Shake It Out

What It Is

Deliberate whole-body shaking, inspired by how animals naturally discharge stress.

Why It Helps

Trauma and stress get stored in the body as incomplete fight-flight-freeze responses. Shaking completes the stress cycle, helping your nervous system return to baseline.

What You Need

Just your body and enough space to move freely. Privacy helps.

How to Do It

Stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Start shaking your hands, then arms, then add your legs and whole body. Let it be messy and weird. Continue for 2-5 minutes. Stop and notice how you feel.

This Is Not Worship

It’s a somatic experiencing technique rooted in neuroscience and observed in mammals after threat.

Variations

Shake to music, add vocal sounds (sighing, humming), or do it after a stressful event as immediate release.