Knead Your Anger Like Playdough

Practice:

Students are given the following instructions:

“We can let go of our anger by using our imagination. Now, let’s have an exercise to help you do this:

            “Close your eyes. Sit comfortably. Try to do and visualize what I tell you. I’m going to ask you some questions. Try to answer them inside. And do not open your eyes until I tell you to do so.

Remember an event that made you very angry. What happened? What signals did your body give to indicate your anger? Were you breathing too fast? Or did your face feel too hot due to fury? Do you still feel that anger?

            Now, breathe in deeply. Slowly inhale through your nose. Fill your lungs and chest, and exhale through your mouth slowly. Take another breath.

            Now, try to imagine your anger like an object, form or shape. Take that in your hands. Knead and soften it like playdough, and give whatever shape you want.

Now, throw that as far away as possible. Watch how your anger goes away.

Now, I will count down from five to one. And then you will open your eyes. Five…four…three…two…one. You can open your eyes once you are ready.”

Students voluntarily explain how they have visualized anger in their imagination, and the object they have turned it into and thrown away.

If some students fail and get stuck with their anger, they are asked to draw or write it down on a paper. They then wrinkle and throw it into the wastebin, just like throwing a ball into a basket.