My body won’t settle
Sometimes your body stays tense, shaky, restless or on alert even when you want it to calm down.
The feeling does not have to disappear. Pick one thing that feels manageable.
For the next minute
Release three places
Use gentle pressure only. Skip any movement that hurts.
Press your feet gently into the floor for a few seconds.
Let go.
Lift your shoulders slightly.
Let go.
Gently tighten your hands.
Let go.
Notice whether anything changes. It is okay if the difference is small or unclear.
You can stop there.
If you have a few minutes
Try a slower breath
Only use this if paying attention to your breathing feels comfortable.
Let your breathing stay gentle rather than taking very large breaths.
Breathe in comfortably.
Let the breath out slowly.
Continue for a few minutes if it is helping.
If focusing on your breathing makes you feel more uncomfortable, stop. Try the outside-world exercise instead.
Put some attention outside your body
Look around you.
Choose one ordinary object.
Notice its shape.
Notice two small details you had not paid attention to before.
Then find another object and do the same.
There is nothing you need to achieve. You are simply giving your attention somewhere concrete.
If your body is still wound up later
Try a longer round of gentle muscle release
Work through a few areas of your body one at a time: hands, shoulders, legs and feet.
Gently tense one area.
Hold briefly.
Release fully.
Pause before moving to the next area.
Skip any area that hurts or feels wrong.
You do not need to keep checking whether you feel calm.
You can stop after the round, whether or not you notice a change.
Need urgent help? Seek the closest medical help.
About this tool
Fuller progressive muscle relaxation protocols have research support across adult studies for reducing stress and anxiety. The short three-area release exercise on this page is a practical adaptation of those fuller protocols and has not itself been clinically validated. Breathwork trials show small average benefits for stress overall, but results are mixed, methods and study quality vary, and slow breathing has not consistently outperformed comparison breathing.
The outside-world exercise reflects the grounding principle of attending to your surroundings in WHO’s stress-management guidance. The cited guidance does not clinically validate this exact exercise.
Last reviewed: 8 October 2026