Progressive Muscle Relaxation

Pretend you have an orange in your hand and you are trying to squeeze out all the juice. Squeeze really hard, as hard as you can! Notice how tight your hand and arm feels as you squeeze. Hold for about five seconds. Then, let go of the orange so it falls to the ground. Relax your hand, and notice how nice it feels when it is relaxed. Now repeat with the other hand.

Next, pretend you are a cat. You just woke up from a nap and you need to do a big stretch. Stretch your arms way up, as high as you can without hurting yourself. Now let your arms drop back down to your sides. Doesn't that feel nice? Time for one more stretch! Reach up as high as you can and pull your arms back. Keep stretching, feeling the stretch in your arms and shoulders. Hold for three to five seconds and then let your hands drop to your sides again.

Pretend you are a turtle and your head is poking out of your shell so you can see your surroundings. Oh no - you see some raindrops coming and you want to stay dry! Quick, tuck your head down into your shell. Pull your shoulders up to your ears and push your head down. Hold for three to five seconds. The rain has passed, you can come out of your shell again! Doesn't it feel nice to be relaxed?

Pretend you have one of those big hard candies in your mouth. A jawbreaker gum ball. You want to eat it but it's so hard to chew! Bite down on it as hard as you can. Now relax for a moment, and get ready for one more chomp - bite down even harder this time! Hold it for a few seconds, and then relax.

Now let's pretend a bug has landed on your nose, but you can't use your hands to swat it away! Scrunch up your nose as much as you can. Make your face very wrinkly. Get that bug off! Oh good, it's gone - you can relax. Wait, here it comes again! Scrunch up your nose one more time. Now relax and notice how nice it feels.

Imagine you are laying in a big field with long grass, and a stampede of baby elephants is coming! Quick, make your stomach as hard as you can while they walk over you - squeeze your stomach muscles and make them nice and tight. Okay, the elephants have passed, you can let your stomach relax now. Oh wait, there's one more! Squeeze your stomach muscles real tight again, hold for five seconds, and then relax.

 Pretend you are on a sandy beach. The sand is so warm and soft. Squish your toes down into the sand, dig them down and get them covered in that nice warm sand. Use the muscles in your legs to curl up your toes and squish them into the sand. Now let your legs and feet relax, noticing how light they feel now. One more time, try to dig your toes even deeper into the sand! Push them down for five seconds, and then relax.

Pretend you are a stuffed animal and your entire body is light and relaxed. Doesn't it feel nice when your body is like this? Just enjoy it for a short while (one to three minutes, depending on the age of the child). How do you feel now? (let the child answer). Whenever you feel anxious or worried, you can take a few minutes to tighten your muscles like this, and then relax them. It helps you feel better!