How to Try Somatic Shaking for Stress Relief

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If it feels comfortable, loosen one leg and then the other, holding a chair or wall for support if you’re standing. If you’re sitting down, you can try small foot taps instead.…

Imagine you’ve just washed your hands, and there’s no towel. Give them a gentle shake, and then let your arms join in.

That’s the start of a stress-management exercise that may help loosen your tense muscles and give you a break from anxious thoughts, says Kim Penberthy, a clinical psychologist and professor of research in psychiatric medicine at the UVA School of Medicine. It’s a small movement experiment—sometimes called somatic shaking—that takes a minute or less, doesn’t require any equipment, and gives you something to try when telling yourself to calm down isn’t getting you anywhere.

Think about what happens when you’re replaying an argument or worrying about tomorrow’s big work presentation. Your mind is busy, sure. But your jaw might be clenched, your shoulders raised, and your neck stiff enough to make turning your head unpleasant. Shaking your body gives you a chance to notice—and loosen—some of that tension. “If you try to tense your shoulder and shake your arm, it’s sort of hard,” Penberthy says. Letting your arm hang loosely and gently moving it encourages you to relax those muscles.

The movement also gives your mind something else to focus on. Instead of mentally rewriting the email you just sent, you’re noticing how your hands feel or concentrating on moving one leg at a time. That shift may briefly interrupt rumination—and remind you that you have a way to respond when you’re feeling stuck. Part of the relief, Penberthy says, is realizing: “I’ve got some ability to do something. I don’t have to just sit here and suffer.”

Penberthy sometimes shakes things out herself. “I often do it after a very stressful day,” she says, especially when she notices her neck aching. The image that comes to her mind is athletes shaking out their limbs before heading onto the field: a mental and physical move.

Start small, advises Lisa George, a psychiatric and family nurse practitioner and founder of Talk Tribeca Psychiatry in New York.

If it feels comfortable, loosen one…

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