Worry Platter Dump

Meet Noticing Naima from Powerful You! Naima notices worry in her body and names it. She recognizes the tension and practices the self talk, “I notice, name, and let go of worry.”

Today’s tool is a fun brain break to use any time of the day, especially when your worries get big like Naima’s. A brain dump helps you name the thoughts that are taking up space in your mind and put them behind you.

• To begin, take a moment to write out your worries on paper. If nothing is worrying you, simply make a list of what you need to get done today. Dump everything in your mind on paper. Crumble up the paper into a ball when you are finished.

• Next, stand with your arms straight out in front of you holding the crumbled worry ball in the palms of your hands. Press your elbows and pinky fingers towards each other and imagine these worries sitting on top of a gold platter. Study this baggage for a moment and evaluate if the thoughts are judgments, complaints, comparisons, or worries. Take a big inhale here. As you exhale, lift the platter up over your head with straight arms and fling the platter behind you.

• Slide your fingers down the back of your head to your upper back with your elbows are pointed toward the sky. Keep your fingers together as you open your elbows towards the back of the room.

• As you inhale bring the back of your palms together into reverse prayer and lift them straight up above your head.

• On your exhale, bring your hands down to your sides like a ray of sunshine. Practice this a three to five times to clear the mind of worries.

Kindergarteners use this tool before lesson N - Managing Nighttime Fear.

Teens use this tool before lesson U - Unplug from Comparisons from the book Self-Built Teens.