Making my own emotional emergency toolkit
This month, related to our Social and Emotional Curriculum theme Self-Regulation, we had sessions with both Middle school and DP students on practices to do when they are feeling upset, anxious, stressed or overwhelmed.
An easy way to do this is to build an emotional emergency toolkit, so 1) we know our warning signs of getting overwhelmed with emotions, and 2) have a toolkit ready so we know exactly what to do in those moments.
This activity is useful for all of us, even adults, but it can be adjusted based on age, like I did in my workshops.
For younger students, we talked about “Making my own emotional emergency toolkit”
For older students, we talked about “Creating a peaceful mind during periods of stress”
These are a few easy scientifically proven exercises that we can put in our toolkit that we can do right away when uncomfortable feelings visit us:
- Breathe in for 5 seconds, hold, and breathe out for 5 seconds
- Notice my senses: what do I see, what do I hear, what do I feel with my hands, what do I smell, what do I taste
- Butterfly tap: tap my arms or legs, alternating sides and breathing slowly
- Walk or exercise
- Use quick reminders: I am okay, I am safe, this will pass
We talked about these with our students, so feel free to encourage them to use these at home too! As we go along, we can learn more complex tools to put in our toolkit, but these are a good starting point!
