Halloween Shouldn’t Be Stressful!

Halloween is supposed to be fun! Do YOU remember the decision process of what to wear for Halloween? Chances are good that it didn’t matter if you chose a costume that someone else was wearing, or one that wasn’t quite as spectacular as your friend’s costume, or even one that you wore last year. It was all about the experience of dressing up, being in the costume parade at school, and then, the very exciting time of going trick and treating. And it very seldom was anything but a safe experience.

I thoroughly loved Halloween. It was the holiday that allowed me to fully be out of regular character and act the part of someone entirely different from the normal me. Decorations didn’t play a big part when I was a child, but when I became an adult, my kids informed me that I went a bit crazy creating a Halloween go-to destination for trick and treating.

Halloween Was Indeed Fun

I do believe I made it lots of fun for all the kids in the neighborhood. Is it fun for your kids? I hear from way too many children in today’s world that they’re stressed about what to wear, about what group of kids they can hang with that night, whether they’ll be invited to THE party, and whether this Halloween will be better than last year’s holiday. They want something better than what they perceive is not okay and in that place of wanting something different, they’re stressed.

Stress and Halloween Are Not Supposed To Go Together

That’s not okay! If you notice your children are feeling anxious or nervous about the events of Halloween consider helping them by showing them how to be calm and relaxed. It’s all about discovering that breath is the key. Have you ever noticed that when YOU are anxious your breath gets blocked and congested? The trick is to open up the energy so breath expands. Here’s an easy energy tip to help your children breathe, to be calm and to let go of anxiety.

Your Halloween Treat

With one hand — hold your fingers on the upper back near the shoulder blade

With the other hand — hold your fingers on the upper arm

Then move those fingers to the outside of the wrist

You can do it for yourself too. And teach your children how to do it for themselves.

Right hand — hold your fingers on your left upper arm

Left hand — hold your fingers on the base of the right ribcage

Left hand — hold your fingers on the right inner thigh

Feel how the breath opens and everything in the body relaxes. And experience a whole new way of feeling, including being excited about Halloween. Enjoy!

School should be FUN!

Is your child feeling anxious about school or an activity or maybe even about a relationship? If that’s the case, his or her apprehension makes you want something to change so your child isn’t nervous, worried or fretful, all of which can be overwhelming to the system. You want your child to be excited about life, not overcome with unhappiness.

How best to make that happen? Changing the pattern should be easy so we don’t have to create “one more thing to be anxious about.”

First Aid for Anxiety

Here are a few simple self-help energy tips to help discover “ease and joy” – no matter what’s going on. Try one at a time to see which one or ones resonate with your child.

Hold upper arms by folding arms across the chest. Yep – it’s the first step of the Daily Clean Your House Flow! This simple pose reminds the body to breathe. And breath is one of the first body mechanics that gets affected when there is anxiety or stress.
Gently cup each thumb – helps let go of worry and concern.
Gently cup each little finger – helps let go of overwhelm
With one hand, cup the forehead and with the other, cup the base of the skull. This will bring in clarity and focus and help the body recognize that holding on to the “stuff isn’t good for the body to be experiencing”
Hold the outside of the knees. When you bring balance to this energy balance area the body will experience peace because it brings in a new pattern that is better for the body.

And, of course, it would be a GOOD thing to do the whole Daily Clean Your House Flow! It creates a firm foundation so that all levels of the body (physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral) can find balance and let go of the “stuff” that is in the way of feeling good and having fun.