20 Stress-Relief Gifts for the Anxious Person in Your Life

The inability to fully unwind and let go of stress is almost universal these days, especially during one of the most stressful times of the year — the holiday season. And sometimes, we all just need a nudge to help us decompress and take a deep breath. This nudge can be as simple as a stress-relieving gift that your giftee would not buy for themselves. Because aren’t those the kinds of gifts we want to receive anyway?

We went on our own mission to find some unique yet comforting gifts that anyone on your list would be happy to receive. From sleep aids and puzzles, to massage cushions and essential oils, we’ve gathered a wide range of gifts designed to de-stress and help us all take a breath and relax.

Looking for even more gifts? Check out our Gift Edit hub to find more (or browse for presents for yourself).

Stress Relief Gifts

It’s been proven that puzzles help release dopamine in your brain every time you solve a section, which leads to greater stress relief overall. So why not pick up a gorgeous print-turned-puzzle to get your mind off your worries AND end up with a pretty picture in the end?

Another great way to relieve stress is to practice mindfulness, and these Allura & Arcia cards can help you get there. These cards offer 52 exercises for mindfulness, meditation, anxiety relief, stress management, self-care, relaxation, and more. Whether you space these out once a week or zoom through them daily, you can set your own pace when it comes to calming your mind with these soothing exercise cards.

This sound machine is the perfect tool for easing in and out of sleep in the most relaxing way possible. It acts as both a white noise machine with nature sounds to help you fall asleep, as well as a gentle sunrise alarm to delicately wake you up from your slumber.

If you’re someone who instantly relaxes when a fire is going, but you don’t want to have to go to the trouble of preparing a fireplace or fire pit (or if you don’t have access to either), then the Geo Table Top Fire Bowl is the perfect compromise. This smoke-free fire option is fueled by gel, so you won’t have to worry about creating a smoky environment while you bask in the light of these cozy flames.

Similarly to solving puzzles, using both hands and having your full attention on a task like crocheting can help take your mind off your troubles. So this Crochetta Crochet Kit for Beginners is a great way to learn a new skill that doubles as a stress reliever. This kit will have you creating four different plant pot designs that can then go on to be decor or even gifts themselves.

This sleep mask will have you snoozing at the height of luxury. This cloud-like mask is silky-smooth and offers a full blackout design. The head strap is fully adjustable, and it’s 100% washable.

Lavender is proven to have calming qualities, and it's a common ingredient in sleep sprays or massage lotions. So it only makes sense to combine that soothing scent with the warm relaxation a candle provides. This scent not only includes the scent of Ojai’s lavender farms, but it also channels the orange groves and mountains found in the area.

This drowsy decaf is for all the coffee-lovers who lament the fact they can’t enjoy a cup of Joe for a night cap — until now! The Sleeptime SuperLatte is a great alternative to melatonin, using botanical sleep aids like valerian, passionflower, hops, adaptogens, and L-theanine to help you fall (and stay) asleep without the grogginess in the morning.

For those who suffer from aches and pains that a soak in the tub just can’t fix, having a Theragun on hand can make all the difference. This percussive massager is designed to target hard-to-reach spots on your back and to treat both larger muscles as well as tender and sensitive areas.

For those who don’t want to inject any sleepytime aids, essential oils can be just as effective. This pillow mist is infused with organic lavender, organic ylang-ylang, cedarwood, ho wood, and lemon to combine to create a truly relaxing scent designed to help you fall asleep. Simply spray on your pillow right before bed, and let the aroma take you away to dreamland.

If you’ve ever wanted your home to embody the feeling of a spa, the Halo XL Humidifier & Diffuser is the perfect place to start. This two-in-one humidifier and diffuser combo is the perfect aromatherapy tool and is perfect for large spaces. It comes with eight essential oils, including lavender, orange, eucalyptus, lemongrass, peppermint, cedar wood, tea tree, and frankincense.

The Drift Sandscape Kinective Meditation Sand Table doubles as a chic statement piece for your home decor and a meditation app. You can choose from hundreds of patterns, colors, and speed options to dance within the bowl and to suit your relaxation needs.

For those who are craving a nice warm hug, weighted blankets are the way to go. A gentle pressure causes your body to feel calm and comforted, and the fluffy Sung Crustal Weighted Blanket achieves this with flying colors. It comes in various weights, so make sure to choose one that’s up to 10% of your (or the gift receiver’s) body weight.

This diffuser takes scent plug-ins to a whole new level. Not only is it equipped with fresh scents that help your space smell clean as well as help relax you, but you can also control the diffuser with an app on your phone. You can adjust the fragrance strength, as well as set up timers to schedule the scents with your day.

This gift totally embodies the “Treat Yourself” ethos. While a bit of a splurge, you can enjoy a shiatsu massage sitting up, lying down, and everywhere in between. Its smartscan technology is able to automatically adjust to your height for a custom neck and shoulder massage — it's truly designed to work out all the stress the body holds onto.

If a stress ball isn’t quite cutting it, why not try out a stress pillow? This knot design is gently weighted and activates pressure points to relieve stress. You can squash with your hands or hug the pillow close to release tension, and it can also double as a decorative pillow, depending on which size you prefer.

Sometimes there’s nothing quite like a luxurious bath to help you unwind, and receiving this Dr. Teal’s Epsom Salt Lavender gift set is the perfect excuse to draw one up. This set comes with an epsom salt soaking solution, foaming bath soap, body wash, moisturizing bath and body oil, and a sleeping spray for your pillow. Used all together, this set will send you on your way to relaxation from your tub to your bed for a night of restful sleep.

Anthropologie has upped the game when it comes to advent calendars, with its George & Viv calendar offering $350 worth of beauty products. Featuring brands such as Supergoop!, Sunday Riley, Tocca, and more, this calendar offers the perfect opportunity to test out some of the most popular products on the market.

If clutter — specifically book clutter — is the bane of your existence, it might be time to upgrade to a Kindle. The Kindle Paperwhite comes in both 8GB and 16GB storage sizes, and hosts up to 10 weeks of battery life, so you can read almost countless books for weeks on end to your heart’s content — all without lugging around heavy tomes.

If working your desk job leads to aches and pains in your neck and back, MoChushle’s Shiatsu Neck Back Massager Pillow might be your saving grace. This heat-activated pillow straps to your chair to target any pain points that come with your day with its four massage nodes. You can fully customize your massage, and it even promotes blood circulation.