When working with children, our personal well-being has to be a priority. Without strong mental and physical health, fatigue, lack of motivation and even exhaustion can set in fast, leaving us unable to cope with the daily tasks at hand.
Use the following de-stress programme, to help you really unwind and release all those tensions that build up during the day. Then you can have a goodnight’s sleep, ready to take on another day.
You can do this exercise sitting up or lying down, whichever is more comfortable. Preferably at the end of each day, to release your body of toxins that have built up over the course of the day. You can do different parts of this programme even during the day, if you suddenly feel overwhelmed and need some timeout.
This can be done in silence or to soothing music.
22 Steps to destressing yourself
1. Sit or lie in a comfortable place – ensure your back and neck are straight and supported – if you are sitting – lean back into your chair. Place your arms down by your sides or on your lap whichever you prefer.
2. Close your eyes and concentrate only on your breathing. Count each breath as you inhale and exhale. If your mind wanders let the thoughts drift away – (now is not the time for thinking).
3. Just concentrate on the breathing for a few minutes. Breathe in, breathe out as slowly and calmly as possible. With every deep breath repeat in your head the words ‘calm and relax’, feel your body getting heavier.
Imagine the tension is like air bubbles which have become trapped in your muscles and as the tension is released, your muscles start to feel deflated and heavier.
4. Starting from your neck, gently push your head back a little and roll your head round in a clockwise, direction and then anti – clockwise direction to squeeze out those tension bubbles from your neck muscles. Do this very slowly 3-4 times clockwise, then anti-clockwise. If you have a lot of tension in your neck, as many people do – this can be painful for some, but the pain should ease as the tension is released.
5. Then turn your attention to your face. First raise your eyebrows and lower them to frown. Do this 3-4 times to squeeze out any tension there.
6. Then do the same to your jaw. Open your mouth as wide as you can and then close it again 3-4 times squeezing out the tension behind your ears.
7. Then pull the biggest smile you can stretching the muscles around your mouth. Repeat 3-4 times.
8. Then pull the saddest face you can by turning the corners of your mouth down. This will stretch up your neck muscles and release any tension there. Repeat 3-4 times.
9. Let’s now move to the shoulders – the biggest burden carriers. Shrug your shoulders up towards your ears as far as they will go, hold it as you count to 5, then let then drop as far as they can. Repeat this 3-4 times. You can do this point together with point 10.
10. Then turn your focus to your chest. Breathe in deeply and slowly to really fill up your lungs, hold your breath for a count of 3, then exhale slowly and calmly, squeezing out as much air from your lungs as possible. Breathe in again and repeat the same process 3-4 times.
11. Then move to your arms. Stretch them down by your sides, so that they are being pulled away from your neck, you may also need to pull your neck up in the opposite direction to stretch the arm muscles properly. Then when you release shrug your shoulders up again. Do this 3-4 times and feel the tension being released. Do not rush, so nice and slow.
12. Then turn both your arms in their sockets, to make your palms face forwards and backwards. Do this 3-4 times.
13. Then turn your focus to your hands. First clench your fists – if you have long nails, curl them as much as possible and then really stretch them as you open them out. Repeat this 3-4 times.
14. Then rotate your wrists in a circular motion clockwise and anti-clockwise, 3-4 times.
15. Now move your focus to your stomach area. Squeeze your stomach muscles in as far as you can, hold it for a count of 3, then release. Feel your back muscles stretching as you do. Then release as you count to 3. Repeat 3-4 times.
16. Then squeeze your buttock muscles in as much as you can, hold to 3, then release as you count to 3. Repeat 3-4 times.
17. Now moving to your legs. Stretch your legs out in front of you and bend your feet towards your face and then back away from your face. Do this slowly 3-4 times squeezing out any tension in your legs.
18. If you can, bend your knees in turn and bring these as close to your chest as possible, hold for a second and then release. Repeat 3-4 times. (If you are sitting in a chair – it will need to be a stable chair and you may need to hold onto a table etc. for additional support.)
19. Now turn your focus to your feet. Stretch your toes forwards as far as you can, hold for 3 seconds, then release, point them towards your face again, hold for 3 seconds and release. Repeat this 3-4 times.
20. Take your shoes off and rotate your ankles, first clockwise to the count of 5, then anti-clockwise to the count of 5. Repeat 3-4 times.
21. Then when you are finished have a little wriggle. Wriggle your fingers, toes and the whole of your body to release any residual tension.
22. Finally, brush the rest of the tension off, by brushing yourself down with your hands. To do this, pretend you are covered in dust and you are trying to brush the dust off from all your clothes using your hands.
Now you should be de-stressed.
If you had a lot of tension built up in your muscles, you may feel a little or a lot of discomfort in some areas where the tension was the greatest. This can feel like tight knots. This should pass after some time or you may need to do a little more gentle exercise during the day, not just at night, focussing in those sore spots to release all the negative energy that has built up.
If it persists, take an Epsom salt bath, which is used in spas to release muscle tension. Add around 2 cups of salt to your bath water.
If the pain is severe or persists for more than a couple of days, then seek medical attention.
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