Shake It Out
When to use it: Right after a jolt — a call that went sideways, a fright, a wave of adrenaline with nowhere to put it. When you’re wired and fried at the same time. Between back-to-back meetings, to physically dump the last one before the next. Find a stairwell, an empty room, your kitchen if you’re at home.
Why it’s here: A stress response is, at bottom, your body getting ready to do something physical that you then don’t do — you just sit there absorbing it. That mobilised energy doesn’t vanish; it hangs around as the jittery, buzzing residue you feel afterward. Animals literally shake it off after a near-miss, and there’s a reasonable case that giving your body a bit of movement helps it register that the threat is over and stand down. You don’t have to buy the whole theory. Just notice that moving when you’re wired tends to feel better than sitting still and stewing.
Do this:
- Stand up, somewhere you won’t be seen if that matters to you (it does, and that’s fine).
- Shake out your hands and arms — loose, fast, like you’re flicking water off them.
- Add your legs, one at a time. Bounce a little at the knees. Roll your shoulders.
- Keep it going for thirty to sixty seconds. Let it be loose and a bit silly. Add a long exhale or two.
- Stop. Stand still for a moment and notice the difference. There usually is one.
If full shaking is too much for the space, smaller works: just your hands under the desk, a few seconds, firmly.
This is the least dignified thing in the library and one of the most reliable. Trade the dignity for the reset.