Using a stress ball--a foam or gel-filled ball that provides some resistence to pressure--can reduce stress and strengthen hand and wrist muscles. the benefits of stress reduction are immediate, but strengthening muscles is also a good way to prevent repetitive strain injury, carpal tunnel syndrome and other hand and. Other alternatives make for a looser stress ball, use fine play sand or split peas for the filler. for these looser fillers, you will not need to make a mixture. fill a balloon with the filler and cover with the second balloon for strength and to cover the knot. you can find any of these ingredients for this project at your local grocery store. A stress ball might look like the easiest item in the world to make. however, a lot of hard work and attention to detail goes into creating those unique shapes. the process works the same for any design, from apples to zebras. these are the steps in making a stress ball: molds in the shape of the stress ball are cleaned out and spr...