Stress is a vicious cycle. It is unavoidable and it inevitably snowballs until what was initially the cause of your stress is no longer the root of the problem. The greatest point of frustration is now how to deal with the stress. What was originally stressing you out to begin with cannot even begin to be tackled to the best of your ability if your head is clouded with frustration.
This is probably the point where most people long for the carefree days of being a kid again. Don’t you miss those days when grabbing your favorite ball was an instant source of joy and relief? Well, just because you need relief from the office instead of the classroom does not mean that you have to take toys out of the equation. Stress relief toys are popping up in desks, dashboards, and diaper bags to bring adults a piece of magical childhood relaxation.
LET’S PLAY BALL!
Balls have long been a tried and true form of stress relief. Any ball that you can easily maneuver will provide the comfort you need to transfer your energy into your hands and out of your head. Stress relief balls are made with the intent for you to squeeze out your anxiety as the ball absorbs it. With various levels of firmness to suit everyone’s unique strength, and endless textures such as foam, gel, fuzzy, spiny, smooth, and more, it is not hard to find one that is as individual as you.
Chinese Exercise Balls
A popular longstanding tradition in the far East used during the Ming Dynesty, these soothing balls build agility while relaxing and soothing your hands. Rolling these balls in your palm can emit a soothing sound.
aRoma Stress Balls
The makers of aRoma Balls applauded the efforts of other stress relief toys for providing an outlet, but they decided to take it one step further. While the balls are spandex covered sacks filled with sand (a traditional model of stress relief balls), the sand is infused with essential oils that have been proven to energize the mind and refocus attention. Fragrances may act as a placebo to some, but because aRoma Balls contain the actual oils, a physical reaction takes place. Choose from cucumber melon, peppermint, eucalyptus and more.
Miniaturize the Stress
For most stressed out adults, there is no time to go to the gym for a game of hoops. Instead, try attaching a miniaturized basketball net to the back of a door or place tiny field goal posts in the corner of your desk. Since sports are often a form of entertainment and relaxation, do not limit yourself only to Sunday night games to feel the relief. Keep it stored in a desk or closet that can easily be opened to provide a much needed relief during any day or any season.
FIDGET THERAPY
As kids, we are forever being told to settle down. Among the list of commands are “Sit still,” “Stop fidgeting,” and, who could forget, “Don’t touch that!” As adults, we have grasped those ridiculous requests as lifestyles that bottle up the energy that needs to be released in order to feel relief from stress. New stress relief toys on the market are continuing to gain their inspiration from kid’s forms of enjoyment both classic and original.
Bendeez
Kids spend hours upon hours playing with Bendaroos, flexible building sticks, to allow their imaginations to materialize in front of their eyes. Bendeez follows the same line of thought with the addition of a durable rubber coating to accommodate the rampant stress overflowing the heads of adults. Each Bendeez is 15 inches long making it long enough to handle the frustration you direct to it, but short enough to stick in with the pens and rulers of your desk or next to your day planner in your purse. They are available in every style from calming cloud patterns to fiery neon red.
Thinking Putty
Thinking Putty is another transformed child’s toy similar to Silly Putty or Play-Doh. Again, with a little adjustment, this stress relief toy is suitable for adults. Thinking Putty is silicone based and does not leave a residue. The last thing you want is for your stress relief toy to leave your hands greasy and unable to type, or to create a permanent stain on the only copy of report that stressed you out originally. To add to Thinking Putty’s appeal, it is thermochromic. This means that as you stretch, tear, shape, and squish, the color reacts to the heat of your hand and turns from purple to pink, green to yellow, or indigo to blue. There is something to be said for physically watching a change take place within your hands.
BE CREATIVE
The market is flooded with desktop and stress relief toys, but no two people have the same kind of stress with the same appropriate outlet. Get your creative juices flowing and decide what works best for you. Here some ideas to spur inspiration:
- Play with a slinky.
- Keep a few action figures hidden between files.
- Create a desk top sandbox.
- Leave a pin art box on a shelf.
- Stash bubble wrap where you know stress will just “pop” up.
- Fidget with rubber bands.
- Store Gripmaster hand exercisers in your desk drawer.
- Keep a notebook dedicated to scribbles.
Test out several different methods. Some people prefer creating something as with the putties or pin art, others enjoy a release of tension that the balls provide, and others focus more on the properties of the object such as color, texture, or scent. The purpose of a stress relief toy is not to jazz up your office or add ambience to your laundry room; it is to allow the energy that is holding you back from your task at hand to be released through an inanimate object. Next time you feel overwhelmed, pick your head up out of your hands, and put a stress relief toy in its place.