Lesson 7- Preventative Relaxation

Welcome to Week Seven of the Coping Power Caregivers video series!

Last week, your child learned about thought-based coping strategies such as interrupting unhelpful thoughts and choosing more helpful, positive self-talk statements. Students also discussed how choosing a more helpful thought can positively impact their feelings and actions.

This week, your child is learning all about relaxation techniques. Some examples of the strategies your child is learning are: taking deep breaths, stretching different muscles, closing their eyes, counting their breaths, taking a hot shower or bath, and exercising.

In addition to testing out some of these new strategies, they’re also learning to recognize when these relaxation skills could be helpful, and even how to keep their emotional intensity and emotion thermometer low in preparing for a challenge. If they know that something stressful or difficult is coming up in their lives, they can engage in relaxation before the expected challenging event.

When we experience strong emotions such as fear or anger, our bodies are put into a reactive state. We call that the "warning zone". In this state, we start to breathe harder, our heart beat increases, and we prepare for danger. It's our body's natural way to trying to keep us safe if we need to run or fight a true threat. But this warning zone state can also make it hard to think clearly in a conversation or disagreement before reacting. We can send a cool down signal to our brains through engaging in relaxation techniques that can help us come down the emotion thermometer and regain self-control. This, in turn, will help us to react more appropriately to resolve a conflict.

Relaxation is a coping skill that can be used in almost any situation. It is especially helpful for staying in control when we are experiencing very strong emotions. We know engaging in a relaxation activities has the potential to reduce these emotions, but that it can be hard to use these skills in the heat of the moment even if we've practiced them and we’re feeling calm. Your child is learning all about these skills and how to set themselves up for success by practicing a relaxation strategy every day. 

For this week’s power practice, we encourage you to talk with your child about what helps you relax when you become upset. You might also discuss with your child what strategies they have tried in the past, and what new ones they've tried this week, to explore what strategies feel most useful to them. We also encourage you to work together to create a plan that promotes relaxation. The next time your child becomes upset, we encourage you to reflect back on this plan and support them in relaxing and bringing down their emotional intensity.

Good luck, and we’ll see you next week!