How Cloud-Watching Can Help Us Cope With and Calm BIG Feelings
Well, we’ve almost made it! We’re here at the halfway mark of our eight-part series, Eight Ways To Help Your Child With Emotional Regulation.
Today, we’re going to harken back to a favorite activity from my childhood and possibly, yours too – cloud-watching.
Nature For Nurture
When you were a child did you ever stretch out on your back in the soft green grass on a warm summer day and watch the clouds drifting by? Guessing the shapes and making up fanciful tales to accompany them?
I did.
Sometimes I still do.
When the world gets too busy and my never-ending to-do list threatens to get the better of me, I find comfort in a bit of nature.
Whether it’s taking a walk through my subdivision to admire my lovely neighbor’s garden (thank you, Ms. Jo-Jo from all of us who enjoy the beauty of your hard work) or strolling along the pond to hear the water trickling over the rocks at the shore, there is something about being amidst God’s beautiful creation that pulls me closer to Him.
Mindfulness
Sure, cloud-watching on its own can be a fun activity.
At a minimum, it provides a distraction from any distressing thoughts or feelings giving you time to gently pause and allow for your discomfort to subside.
Remember the Power of the Pause we learned about earlier in the series? Cloud-watching is another way to pause and put our limbic systems in check so we can choose how to act on a thought or feeling, responding versus reacting.
Cloud-watching is an exercise in mindfulness, which essentially means remaining in a state of awareness of one’s present circumstances, thoughts, and feelings without judgment.
Mindfulness keeps us focused on the present rather than ruminating over past mistakes or living in fear of future missteps.
Virtual Cloud-Watching
The beauty of this relaxation exercise is no sunny day is required. You can practice this technique in the middle of winter curled up in your pajamas indoors on a snowy day.
How?
Again, we harken back to childhood and awaken our imagination. Invite it to come out and play. No actual clouds are necessary outside the ones we create in our minds.
Simply find a comfortable seat or lie down on the floor. Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths to center yourself. Remember the deep belly breathing we talk about in our last post? You can practice it here.
Continue to breathe and allow your mind to begin to wander.
You may feel a little silly at first. You may even fight with yourself a little bit at first in a bid to think about nothing. That’s ok. That happens with almost everyone the first few times they try this exercise. Try not to let it discourage you. It’s all part of the process.
Any time a thought enters your mind DO NOT try to change it in ANY way. Do not try to expel it from your mind or dwell on it. Simply observe it as you would a cloud floating by in the sky on a windy day. You are merely watching it drift by without any judgment of the thought as being good or bad.
It just is.
A Learning and Healing Exercise
Cloud-watching, whether virtual or in-vivo, helps us learn how to pause long enough to separate our thoughts from our feelings.
Taking this time to slow down allows us to learn how to recognize when we are becoming overwhelmed and helps empower us by teaching us we are not at the mercy of acting on our feelings.
Feelings are indicators, not dictators.
Lysa Terkeurst
Feelings are fleeting. If you wait long enough, they will change. Reactions, on the other hand, can have lasting consequences. Responses, help us feel in control of our feelings rather than being controlled by them.
Coming Up
Well, we’re halfway there! How are you doing so far? Are you learning some useful techniques to help you and your child manage BIG feelings? I hope so.
Over the next few blog posts, we will continue with our series, Eight Ways To Help Your Child With Emotional Regulation. In our next blog post, we will focus on getting moving to help us manage our emotions. Trust me, movement matters.
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Blessings,
Kimberly Bennett, LPC
Founder/CEO, It’s Only Homeschooling
Founder/CEO, The Homeschool Counseling Network
This website is not a professional counseling website and nothing here should be construed as professional counseling advice. Although Kimberly Bennett, LPC is a Licensed Professional Counselor, she is not your counselor, and no counselor-client relationship is established unless she has signed an agreement with you. All information provided through this website is for informational and educational purposes only.
