How to make a stress ball
 

Stress balls are a great tool to fidget with when you feel anxious or overwhelmed. They can be used when you're studying for exams or trying to keep your hands busy to prevent self-destructive behaviors. With just a few household objects, you can make your own.

Materials needed:

Balloons (water balloons are not suitable)
Flour or uncooked rice
A funnel
A spoon or a measuring cup
Scissors
A sharpie (optional)
A pencil, straw, or paintbrush
A water bottle (optional)

Note: This can also be done with dry chickpeas, other types of beans, play-doh, or any other materials you have. Remember that the bigger the material, the less you will be able to fit in the balloon. You will be able to fit more rice than beans in a balloon, for instance.

Step one: Choose your balloon and stretch it out a little bit to prepare it to hold your flour or rice.

Step two: Measure out the amount of flour or rice. You'll need half a cup of flour, or a third of a cup of rice. If you are unable to measure, you can estimate as you fill the balloon.

Step three: Take your chosen balloon and attach it to the funnel. Hold the tip of the balloon to the bottom of the funnel and carefully pour in your chosen material. Use a pencil, straw, or handle of a paintbrush to help push it down if it gets caught in the funnel. Fill the balloon as much as you can before you get to the narrow part that is used to tie it.

Step four: Remove the balloon from the funnel and try to pinch the top of the balloon to remove as much air as you can. You will feel excess air later on if you do not remove it, but this takes practice and it might take you a few tries.

Alternatively, put the measured amount of rice or flour into a dry water bottle. Blow up the balloon, then twist the ending without tying it. Stretch the ending over the opening of the water bottle, then turn the water bottle upside down and slowly untwist the balloon. The contents will fall into the balloon. Due to the air, this method is thought to make more room for your material. Once the material is in the balloon, squeeze out the excess air.

Step five: Tie the balloon and pull the knot tightly. Then, cut off the extra balloon at the top.

Step six: Use your sharpie to draw or write anything you'd like on it.

Here is a video representation of the steps above.

Making your own stress ball is a crafty way to personalize one of your coping skills. You can make them out of a lot of different materials, so experiment to find the texture that you like most. This is a relatively inexpensive craft, so it is perfect to give to a friend or to make many for yourself.