Make It: The Mind Jar

Mind Jar, Calm down jar....the everything jar. You may have heard about this cool little sparkle filled jar. When the glitter in the jar is settled at the bottom, it means all is calm. The glitter represents our thoughts. Watching the glitter swirl around represents our swirling thoughts, whether they be caused by anger, sadness or even boredom. The Mind Jar gives us a moment to reset. If you are feeling angry, take the jar and swirl the glitter around. As it slowly swirls, focus on your breathing. Keep focusing on each breath until the glitter has completely settled. Hopefully you are feeling calmer and feel like you can focus on the present moment.

Would you like to make your own? You will need the following things:

1. One jar with a tight fitting lid (glass or plastic)

2. Clear school glue (Elmer's Clear School glue works pretty well)

3. Glitter (fine glitter works best)

4. Warm water to help dissolved the glue

5. Food colouring - this is optional if you want coloured water

6. Hot glue gun

Assembly:

Step 1:

Take your bottle and fill it about 1/3 full with your clear glue. *Note, the more glue you add the longer it will take for the glitter to settle to the bottom.

Step 2: Start adding your glitter. You can use a funnel to make the process easier.

Step 3:

Fill your bottle the rest of the way with warm water, leaving a small space (about half an inch) at the top of the bottle. Close the bottle tightly and give it a shake. If you would like to add more glitter or more glue to slow the glitter down do that now. If you decide to give the water a bit of colour, add in your food colouring now. One to two drops should be enough.

Step 4:

Take extra precaution and use a hot glue gun to properly seal the lid of your bottle. Run a thing line of glue around the top most threading of your bottle and screw on the cap. Check for any leaks.

A lot of articles highlight this tool as something that is useful for kids when dealing with anxiety. Adults can definitely use them too. If you're trying to combat holiday anxiety, try using red and green glitter. Make it fun and remember that you are taking care of your mental health.

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