Shaking and Tremoring: A Gentle Movement Practice for Overwhelm

Sometimes sitting still feels impossible.

Your hands may feel restless. Your legs may want to move. You might feel wound up, unsettled or as though there is too much energy inside you and nowhere comfortable for it to go.

You do not have to make yourself perfectly calm.

You do not have to understand everything you are feeling.

You can begin with one small, deliberate movement.

This page will guide you through a gentle shake-out that you can do while sitting or standing. You remain in control of the movement throughout the practice. You can make it smaller, pause whenever you need to or stop completely.

You do not need any special equipment.

You can follow the whole practice, choose only one movement or simply watch until you feel ready.

Image suggestion: A person sitting comfortably on a stable chair with both feet on the floor and their hands resting loosely in their lap. The room feels ordinary, warm and uncluttered rather than clinical.

Alt text: Person sitting safely on a chair with both feet supported before beginning a gentle shaking exercise.

An Important Difference Before We Begin

This page is about small, voluntary movements that you deliberately choose to make.

It is not about forcing your body to tremble, trying to produce an uncontrollable reaction or treating an existing tremor.

An involuntary tremor is a shaking movement that you are not deliberately choosing to make. Trembling can sometimes happen during fear, stress, illness, medication changes or other physical situations.

New, unexplained, persistent or worsening shaking should not automatically be assumed to be emotional.

Do not begin this exercise if you are already experiencing unexplained shaking that you cannot voluntarily stop.

Move to a safe seated or lying position instead.

Seek medical advice if the shaking is new, keeps returning, is becoming stronger, affects your usual activities or worries you.

Call 000 in Australia if shaking happens with serious symptoms such as:


  • Chest pain or pressure

  • Serious breathing difficulty

  • Sudden weakness or numbness

  • Facial drooping

  • Trouble speaking

  • Sudden confusion

  • Collapse

  • Loss of consciousness

  • A seizure

You Can Use This Page in Whatever Way Feels Manageable

You can follow every movement.

You can choose only the hand movements.

You can remain seated for the entire practice.

You can make each movement almost invisible.

You can pause between every step.

You can watch without joining in.

You can return to the practice later.

You can stop at any point without finishing.

There is no correct amount of movement.

There is no point you have to reach.

The purpose is not to create the biggest possible shake. The purpose is to give yourself one small action that remains within your control.

What You Need

You only need:


  • A stable chair, bed or safe place to stand

  • Enough space that you will not bump into anything

  • Comfortable clothing that does not restrict your movement

  • A few moments without needing to drive, carry hot drinks or use tools

You may also like to have a glass of water nearby, but it is not required.

Do not hold scissors, mosaic tools, glass, ceramic pieces, hot drinks or other objects while shaking your hands.

Place everything down first.

Make the Space Safe

Before moving, look around you.

Check that the floor is clear.

Move away from sharp furniture edges, stairs, heaters, glass, tools and anything you might knock over.

If you feel unsteady, remain seated.

If you are standing, keep a chair, bench or wall within easy reach. Do not lock your knees.

Avoid rapidly shaking your head or neck. The movement can remain in your hands, arms, feet, legs or shoulders.

You are allowed to make this much smaller than you think it needs to be.

Image suggestion: A stable chair placed on a clear floor with a glass of water on a nearby table and no obstacles around it.

Alt text: Clear and safe space prepared for a seated gentle movement exercise.

A One-Minute Gentle Shake-Out

Use this version when you need something simple and do not want to think through many instructions.

Step One: Find Support

Sit on a stable chair with your feet resting on the floor.

Let the chair hold your weight.

You do not need to sit perfectly straight. Find a position that feels reasonably supported.

Notice one place where your body meets something solid.

It might be:


  • Your feet against the floor

  • Your legs against the chair

  • Your back against the chair

  • Your hand resting on your clothing

You are here.

You only need to take the next small step.

Step Two: Check That You Are Choosing the Movement

Lift one hand slightly.

Give your fingers a very small wiggle.

Now stop.

Begin again.

Stop again.

This helps you confirm that you are deliberately starting and stopping the movement.

Keep it small enough that you remain in charge of it.

Step Three: Gently Shake Out Your Hands

Hold your hands in front of you or beside your legs.

Let your wrists stay loose.

Gently shake your hands as though you have a few drops of water on your fingertips.

Continue for approximately five to ten seconds.

The movement does not need to be fast.

Now stop.

Place your hands on your legs or the chair.

Wait for a moment.

Notice the support beneath them.

Step Four: Add Your Feet

Keep your toes on the floor.

Lift and lower one heel gently.

Then try the other heel.

You can alternate them slowly, as though quietly stepping in place while seated.

Continue for approximately ten seconds.

Then place both feet flat.

Let the movement finish.

Step Five: Finish With Your Shoulders

Lift your shoulders a small distance towards your ears.

Let them drop naturally.

Repeat this two or three times.

You can add a gentle shoulder wiggle, but you do not have to.

Then become still.

Look at one ordinary object in the room.

Notice its shape or colour.

The practice is complete.

You do not need to feel completely different for it to count.

Image suggestion: Close-up of relaxed hands making a very small shake-out movement above the person’s lap.

Alt text: Hands gently shaking for several seconds during a seated overwhelm exercise.

A Longer Follow-Along Shaking Practice

This version may take approximately three to five minutes.

You can stop after any section. You do not need to complete the entire sequence.

Begin by Arriving Where You Are

Sit or stand somewhere supported.

Let your eyes remain open unless closing them feels completely comfortable.

Look around the space without searching for anything important.

Notice:


  • One colour

  • One straight line

  • One rounded shape

  • One source of light

  • One object that is not moving

You do not have to change your breathing.

There is no need to take an unusually deep breath.

Allow your breathing to continue in its own ordinary rhythm.

Begin With Your Fingers

Open your hands.

Move your fingers gently, as though you are playing invisible piano keys.

Make the movement slow.

Then make it a little quicker.

Return to slow movement.

Stop.

Rest your hands against something solid.

You might notice warmth, tingling or very little at all.

There is nothing particular you are required to feel.

Move Through Your Hands and Wrists

Let your wrists soften.

Gently shake both hands.

Imagine you are loosening them after holding something for too long.

Keep your elbows relaxed.

Continue for five to fifteen seconds.

Then stop completely.

Check that you can still choose when the movement begins and ends.

If your hands continue shaking without your choice, do not try to create more movement. Rest them on your legs or another stable surface and allow yourself to stop the exercise.

Add Your Forearms

Allow the movement to travel slightly into your forearms.

Keep it gentle.

Your upper arms can remain close to your body.

You are not trying to fling your arms or make the movement dramatic.

Shake for a few seconds.

Stop.

Rest.

Sometimes the unsettled feeling has been building for longer than the moment when you first noticed it.

You do not need to work out where it came from right now.

Return your attention to the chair, floor or wall supporting you.

Try a Small Shoulder Shake

Let your arms hang loosely beside you or rest your hands in your lap.

Move your shoulders forward and backwards by a very small amount.

You might imagine loosening a tight jacket.

Try three or four gentle movements.

Then stop.

Roll one shoulder slowly.

Roll the other shoulder slowly.

Allow both shoulders to settle wherever they naturally fall.

Do not force them down.

Add the Feet and Legs

Seated Version

Keep the balls of your feet on the floor.

Gently bounce one heel.

Stop.

Try the other heel.

Stop.

If that feels manageable, alternate your heels for five to ten seconds.

You can also let one knee move slightly from side to side.

Keep the movement comfortable and contained.

Standing Version

Stand with your feet approximately hip-width apart.

Keep a stable chair, bench or wall within reach.

Soften your knees without bending deeply.

Shift your weight gently from one foot to the other.

You may add a very small knee bounce.

Keep both feet connected to the floor.

Do not jump.

Do not continue standing if you feel dizzy, faint, unsteady or disconnected from the room around you.

Sit down and allow the practice to end.

Image suggestion: A seated person gently alternating their heels while keeping their toes in contact with the floor.

Alt text: Person using small seated heel movements as a controlled alternative to full-body shaking.

Add More of the Body Only When It Feels Right

You may now allow your hands, arms, shoulders and knees to move together.

Keep the movement small.

Your head does not need to shake.

Your body does not need to move evenly.

You might move for five seconds and stop.

You might move for fifteen seconds and stop.

You might decide you have already done enough.

All of those choices are valid.

Try saying quietly:

I am choosing this movement.

Then stop and say:

I am choosing to rest.

The stopping is part of the practice.

Let the Movement Become Smaller

Rather than ending suddenly, make the movement gradually smaller.

Let the legs become still.

Let the shoulders settle.

Let the arms rest.

Let the fingers make one final small wiggle.

Then stop.

Place both feet on the floor.

Place your hands on your legs, the chair or another solid surface.

Feel the pressure where your hands make contact.

You have finished the shaking part.

After the Movement: Give Yourself Somewhere to Land

Do not rush immediately into the next task.

Take a few moments to notice the room again.

Look Around

Find three objects that are not moving.

You might notice:


  • A door

  • A cup

  • A piece of furniture

  • A plant

  • A window

  • A mark on the wall

Let your eyes rest on each object for a moment.

Press Into Something Solid

Press your feet gently into the floor.

Do not strain.

Notice the floor pressing back against them.

Press your palms into your legs or the seat of the chair.

Release.

Repeat once.

Choose One Ordinary Next Action

Your next action might be:


  • Taking a sip of water

  • Washing your hands

  • Sitting quietly for another minute

  • Opening a window

  • Putting one object away

  • Drawing one line on paper

  • Sending one simple message

  • Returning to what you were doing

  • Resting without doing anything else

You do not have to use a feeling of calm to prove that the practice worked.

You gave yourself a small, controlled action during a difficult moment.

That is enough.

Image suggestion: A person resting both hands on their legs after the movement, with a glass of water and a sheet of paper nearby.

Alt text: Person settling after a gentle shake-out with hands resting firmly on their legs.

When You Need the Movement to Be Less Noticeable

You may want something you can do in a waiting room, workplace, classroom, car park or shared space without drawing attention.

Do not practise while driving. Park safely first.

Try a Hidden Hand Movement

Place your hands in your lap.

Touch each fingertip to your thumb one at a time.

Move from your first finger to your little finger.

Then reverse the direction.

Press and Release Your Toes

Keep your shoes on.

Press your toes gently into the floor.

Release them.

Repeat three times.

Use a Small Heel Movement

Keep the front of your foot on the floor.

Lift your heel by a very small amount.

Lower it.

Repeat slowly.

Hold and Release

Press your palms lightly together.

Hold for two or three seconds.

Release.

Notice the difference between pressure and no pressure.

These quieter movements still give you something clear and physical to do.

You do not need to create a visible full-body shake.

When Shaking Feels Too Intense

Stop the deliberate movement.

Sit down or lie somewhere safe if necessary.

Place your hands on a stable surface.

Keep your eyes open and look at one object that is not moving.

Do not force yourself to continue because you think you need to finish or release something.

You never have to push through.

Try saying:

I have stopped the exercise.

The chair or floor is holding me.

I can wait here for a moment.

If the shaking continues involuntarily, is unfamiliar, is severe or concerns you, seek medical advice rather than assuming it is simply part of the exercise.

When Not to Use This Practice

Do not intentionally shake your body when:


  • You are driving or operating equipment

  • You are standing near stairs, traffic or water

  • You are holding glass, tools or hot objects

  • You feel faint or close to collapsing

  • You have just injured yourself

  • Movement causes pain

  • You have been advised to restrict movement

  • You are already experiencing unexplained involuntary shaking

  • You believe you may be having a seizure or medical emergency

If you have diabetes and are experiencing shakiness that may be connected to low blood sugar, follow your personal low-blood-sugar plan rather than using movement as the response.

This Is Not About Forcing a Release

You may see shaking described online as a way to force the body to release stored trauma, fear or stress.

That is not what this practice asks you to do.

You are not trying to produce an uncontrollable response.

You are not trying to uncover memories.

You are not trying to make your body do something dramatic.

This is simply a short, voluntary movement activity that gives your hands, feet or body something manageable to do during a difficult moment.

The movement should remain within your choice.

You should be able to make it smaller, pause it or end it.

Add a Simple Creative Action Afterwards

You do not need to create anything.

However, some people find it easier to move into a simple hand activity after the shaking has ended.

The activity should be easy enough that it does not become another demand.

You could:


  • Draw slow lines across a sheet of paper

  • Fill a page with dots

  • Tear scrap paper into small pieces

  • Sort buttons, stones or tiles by colour

  • Place three mosaic pieces beside each other

  • Arrange household objects into a simple row

  • Roll a piece of soft clay

  • Trace around your hand

  • Hold a smooth object and turn it over slowly

  • Colour one small section of a picture

You can use whatever you already have.

You do not need art materials.

You do not need to make something beautiful.

You do not need to finish.

The purpose is to give your hands a gentle next place to go.

Image suggestion: Hands arranging several colourful mosaic pieces beside a sheet of paper with simple drawn lines.

Alt text: Simple mosaic pieces and drawing materials ready for a low-pressure creative activity after movement.

A Simple Paper Alternative

Take one sheet of paper and any pen or pencil.

Place the tip of the pencil on the paper.

Make short, quick marks for a few seconds.

Let the marks reflect the speed your hands want to move.

Then gradually make the marks slower.

Allow the lines to become longer.

Pause.

Place the pencil down.

Look at the page without judging it.

The page does not have to represent anything.

It is simply a record of your hand moving from quick marks towards slower ones.

You can keep it, tear it up or place it aside.

A Simple Mosaic Alternative

Place a small group of safe, smooth mosaic pieces or paper shapes in front of you.

Do not use sharp shards while you are still shaking.

Choose one piece.

Place it down.

Choose another piece.

Place it beside the first.

Continue one piece at a time.

You do not need glue.

You do not need a design.

You can make a line, a circle or a small cluster.

Stop whenever you have had enough.

You can move the pieces and begin again another day.

If This Feeling Keeps Returning

You do not need to analyse the experience while you are trying to get through it.

Action can come first.

Later, when things feel steadier, you may quietly notice:


  • Whether the restless feeling appears at a particular time

  • Whether you had eaten, rested or had water

  • Whether the space around you felt noisy or crowded

  • Whether you had been holding yourself still for a long time

  • Whether something difficult had just happened

  • Which movement felt manageable

  • Which movement felt like too much

If this comes up often, it is okay to pay attention to what tends to happen before it.

You do not have to decide what the pattern means.

You are simply noticing information that may help you choose what you need next time.

When to Speak With a Health Professional

Arrange medical advice when shaking:


  • Is involuntary rather than deliberately created

  • Is new or unexplained

  • Keeps returning

  • Is becoming more noticeable

  • Happens while you are resting

  • Affects one side more than the other

  • Makes eating, drinking, writing, walking or other activities difficult

  • Began after starting, stopping or changing a medicine

  • Occurs with stiffness, weakness, balance changes or other new symptoms

  • Is worrying you for any reason

A health professional may need to assess the movement and any other symptoms to understand what is happening.

Call 000 for urgent symptoms including:


  • Chest pain or pressure

  • Serious breathing difficulty

  • Sudden facial drooping

  • Sudden arm or leg weakness

  • Trouble speaking

  • Sudden collapse

  • A seizure

  • Sudden severe confusion

  • Loss of consciousness

Do not drive yourself during a medical emergency.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Voluntary Shaking the Same as a Tremor?

No.

In this practice, you are choosing to create a small movement and can deliberately slow or stop it.

A tremor is an involuntary shaking movement. Ongoing or unexplained tremor should be medically assessed.

Do I Have to Shake My Whole Body?

No.

You can move only your fingers, hands, feet or shoulders.

A small hand movement may be enough.

You can remain seated throughout the entire practice.

How Long Should I Shake?

There is no required duration.

Try five to fifteen seconds followed by a pause.

Short periods with clear stops may feel more manageable than forcing yourself through a long session.

You can complete only one round.

Should I Keep Going Until I Feel Calm?

No.

You do not have to reach a particular emotional state.

Stop when you have had enough, when the movement becomes uncomfortable or when continuing begins to feel like pressure.

What if I Cannot Stop Shaking?

End the intentional exercise.

Sit or lie somewhere safe.

Place your hands against a stable surface.

If the movement continues without your choice, is new, is severe or concerns you, seek medical advice.

Call 000 if it occurs with serious symptoms such as chest pain, breathing difficulty, collapse, seizure, sudden weakness, facial drooping, confusion or trouble speaking.

What if Movement Makes Me Feel Worse?

Stop immediately.

You do not have to repeat the practice.

Try something with less movement, such as pressing your hands together, placing both feet on the floor, looking around the room or holding a stable object.

A practice is not helpful simply because it works for someone else.

Is This a Trauma-Release Exercise?

No.

This page does not claim to release stored trauma or treat a mental or physical health condition.

It offers a simple, voluntary movement that may give you something concrete to do when remaining completely still feels difficult.

Can I Just Watch the Guided Session?

Yes.

You can watch without copying any movement.

You may notice which parts seem comfortable before deciding whether to join in.

You can pause the session and return another time.

Do I Need Mosaic or Art Materials?

No.

This is primarily a movement practice.

Creative materials are only an optional next step.

Paper, a pencil, household objects or your empty hands are enough.

Follow Along With Me

You do not have to remember every step.

You can follow a guided Come Create With Me shaking and settling session where we move slowly, pause often and finish with something simple for the hands.

You can join in.

You can stay seated.

You can make the movements smaller.

You can pause the video.

You can simply watch.

You can return whenever you need a steady place to begin.

Suggested Button Text

Follow the Gentle Shake-Out Session

One Small Step Is Enough

You do not have to fix everything right now.

You do not have to explain why you feel restless, overwhelmed or unable to settle.

You do not have to perform calmness.

You can begin with your fingers.

You can move your feet.

You can stop.

You can rest your hands on something solid.

You can choose one small thing to do next.

This does not have to be perfect to be useful.

Come back whenever you need it.

The page will still be here.