- Focus on the 5 senses and describe 1 thing in great detail
- Drink some water or warm tea
- Bake or cook a favorite food
- Cuddle and pet your pet or take them for a walk
- Go outside – focus on your surroundings including the colors, sensations like the wind, etc.
- Adjust your posture and sit or stand tall
- Change your environment – go into another room and pay attention to your mood
- Visualize a calm, safe and happy space
- Call or text a friend
- Focus on your breath: a quick sharp inhale will orient and alert you; a long, slow exhale will calm and send messages to your nervous system that you are safe and can relax
- Imagine that you have roots extending from your feet that ground you to the floor. Feel the sensations and how it feels to put your focus here
- Lay on a hard, flat surface. Notice how your body is fully supported by the ground
- Hold your hands with palms facing up, welcoming whatever you need in that moment
- Half smile: focus on turning the corners of your lips up and notice your mood
- Organize or clean a space
- Allow yourself rest
- Get creative: draw, paint, mold clay, play around on an editing program, take pictures
- Read
- Journal
- Watch a favorite show/movie
- Write a to-do list
- Do something off of that list
- Speak to yourself with kindness
- Think of a mantra or positive affirmation and repeat it out loud x3 (try in front of a mirror, too!)
- Do a kind act for someone
- Pop a tart, minty or sweet item in your mouth. Notice the sensations
- Look at cute photos of animals
- Count to 10
- State an anchoring phrase of listing off facts, “my name is ___, today is Friday, I’m wearing a blue shirt and I’m in my room. I ate a sandwich for lunch, etc.”
- Think of a time you felt a quality you’re struggling to connect to now. Try to connect to the way that felt and notice in your body what comes up
- Stretch
- Exercise – try to meet what your needs are. If you need to release something, think a high intense exercise or if you need to calm, try yoga, Pilates or resistance exercises
- Progressive muscle relaxation: squeeze and hold different muscle groups and focus on the power and control of being able to tense and relax
- Plan a trip, meetup, or think about something you would like to work towards
- Think about a positive memory
- Treat yourself to something special
- Focus on the good and enjoyable things around you
- State 5+ things you are thankful for
- Do makeup or your nails
- Watch a tutorial about something you want to learn how to do
- Hygiene – anything! Teeth, body, hair, nails
- Browse online or in a store
- Engage in aromatherapy such as perfumes or cologne, lotions, candles, etc.
- Reframe a negative thought and think of other perspectives and ways of thinking about the situation
- Hug a favorite person
- Hug yourself
- Decorate or move things around in your space to change up the flow
- Take yourself for a walk
- Listen to music
- Dance
- Plant or work in the dirt, propagate plants or water your current plants
- Declutter and donate items you haven’t used in over a year
- Spend time with friends and family
- Cold water therapies: hold onto an ice cube, dunk your face in an ice bowl for 2-3 seconds, ice plunge (with precautions), change your shower temperate briefly to cold and return to hot, repeat this
- Play or learn an instrument
- Sing
- Go somewhere new (can be local)
- Watch the sunrise or set
- Practice eating mindfully – eating slowly and noticing as much detail as you can
- Pray or engage in a spiritual practice
- Listen/watch a guided YouTube meditation or google Kristin Neff audios on compassion
- Volunteer your time
- PLAY
- Prioritize something you’ve been putting off
- Set a boundary
- Sit in child’s pose: knees on the ground, crown of head touching the floor and arms by your side
- Problem-solve something that has been bothersome to you that you want to change
- Buy yourself (or someone) flowers
- Eat something nutritious
- Do something your future self will be thankful for – planning, preparing, etc.
- Go to a local event such as a show, music event or art walk
- Wear comfy clothes
- Massage your hands or feet
- Think about a future event and how much you’re looking forward to it
- Change your sheets
- Change out words like “have to” or “need to” to “want to” with a focus on the outcome
- I want to clean dishes because I want clean plates to eat off of
- Use “I get to” language for things that your body is able to do for you
- Put your hand over your heart and notice it beating and the rise/fall of your chest
- Compliment someone around you and notice their reaction
- Look back on old photos
- Write a letter to someone you miss or “just because”
- Squeeze a stress ball
- Hold onto an item that is special to you
- Use a weighted blanket if needing physical touch
- Do anything that you enjoy doing/have enjoyed doing in the past
- Give yourself permission to feel whatever you are feeling: “it’s okay to feel ___”
- List out your top 10 values and see how you act on them in your life
- Find 3 objects of the same shape, then 3 objects of the same color, 3 objects of the same texture
- Do a puzzle
- Take a bath
- Look up at the clouds and see if you can make shapes out of them
- Build something (a fort, a birdhouse, sand castle, etc.)
- Share with someone what they mean to you
- Grip something tightly, like your chair, phone, bracelet, steering wheel of the car and notice the sensations
- Talk to a neighbor
- Set aside money to buy something special
- Engage in back and forth slow tapping on the tops of your shoulders or thighs
- Shrug and hold your shoulders as if you are hugging your neck with them. Release. Do this 2-3 times
- Unclench and soften your jaw/facial muscles
- Tell yourself that you can get through this moment
“You can do hard things”
-Glennon Doyle
Healthy Minds Therapy & Wellness 