I sometimes focus my attention on slowly circularly massaging the palm of one hand with the thumb of the other hand. I find this calming, in part because by focusing on my body, it gets me out of my head. But it also feels good to me.

Several decades ago, I found I became calmer when I slowly rocked in a rocking chair (A Chair That Can Help You Heal?). I now have 2 rocking chairs, one in my front room and one in my bedroom. I use the one in the bedroom to sit and rock if I wake up up and my mind is churning. I might not fall asleep in the rocker, but I at least get some rest that helps the next day. Other times the slow rocking will be relaxing enough that I can go back to bed and fall asleep.

I have found that the speed of rocking in the chair makes a big difference. If I do about 2 or more times in 5 seconds, I get more wound up, not less. I have had 2 therapists who also have rockers they use for relaxing.

Pacing forward, turning around, and then pacing back does not work for me--it gets me wound up. Instead, I slowly walk forward, then straight backward without turning around. I do this where I can walk backward without falling or tripping over stuff. It seems to give an outlet to my nervous energy. I don't do this around people!

What works for one of us may not work for another.