy way to find one item you have been searching for since last year!