Here are ways to help you safely let out your anger and use your breath to relax:

Fun ways to let out your anger!

Letting out your anger can be fun. Often anger is something people get into trouble for or wish they did not feel causing us to hold it in. When we hold in anger, though, it builds up and eventually we explode, just like a balloon that gets too full of air pops. It makes sense then that letting out your anger is important when it is small so that you don't explode and say things you will later regret or hurt someone or yourself. There are many fun and creative ways to get out anger that kids and even adults may use such as:
**Blowing all your angry breaths into balloons and popping them (just blowing them up makes you take in deep breaths). Make sure to pop it in a safe and apporitate place- it tends to be loud!
**Making what you are mad at out of playdoh or clay, telling it how you feel, and then you can smash it or destroy it.
**Drawing what you are mad at and ripping it up or smashing it into a ball and throwing it at the wall.
**Writing what you are mad about on a small piece of paper and then taping the paper to the bottom of your shoes and go for an angry walk to stomp it out.
**Screaming into your pillow or hitting your mattress.
**Ripping up old junk mail or newspapers.
**Yelling in the shower (you can even get a wet wash cloth and throw it agianst the wall inside the shower).
**Telling a stuffed animal how you feel as if they were what you were mad at.
There are many many other ways to let it out. See what you can think of!

Relaxation skills: deep breathing....Ahhhhh

This is a series of relaxation and other coping skills to use when angry, hyperactive, anxious, or just to reduce you stress level (use these activities when you need to calm yourself down; Remember that these often need to be done repeatedly and daily to help).
**Deep breathing: While practicing these count (in your head) to 4 as you breath in and hold the breath for a second and then count to 6 as you breath out. When you breathe in imagine you just walked into your kitchen and are smelling cookies that just got out of the oven.
**Belly breath: Breath in and out through you nose while pretending there is a colored balloon in you stomach and you are slowing filling it up with each in breath and empty it out with every out breath.
**Hot breath: Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth while making a “HA” sound. This is similar to what you do on a cold day to warm up your hands.
**Cool breath: Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth as if you are blowing onto hot soup or a hot drink.
Sipping breath: Breathe in through you mouth with your tongue rolled or with your tongue on the roof of your moth, which makes a kind of sipping noise and breathe out through your nose.
**Ocean breath: Breath in and out through your nose as you have your tongue at the back of you throat and feel your breath roll down your throat and down your body.
See how long you can hum with one breath and then try to beat you record.
**Blow bubbles: See how big of a bubble you can blow.
**Blow on a pinwheel: See how slow you can blow and still maker it spin or how long you can make it turn in one breath.