Stress Relief Strategies

  1. Deep Breathing: breathe-in filling your bellies like an inflated balloon, then breathe-out like a deflated balloon.
  2. Muscle Relaxation: tense and relax the muscles starting at your toes and working your way up to your head
  3. My escape: imagine you are in a safe and peaceful place and focus on what you see there, hear there, feel there and smell there 
  4. Positive affirmations: Remind yourself of the skills or qualities you have that you are proud of (example: “I am smart”, “I am kind”, “I believe in myself”, “I accept myself”)
  5. Journaling: Everyday write down a positive experience you had during the day and 3 things you are grateful for
  6. Listen to music: choose songs that calm you or make you feel happy (such as “Happy” by Pharrell, or “Let it Go” from Frozen)
  7. Exercise: ride a bike, run, walk, ski/snowboard, jump rope, skip, do yoga, swim, surf, dance, play a sport
  8. Read a book
  9. Random acts of kindness: doing kind things for others makes us feel great about ourselves
  10. Get organized: clean out your binder or backpack, organize your closet or bedroom
  11. Be creative: sing, dance, color in a coloring book, draw/sketch, play an instrument, write a poem or song
  12. Be productive: make a to-do list and cross tasks off as you complete them
  13. Go outdoors and experience nature
  14. Play/have fun: do something you enjoy doing
  15. Laugh out loud 🤣
15 Stress Relief Strategies