How Do Feelings Feel?

This episode begins by talking about feelings and imagining how different feelings might feel if we could touch them. Next we think about a few specific emotions and take note of how those emotions feel in our face and body. Then we do a breathing exercise that can help you hang on to feelings you want to keep or let go of feelings you want to send away. Then we sing a song about feelings before ending by repeating affirmations to help us feel in control of our feelings.

Transcript

Hello,

I'm Noah and this is Like You,

A mindfulness podcast for kids.

I'm so glad you're here.

Today we're going to talk about feelings and try to answer the question,

How do feelings feel?

So listeners of all ages,

Find a place to listen where you feel comfortable and safe.

As I ask questions and invite you to say affirmations,

You're welcome to speak out loud,

Or as always,

You can just think your responses quietly in your mind.

Today we're going to save our breathing exercise for later in the episode.

Right now,

I'm just going to count to three and then we'll all say,

I like me.

One,

Two,

Three.

I like me.

I like you too.

You are smart.

You are curious.

And you are in control of your feelings.

So let's talk about feelings.

To start,

Let's just name as many different feelings as we can think of.

I'll start happy,

Sad,

Angry,

Excited,

Silly,

Calm.

Can you think of any other feelings?

Say them out loud as you think of them.

There are lots of different feelings and each and every person can feel them all.

Sometimes we even feel several different feelings at the same time.

Have you ever thought about what a feeling feels like?

Imagine that you could touch a feeling the same way you can touch any objects sitting around you.

So just like a pillow feels soft,

A rock feels hard,

A cactus feels prickly,

And ice feels cold and slippery.

Imagine that your feelings each feel different ways.

How do you think happy would feel if you could touch it?

How do you think angry would feel?

If you touched the feeling of calm,

How would that feel?

And how would sad feel if you touched it?

What about worry?

How would it feel to touch worry?

You know,

We actually can feel different feelings in our body and in our face.

Let's try thinking about different feelings and pay attention to how they feel in our bodies.

Start with happy.

Smile big,

Brighten up your eyes.

How does that feel?

What does it feel like in your face?

Can you feel your cheeks stretching with your smile and your eyebrows lifting up?

Do you feel happiness in any other part of your body,

Like your chest or your stomach?

Just notice how things feel in your body when you're happy.

Do you like the way this feels?

Let's try another feeling.

Angry.

Make an angry face.

Maybe ball up your fists.

How does that feel in your face?

Is your face tight and scrunched?

Where else can you feel anger in your body?

In your arms and hands?

In your stomach?

Anywhere else?

Do you like the way that angry feels?

Okay,

Now relax.

Let that anger go.

Shake it out.

Loosely wiggle your arms and shake your head back and forth.

Blow out a big gust of air to reset.

Next we'll make a silly,

Goofy,

Funny face.

Go for it.

Give me your silliest face.

How does that feel?

Pay attention to how your face feels.

Does it feel any different than happy or angry?

How does silly feel in your body?

Do you like the way that silly feels?

Let's practice one last feeling.

This time,

Try to make yourself feel calm.

So maybe take a deep breath in and out.

Relax your face.

Relax your body.

Maybe even close your eyes.

Now notice how your face feels when you are calm.

Is there less tension and tightness than other feelings?

How about your body?

Where do you notice the calmness in your body?

Does it feel different than happy,

Angry or silly?

Do you like this feeling?

Now that we've thought a bit about different feelings and how they feel,

Let's try a breathing exercise that can help you with your feelings,

Whatever the feelings may be.

First I want you to take a moment to think about how you feel right now.

Now I know we all just practiced a bunch of different feelings,

But stop to think about your day,

What you were doing before you started the podcast,

What you're going to do after.

How do you feel when you think about the day you had today?

Happy,

Sad,

Anxious,

Calm,

Tired.

However you feel,

I want you to pick a color to represent that feeling.

So maybe you think blue feels like a sad color,

Or yellow feels happy,

Or purple feels calm.

Now there's no right or wrong feeling to feel,

And there's no right or wrong color to pick.

That's really just up to you.

Once you've thought about how you're feeling,

And you've given that feeling a color,

Imagine that color shining like a light around you.

And every time you take a deep breath in,

The color grows larger.

Try it now.

Deep breath in.

Watch the color grow.

Now breathe out.

Another breath in.

Watch that color grow.

And a long breath out.

Keep breathing slowly in and out.

As you breathe,

Think a little more about that feeling that you're feeling.

Is it a feeling that you like to feel?

Is it a feeling that you would like to get rid of?

Continue breathing slowly and imagine that color growing.

Maybe you're feeling happy and you want to hang on to that feeling as long as you can.

Or maybe you've been grumpy all day and you're ready to let that feeling go.

Once again,

It's all up to you.

Do you want to hang on to this feeling,

Or do you want to let it go?

Depending on what you decide,

The next part of the breathing exercise will be different.

At this point,

You've been breathing deep and letting the color grow bigger and bigger all around you.

So imagine the whole room is filled with the color you've picked for your feeling.

Now if this is a feeling that you want to keep,

Imagine that every time you breathe in,

You're sucking the color in and swallowing it so the feeling fills you up inside.

If that's what you choose,

Keep taking deep breaths in and out and letting that feeling fill you up inside.

Or if you have a feeling that you're ready to let go of,

Instead of sucking in,

You can imagine blowing the color away.

So you'll still breathe in and out,

Slowly and deeply.

But every time you breathe out,

You can blow and imagine that a little bit of the color floats away and the feeling goes with it.

With each breath,

There's a little less of the color and a little less of the feeling surrounding you.

So whether you're holding on to your feeling or letting it go,

Let's take a few more big breaths together.

Breathe in 1,

2,

3 and out 1,

2,

3.

Breathe in 1,

2,

3 and out 1,

2,

3.

One more breath in 1,

2,

3 and out 1,

2,

3.

Now at this point,

You're either totally filled up with the feeling you wanted to keep or you've blown away all of the feeling that you wanted to let go of.

Remember,

You'll feel lots of different feelings,

Sometimes at the same time,

But you always have the power to take control of your feelings.

You get to decide which feeling you want to keep and which feeling you want to let go of.

So as we think about all the different feelings we sometimes feel,

Let's listen to a song about feelings.

This song mentions many different kinds of feelings.

So each time you hear a feeling,

You could think about what it would feel like if you could touch that feeling,

Or you could think about what color that feeling reminds you of,

Or you could think about how that feeling feels in your body.

Be sure to hang around after the song and we'll say affirmations together.

If you feel like singing,

Here's what you can do.

La la la la la la la do do do do do.

La la la la la la la do do do do do.

If you feel like laughing,

Here's what you can do.

Ha ha ha ha hee hee hee ooh ooh ooh ooh.

Ha ha ha ha hee hee hee ooh ooh ooh ooh.

However you feel,

Your feelings are real,

And you're never alone.

So sing out high,

And sing out low,

And let somebody know.

If you feel like crying,

Here's what you can do.

Wa wa wa wa boo hoo hoo.

Wa wa wa wa boo hoo hoo.

If you're feeling anxious,

Here's what you can do.

Breathe in deep,

Then breathe out too.

Breathe in deep,

Then breathe out too.

However you feel,

Your feelings are real,

And you're never alone.

So sing out high,

And sing out low,

And let somebody know.

If you feel like making someone smile,

Here's what you can do.

Say,

I'm glad that we're friends and I like you.

I'm glad that we're friends and I like you.

Ooh ooh ooh.

And now it's time for affirmations.

Affirmations are words you can say about yourself to remind yourself how wonderful you are.

You can say them out loud or inside your head.

We'll say each affirmation twice.

You can listen the first time and say it with me the second time.

It's okay to feel my feelings.

It's okay to feel my feelings.

I can choose my attitude.

I can choose my attitude.

I will let go of feelings I don't want.

I will let go of feelings I don't want.

I will hold on to feelings that I like.

I will hold on to feelings that I like.

Bad feelings won't last forever.

Bad feelings won't last forever.

I am proud of how I'm growing.

I am proud of how I'm growing.

I am not alone in my feelings.

I am not alone in my feelings.

I make a difference in the world just by being me.

I make a difference in the world just by being me.

Now let's smile and take a few slow,

Deep breaths as we wind down our time together.

If any of those affirmations stood out to you,

Feel free to write them down.

Or just store them safely in your mind to say whenever you need it.

If you have an affirmation that is special to you,

I would love to hear it.

You can have a grown-up check our website or show notes for ways to get in touch and share your affirmations.

I can't wait to spend some time together again soon.

Until then,

I like you,

I'm proud of you,

And I'm glad we are friends.

Have a happy and peaceful day.

Like You is written and hosted by me,

Noah Glenn.

I also composed and performed the Like You theme music and other music that appeared in the episode.

Additional music for this episode came from I Make Mad Beats.

Our podcast cover art was illustrated by Maya Sain,

And our episode art is created by Lindsay Glenn.

If you've enjoyed the podcast,

I hope you'll tell your friends.

And as always,

Thank you for listening.

Reviews

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