Tessa’s Toolbox
Inspired by Tessa’s TEDxCherryCreekWomen’s talk, we are sharing her favorite tools to cope with anxiety.
These tools take less than 2 minutes to practice and can be done anywhere, at anytime.
Scroll down to give them a try!
grounding
5-4-3-2-1
What You Need: Nothing!
How To Practice:
In your head, list 5 things you can see in the room.
In your head, notice 4 things you can physically feel, such as your clothes or the cool surface of your couch.
In your head, notice 3 things you can hear in this moment.
In your head, identify 2 things that you can smell.
In your head, think about 1 thing that you’re grateful for.
finger breathing
What You Need: Nothing!
How To Practice:
Find a comfortable, upright position and take a deep breath. Soften your gaze, and shift your focus to your fingers.
Hold your right thumb in front of you. Take a hold of your right thumb with your left hand. As you hold your thumb, take a deep breath in through your nose, pause, then exhale through your mouth.
Now, we are going to do the reverse. Hold your left thumb with your right hand this time. Again, take a deep breath in, pause, then exhale the breath as you continue to hold your left thumb.
Repeat with each finger on each hand.
gratitude flip
What You Need: Piece of paper and pen!
How To Practice:
With Gratitude Flip, you simply list why you are grateful for the negative or challenging events, people, or situations in your life. An example would be that I'm grateful for having to stay at home all day because I am able to re-explore old hobbies I used to like _____.
Try your best to find the good in as many challenging situations as you can. You can use the sentence structure, “I am grateful for ___ because ___.”