♪ Let's go walking in the world today ♪ ♪ No telling what'll come our way ♪ ♪ I think it's gonna be okay ♪ ♪ 'Cause you are here and I'm here ♪ ♪ And we all can say hello, hello, hello ♪ ♪ We got a ways to grow ♪ ♪ All these feelings deep inside ♪ ♪ In the end they're my friends ♪ ♪ And they just want say hello, hello, hello ♪ ♪ We got a ways to go ♪ ♪ You go your way and I'll go mine ♪ ♪ We'll cross paths in a matter of a time ♪ ♪ Someday soon, well, the sun may shine ♪ ♪ When we meet, we can smile, and we all can say ♪ ♪ Let's go walking in the world today ♪ ♪ No telling what'll come our way ♪ ♪ I think it's gonna be okay ♪ ♪ 'Cause you're here and I'm here ♪ ♪ And we all can say ♪ ♪ 'Cause you're here and I'm here ♪ ♪ And we all can say ♪ ♪ 'Cause you're here and I'm here ♪ ♪ And we all can say hello ♪ - Today's episode is "When I feel Afraid."

Hello, humans, welcome to my porch.

I'm so glad you're here.

Do you know what this is?

It's a crane.

In real life, it's taller than most buildings.

The people sit up here and this pulley goes up and down.

When I play with toys like this, I like to imagine that I'm the one driving, but in real life, I might be a little nervous if I had to drive one of these.

I might even feel too scared to try.

How about you, how would you feel?

We're not all scared of the same things, but we all feel fear.

It's perfectly normal.

Have you ever felt afraid, startled by a dog's bark, or worried about being alone in the dark?

When you feel afraid, where do you notice it in your body?

I feel it in my shoulders as they start to tense up.

I feel it in the pit of my stomach, and sometimes I notice that I get goosebumps on my arms.

Today's adventure is all about exploring what it means to feel afraid.

I made a list of things to do today that can help us take a closer look at our fear.

I like to start each day with a plan.

Visit the art studio, go on a hike, visit a real life crane like this, take a look in our mindfulness toolbox, and sing some songs along the way.

Since we're talking about our fear, and since so many of our fears happen inside our heads where no one else see or hear, I'd like to introduce you to an artist friend of mine who will help us imagine and see what my fear looks like.

If you're up for the adventure, follow me.

(lively music) (lively music continues) (music ends) Hi, Heidi.

- Oh, hey, Mark.

- [Mark] Wow, this looks so cool.

- Thanks.

- What are you making?

- I'm just making a scene with modeling clay.

- Oh, that's clay.

- Yeah, super soft.

- That's awesome.

- Yeah.

- I brought some friends with me today.

Everyone, Heidi's an artist.

Whenever I have big feelings, using my imagination and creating something is so helpful.

- I agree.

Mark, what feeling are you working with today?

I thought we might try and turn your feeling into a sock puppet.

- Oh, that's great.

We've been talking about fear.

I was hoping my friends could see and hear what mine sounds like.

- Okay, let's start with this.

How does it feel in your body when you're afraid?

- Let's see, when I feel afraid, I notice that I feel tense and maybe even a little cold.

- Okay, how about we use a blue sock?

Because to me blue is a really icy cold color, don't you think?

- Yeah, and sometimes when I feel afraid, I notice my eyes get big, but I feel small, like I want to hide.

- Okay, so maybe we make a teeny, tiny sock puppet and use these huge, giant ping pong balls for eyes.

- Oh, that's great.

- Does that work?

- That's perfect.

Sometimes I'm so afraid that I wanna scream and it feels like my whole body's filled with electricity.

- Oh, okay, I have some really fun fabric that could work for like electrified eyebrows, does that work?

- That's perfect!

- All right, let's make a fear puppet.

(bright music) (bright music continues) (bright music continues) (bright music continues) (bright music continues) (bright music continues) (bright music continues) (bright music continues) All right, here it is.

- Wow!

- Here's the fear puppet, what do you think?

- I love it!

Heidi, thank you so much.

- Yeah, you're welcome.

- I'm gonna take it with me on our hike through the woods.

- Cool.

- I'll see you later.

- Have fun, bye, you guys.

(bright music) (bright music continues) (music ends) (puppet squeals) - Where am I?

What, what is this place?

- Hi, Fear, I wanted my friends to be able to see you and hear you.

You seem worried.

Are you feeling afraid right now?

- Of course, I'm afraid, I'm always afraid.

Terrified, petrified, horrified, completely freaked out.

Severely alarmed, panic stricken.

- I can imagine.

But right now you're safe with me.

- Are you kidding me?

Look at these sharp branches.

Look at this prickly grass (grunts).

- I know what you mean.

Right now, I'm not feeling afraid.

But if it was nighttime... - Oh oh oh, if it was nighttime, I would tell you to run!

Hey, remember that time when you heard a noise and you got super freaked out and you jumped and you screamed and it was just a bunny?

But it could have been something dangerous!

- You're right, I do remember that.

You were working so hard to keep me safe.

- Yeah, because you should feel afraid in the woods at night.

You could get lost or trip or meet a bear or a moose or a wildebeest or, ooh, a really mean squirrel.

- Those are all really good points.

Did you know that our fear's actually a good thing?

When we feel scared, it's our body's way of telling us that we need to be careful and do something that will help keep us safe.

That's so helpful.

Even though I'm an adult, I still have thoughts like this, but I've learned that if I bring a flashlight and a friend, I don't feel as frightened.

I used to feel more afraid to hike during the daytime because I'm allergic to bees.

- Bees!

Where?

Oh no!

- It's okay, there's no bees now.

- Yeah, but you were stung before and it hurt and you swelled all up and we had to go to the hospital.

- Yes, and they gave me medicine and I learned something new about my body.

So that's actually a good thing.

- A good thing?

Something so scary can be good?

- Yeah, I learned that I need to be careful around bees.

I actually really like bees and wasps now.

- (gasps) Impossible!

- It's true.

Once I started gardening, I learned that bees help pollinate all of the flowers, and wasps, they eat all of the bugs that try to eat my plants.

They're both so helpful.

I also learned how to be more careful when I'm around them.

Actually, I wrote a little song about this.

(upbeat guitar music) ♪ I saw a little bee buzzing by ♪ ♪ If it stings me, I'm gonna cry ♪ ♪ I'm a little bit scared 'cause I'm not prepared ♪ ♪ And I'm wondering what to do ♪ ♪ I'm wondering what to do ♪ And I thought to myself, "Who better to ask than the bee?"

So I asked the bee, "What should I do so I don't get stung?

Because honestly, I'm a little bit scared of you."

And the bee laughed, 'cause I'm so much bigger than the bee and the bee said the following.

(Mark buzzing) And luckily I understood bee.

'Cause if I didn't understand bee, I might have gotten scared.

I might have run, I might have swung my arms and gotten stung!

This is what she said.

♪ She said, "There's so many babies in the hive ♪ ♪ Honey is what keeps them alive ♪ ♪ So in the next hour, I need to find a flower ♪ ♪ Take a little nectar home ♪ ♪ You'll be fine if you leave me alone" ♪ So that's what I did.

Now when I see a bee or a wasp, I still feel afraid, but I've practiced keeping my body still and calming down.

Sometimes when we see a bee, we may want to swat at it or make big, fast movements, but a bee doesn't actually want to sting us.

Swatting and big, fast movements can look like a threat to a tiny, little insect.

They sting to protect themselves.

Here's what I've learned to do instead.

Now when I see a bee, I freeze and I take a deep breath in like I'm smelling a beautiful flower.

Then I breathe out like I'm gently blowing bubbles.

As I breathe, I remind myself that we need bees, and if I stay calm, I'm much less likely to get stung.

You hear that?

(bees buzzing) I think there might be some bees up there.

(bees buzzing) If you're up for it, we can practice breathing this way now.

First, let's take a deep breath in like we're smelling a beautiful flower, (Mark inhales deeply) and when you're ready, we can gently breathe out like we're blowing bubbles through a bubble wand.

(Mark blowing gently) Notice how that feels in your body.

If you're feeling more calm, this could be helpful to use when you're dealing with your fear.

You could even teach your friends how to do this.

Let's take a moment and check in with ourselves.

Sometimes just listening to someone talk about their fears, especially something that can be as scary as bees, can bring up feelings of fear in our own bodies.

This can look like wiggly, nervous energy, and it's hard to sit still, or it could look like all of a sudden you're getting very, very sleepy and you don't know why.

Both of these are completely normal, and both of these are your body's way of trying to keep you safe.

It's your body's way of saying, "I'm ready to run, to get away from danger," or "I'm ready to stay very, very still so danger can't find me."

When you feel this way, it might be helpful to shake out your arms and legs.

Remember this?

I think I might feel afraid if I were really driving one of these.

You're so high in the sky.

I wonder what an actual crane operator feels when they're driving one of these.

Let's go find out.

(bright music) - Hi.

- Hey, Sarah.

- Good morning, Mark.

- Good morning.

I brought some of my friends here to meet you.

- Good morning!

- Wow, that crane is so much bigger than my toy.

Do you go all the way to the top?

- [Sarah] Sure do.

- [Mark] Oh my goodness.

How tall is it?

- That one is 90 feet.

- I know that's the training crane.

How tall is the crane that you're currently working on?

- The one I'm working on is 260 foot.

- That's over twice as tall!

Do you ever feel afraid or nervous climbing up that?

- I was at first.

It took a little while, but you get used to it.

- I know if I had to climb all the way up there and operate that, I might feel a little bit scared.

I bet I could work through it, though.

Do you think I could climb up there with you?

- I sure do.

- For me, when I'm feeling afraid or nervous, I find it helpful to find someone I trust and talk to them about it.

What do you do?

- I have a best friend I can talk to about my problems and fears as well.

- What kind of things do you talk to them about?

- I'm afraid of a lot of normal things, but I'm actually a little bit more nervous talking on camera with your friends here than I am to climb up that thing.

- Oh my goodness, that's really helpful for me to hear.

A lot of people are afraid of talking in public and talking on camera and a lot of people are afraid of heights, and today we have one of both.

And I think I'm finally ready to do this.

- All right, let's go.

- (inhales deeply and exhales gently) Okay, I'm ready.

- [Sarah] You got this.

- Okay, I got my hard hat, I got my safety gear, and I'm ready to go.

Let's do this, come on.

It's not as scary as I thought it was gonna be.

- Okay, Mark, take it slow.

This thing is huge!

- I'm going up the second ladder.

Yeah, I definitely feel afraid, and it's reminding me to be careful.

- Okay, that was fun.

Time to go down now.

Mark?

Mark!

Mark!

- Okay, I'm at the top of the third ladder.

It felt very similar to climbing the first two, except my heart was beating a lot faster and I had to pause to take some deep breaths.

But the view is amazing.

- Oh, this is so high.

Don't slip!

- Oh my goodness, wow!

I notice my arms feel shaky and weak until I remember to take a deep breath.

- (gasping) We did it!

- Wow, that view!

(Fear screams) It's amazing!

(bright music) Wow.

(bright music) (bright music continues) (bright music continues) Whoo, Sarah, thank you so much for showing us how you operate that crane.

You are so brave.

- Oh, thank you, I'm glad you could make it out today.

And you're pretty brave yourself, too, for going up there.

- Well, thanks for saying that.

It was so good to see you.

- All right, we'll see you next time.

- Bye!

- Bye!

- When I was younger, I really wanted my fear to go away, but I've learned that sometimes no matter how hard I try, I can't force it away.

I've learned that I actually need my fear.

- (gasps) You need me?

- Oh hi, Fear.

Yeah, I need you.

But sometimes you overreact a little and it's not very helpful.

- I was worried about that.

- Yeah, remember how loud you were yelling when I was up on the ladder?

- Well, yeah, because it was terrifying.

- Yes, and you told me how high it was, so I knew I had to be careful and that helped keep me safe when I was on the ladder.

But you're right, sometimes our fear can feel too big.

Do you ever feel that way?

Do you ever feel like your fear is just getting too big?

I found that if I care for my fear instead of ignoring it or pushing it down, I can actually start to feel a little more calm.

Caring for your fear can look like doing lots of things.

What do you like to do whenever you feel afraid?

- When I feel afraid, I snuggle my panda and she makes me feel better.

- I just find something that I like and I hug it really tight and I like to talk about it with my mom.

- I snuggle with someone.

- [Interviewer] What helps you?

- My stuffies.

- When I feel afraid, I be brave and take deep breaths.

- Thanks for sharing.

All of these things begin with a very important step, admitting that we do feel afraid.

Sometimes it can be scary just to admit that we're afraid.

Did you know that's what bravery is?

Being brave means being afraid and deciding to do something anyway.

Like speaking up for a friend who's being bullied or volunteering to read out loud in school.

Both of those are scary, but if you do them anyway, that's brave.

Did you know birds are brave?

They are.

We could actually learn a lot about bravery from birds.

Here's a song I like to sing whenever I have to do something that I'm afraid of.

♪ Scared, but I'm doing it anyway ♪ ♪ Scared, but I'm still gonna try ♪ ♪ Scared, but I'm doing it and once I'm through with it ♪ ♪ I'm gonna know how to fly ♪ ♪ Little bird safe in the nest ♪ ♪ Mama bird's trying her best ♪ ♪ It might look like a push, it might look like a shove ♪ ♪ But she's doing it all out of love ♪ ♪ Scared, but I'm doing it anyway ♪ ♪ Scared, but I'm still gonna try ♪ ♪ Scared, but I'm doing it and once I'm through with it ♪ ♪ I'm gonna know how to fly ♪ (bird tweeting) (rain falling gentle) (thunder rolling) I want to show you something.

This is my mindfulness toolbox.

I've had it a long time.

It's got some dents and scratches on it.

I use it a lot.

Mindfulness is a tool we can use to help us work with our big feelings like fear.

Sometimes mindfulness can even help us turn down the volume on our big feelings.

If you're up for it, we can try a mindfulness practice right now.

All we need for this is our imaginations.

Ready?

Here we go.

(chimes tinkling) Imagine that you are a mountain.

Settle into how it feels to be mighty, solid.

Notice how safe you are.

Nothing can harm you.

Nothing.

If it feels right, notice all of your surroundings.

Are there trees growing at your base?

What wildlife have made you their home?

You don't have to take care of them, just be.

Notice the sea and the waves that crash into you.

Yet you remain strong and still.

Notice the sky above you.

Like your emotions, the sky is not part of you, it's just above you and around you.

You are the mountain.

Your emotions are the weather.

It could be clouds, rain, snow, a cool breeze.

If you're willing, imagine a storm in the distance.

Giant clouds, lightning, strong wind.

As the storm approaches, the wildlife runs and hides, and yet you stay completely still.

The wind blows, the rain pours down, and the lightning crashes, but you, you don't change.

Then the storm leaves, but you are still here.

You are not the storm.

Your true identity, the part of you that makes you uniquely you, is not lost.

It remains present, grounded.

You are still you.

What did you notice?

How did that feel in your body?

- Mark, Mark, (Fear panting) I feel, I feel my heart racing just a little bit slower now.

- Good!

- Yeah.

- However you're feeling is great as long as you're being honest.

- Mark, can I be honest with you?

- Of course.

- Well, you've been talking about me, Fear, a lot, and it just feels like you might not like me very much.

Like I try to be calm, it's just I'm always so worried something bad might happen.

- Oh, Fear, I'm so sorry.

I actually love my fear.

Feeling afraid is part of being human.

It's perfectly normal.

- Oh, I'm so glad you said that, because honestly, I don't know what I'd do without you.

- The only thing that shouldn't feel normal about being afraid is feeling embarrassed or ashamed to talk about it.

- Yes!

Ah, I just want you to be safe, Mark.

Hey, I'll be back when you need me.

- If we can talk about our fear with a trusted adult, with our friends and family, then maybe our fear can start to feel just a little less scary.

But whatever you're feeling, there's something I need you to remember.

So look here.

In fact, let's pretend that we can see each other and I'll put these on so I can see you better.

You, my friend, exactly the way you're feeling right now, are completely awesome.

Bye for now.

Hi, I'm Mark.

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And remember, whatever you decide to do, I think you're awesome.

Thanks for watching.

♪ May I feel contented and safe ♪ ♪ May I feel protected and pleased ♪ ♪ And may my body support me with strength ♪ ♪ And may my life unfold like a blossom of peace ♪ ♪ May my life unfold like a blossom of peace ♪ ♪ May I see in you what I hope to see in me ♪ ♪ Hunger for the truth and the right to be free ♪ ♪ And may I one day come to understand ♪ ♪ We're all just children doing the best we can ♪ ♪ We're all just children doing best we can ♪ ♪ May you feel contented and safe ♪ ♪ May you feel protected and pleased ♪ ♪ And may your body support you with strength ♪ ♪ And may your live unfold like a blossom of peace ♪ ♪ May your live unfold like a blossom of peace ♪ ♪ I am the mountain, I am the open sky ♪ ♪ Clouds of emotion gonna drift on by ♪ ♪ Sometimes they fall just like that falling rain ♪ ♪ But I ain't worried, child, 'cause love shall remain ♪ ♪ No, I ain't worried 'cause love shall remain ♪ ♪ May we feel contented and safe ♪ ♪ May we feel protected and pleased ♪ ♪ And may our bodies support us with strength ♪ ♪ And may our lives unfold like a blossom of peace ♪ ♪ May our lives unfold like a blossom of peace ♪ ♪ May our lives unfold like a blossom of peace ♪ (bright music)