Ease Your Mind by Blowing Stress Bubbles
Breathe your stressful thought into a bubble gum-like bubble, then watch it float away like a balloon.
When my daughter reached school age, her bedtime routine changed sometimes. We did the usual, cuddles, reading, prayers, but sometimes things that happened during the day were still on her mind. That’s when I guided her into blowing Stress Bubbles.
Stress bubbles are just like blowing bubble-gum bubbles, but then they float away from your mind like balloons.
Here’s how to blow a Stress Bubble:
Take a deep breath in through your nose.
Breathe out through your mouth and imagine you are blowing a bubble-gum bubble. It can be as big as you want. Picking a color for the bubble will help guide your vision
Imagine your stressor going into the bubble.
Into the bubble goes that hurtful thing someone said.
Into the bubble goes your worry that it might be true.
Into the bubble goes who that person is.
Into the person goes your fear that they don’t like you.
Into the bubble goes the embarrassment you felt.
Into the bubble go the people who were around and didn’t stick up for you.
When you run out of breath and your imaginary bubble is nice and big and round, imagine it floating away from you like a balloon, up into the air, and carrying that upsetting event and thought far, far away from you.
Now imagine the sun, moon, or stars shining on you. Feeling warm from the light. Feel it surrounding you as you relax your body. It is a bubble of protection keeping you safe.
If you need extra support a sleep story on the Calm app or on YouTube is good for kids and adults or listen to a cozy audiobook (my recommendations for grown ups). The point is to stop the messy thoughts so you can rest.
Wouldn’t it be nice if this were a magical cure for all worry that ails us? It’s not, but it will help soothe your mind and ease your heart. And if it’s a healthy way of managing snowball thoughts.
As parents, it can be helpful to our own peace of mind to give our child a tool to manage the things we can’t fix. Parental empathy can hurt! We feel what our children feel so deeply.
May tomorrow be better. Sweet dreams, my friend.
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