Were you blown away by the images of Earth shared by the Artemis II astronauts?
When they looked back at Earth, they didn’t see differences, conflicts, or borders — just one small, beautiful planet.
Many astronauts experience this powerful shift in perspective, sometimes called the Overview Effect.
This is similar to a common mindfulness practice involving perspective-taking. When you get hyper-focused on a stressful situation, it can help to take a step back and look at the bigger picture.
We may not be able to travel into space, but we can practice zooming out.
Introduce the Overview Effect
Whether you are working with young children, teens, or adults, make perspective-taking tangible rather than abstract. Show a few images of Earth from Artemis II’s vantage point and ask, “What does it feel like to look at the planet this way?”
Point out that every single one of us was present for that photo.
The astronauts were impacted by seeing Earth this way. They experienced feelings of awe and gratitude for being part of our shared experience on Planet Earth. They also had a lot of pressure on them because this was the first mission to the Moon in over 50 years! As part of their preparation, they practiced self-regulation and stress management skills.
Reflect: Were the astronauts ever nervous or scared?
Astronauts openly acknowledge that fear is a natural part of their job that they train for extensively.
Whether you are flying to the Moon or navigating everyday life, when things feel overwhelming there are ways to take back some control. You can start by using your mind-body connection.
Try a few simple mind-body practices to manage stress and anxiety:
- Shaking, swaying, or rocking can release tension and help you feel more grounded
- Gentle stretches — like lunges or a figure-four stretch — can reduce stress and clear your mind
- Hugging in with crossed arms can help you feel safe
Do you feel more settled or grounded after these practices?
Think of a situation that feels stressful
Bring to mind something that feels stressful right now — you don’t need to share it out loud.
On a scale of 1–10, how stressful does it feel?
With younger children, think of a situation as a group (like moving to a new grade next year) and gauge how scary or hard it feels.
Get comfortable so you can practice zooming out.
Zoom out
Zoom out from your own experience with this situation:
- Have other people gone through something like this before?
- Knowing that they probably have, does this help you feel less alone or make it feel a little less stressful?
Look at the situation from the future:
Even though this feels like a big deal right now, imagine one year from today.
- What could be different?
- What could change?
If this is hard to picture, that’s okay. Your brain is practicing a new way of thinking.
Take a moment to stretch after this practice. You can talk, write, or draw about what it was like to zoom out.
When I tried this activity in juvenile services, one youth shared, “I’m going to lie down with my legs up and think about a problem. I can breathe and think about what can change.” Another said, “That made me realize this is no big deal.”
Check in and send off
How can the perspective of the Artemis II team and the Overview Effect support you when you are struggling? Does zooming out from a situation in your life feel helpful? Try this activity anytime you feel stressed by this situation. You don’t have to figure it all out today.
Sometimes the first step is just remembering that you can zoom out – even for just a moment.