In today’s fast-paced life, where you are running from place to place, trying to meet deadlines and coping with the growing demands of your job and home, relaxation has indeed become a luxury few can afford. However, your mind and body need occasional bouts of rest to be able to perform well. What better way to rest than to simply learn a few relaxation techniques. These are simple, can be done anywhere and have the desired result.
There are exercises to cure you of your stiff muscles or if you’ve been working too long on a computer and your eyes are hurting because of the strain, you can relax those too. Here’s how to:
1. Relax your eyes
* Sit with your head squarely on your shoulders and widen your eyes as much as you can.
* Keep your head still and raise your eyes to look towards the ceiling. Hold this position for a slow count of 5.
* Now roll your eyes slowly round to your right. Focus on something and hold it for a slow count of 5.
* Keeping your head still, roll your eyes down, focus and hold for a slow count of 5.
* Now roll your eyes to the left, focus and hold for a slow count of 5.
* Roll your eyes upwards again and repeat in the other direction.
* Finally close your eyes and let your head and shoulders relax
Here is another relaxation exercise to soothe all those areas of your body which get tense.
First, close your eyes and quieten your body and mind. Focus on different parts of your body.
2. Shoulders:
* Lift your shoulders. When you feel the muscles really tense hold the position for five seconds and then release.
* Pull the shoulders down and hold for five seconds and release.
* Now focus on the right arm.
* Bend the arm back at the elbow until the biceps feels tense, hold for five seconds and release.
3. Buttocks: Clench your muscles. Hold and then release.
4. Abdomen: Pull in the muscles as tightly as possible. Hold then release.
5. Neck:
* Tilt the head forward, feeling tension on the back of the neck.
* Hold then release.
* Tilt the head to the left, feeling tension on the right.
* Hold then release.
* Do the same for the right side.
6. Fists:
* Clench your fist.
* Hold then release.
* Stretch your fingers and thumbs out.
* Hold then release.
7. Legs:
* Point your toes away from your body.
* Feel the thigh muscles.
* Stretch them.
* Hold, then release.
* Bend the foot in at the ankle until the calf is tense.
* Hold then release.
* Curl the toes and arch the foot.
* Hold then release.
8. Face:
* Clench your jaw as tightly as possible.
* Hold, then release.
* Smile broadly.
* Hold then release.
* Close the eyes tightly.
* Hold, then release.
* Raise the eyebrows.
* Hold, then release.
While relaxing, let your body relax. Breathe slowly, taking shallow breaths from the abdomen. Think of a pleasant experience or an event in your life that makes you feel good. Imagine yourself walking along the beach, water lapping around your ankles and your feet gently sinking in the sand. You are feeling warm and relaxed. Stay with that feeling and image for five minutes. Open your eyes and stretch. Spend a few quiet minutes simply enjoying the feeling of calm.
Uncategorized | 15.07.2008 16:01 | Comments Off
Not only does the kind of food you eat make a difference but also the way you eat it. Here’s how you can improve your eating habits and get rid of your stress :
* Eat a variety of foods: The greater the variety in your diet, the less the likelihood of a deficiency or an excess of any single nutrient.
* Eat slowly: Don’t try to gobble your food - it will only make your stomach do more work and result in indigestion. Slow eating will help you digest food better and avoid weight gain.
* Eat regularly: Do not eat just because you are bored or have no time for anything else. Make eating a pleasurable activity.
* Eat frequent meals: Eat small and frequent meals if you are stressed.
* Don’t eat if you are angry: Rather, communicate/share your feelings. When you are tired or angry, divert your mind, go take a bath, drink lemon juice. Only once you feel better, go and eat your meal.
* Don’t eat while watching TV: Or reading, or else you will tend to overeat.
* Avoid fats: Too much of fat can lead to heart diseases. Your diet should only contain 30 per cent fat.
* Avoid sugar: Especially if you are under stress. It provides nothing but calories.
* Avoid salt: No more than 5gms must be taken per day. Excessive salt intake is a major health hazard for people with high blood pressure.
* Take vitamins and mineral supplements: When you are under stress you require more of all the vitamins and minerals, especially vitamin B. Deficiencies in the vitamin B, C and calcium/magnesium have been linked to stress-related symptoms such as insomnia, irritability, depression and fatigue.
You are what you eat, may be an old adage but it couldn’t be nearer to the truth. Follow these eating habits and say bye to stress.
Uncategorized | 15.07.2008 15:57 | Comments Off
A commonly used technique to relax is Progressive relaxation. Developed by Edmond Jacobson, it is based on the premise that the body responds to anxiety and stress with muscle tension. This bodily tension increases the subjective experience of anxiety. It is only when the muscles relax that anxiety reduces.
Progressive relaxation has proved to be very effective in the treatment of muscular tension, anxiety, insomnia, fatigue, irritable bowels, muscle spasms, neck and back pain, high blood pressure, mild phobias and stuttering.
1. Method of Progressive Muscular Relaxation
In progressive relaxation, you first tense and then relax each group of muscles. This helps focus attention on the feeling of tension in the body. The higher your awareness of the tension, the easier it is to control it. Basically, this exercise involves squeezing a particular muscle group firmly and maintaining tension for five to seven seconds. When you release the tension do it quickly so that the muscles relax immediately and you are easily able to differentiate between the feeling of relaxation and tension.
It is important to remember that only one specific muscle group at a time should be tensed - the rest of the body should remain in a relaxed position. Begin with relaxing your hands, then relax your arms and then your shoulders, and so on, until your entire body is relaxed. This exercise should be practiced twice a day while sitting in a comfortable armchair with a high back, or lying down on a flat surface on a thin mattress. Wear loose clothing.
2. Steps to do Progressive Muscular Relaxation
Step 1: Take a comfortable position and relax. Now, clench your right fist tighter and tighter, studying the tension as you do so. Keep it clenched and notice the tension in your fist, hand and forearm. Now relax. Feel the looseness in your right hand and note the contrast with its earlier tension. < > Repeat this procedure with your right fist, remaining constantly aware of the state of tension and its easing. Repeat with your left fist, then both fists together.
Step 2: Now bend your elbows and tense your biceps. Tense them as hard as you can and observe the feeling of tautness. Relax, and straighten out your arms. Let the relaxation develop and feel the difference.
Step 3: Next, wrinkle your forehead as much as you can. Then let it relax. Imagine your entire forehead and scalp becoming smooth and at rest. Now frown and notice the strain spreading all over your forehead. Let go. Allow your brow to become smooth again. Close your eyes now. Close them tighter and feel the tension.
Step 4: Now tighten your jaw by pressing the teeth together. Feel the tension and then slowly relax your jaw. When the jaw is relaxed, your lips will be slightly parted. Observe the contrast between tension and relaxation. Now press your tongue against the roof of your mouth. Feel the ache in the back of your mouth. Relax.
Step 5: Press your lips now. Notice that your forehead, scalp, eyes, jaw, tongue and lips are now relaxed. Press your head back as far as it can comfortably go and observe the tension in your neck. Roll it to the right, then to the left and feel the changing locus of stress. Straighten your head and bring it forward. Press your chin against your chest. Feel the tension in your throat, and in the back of your neck. Relax, allowing your head to return to a comfortable position. Allow the feeling of relaxation to deepen.
Step 6: Now shrug your shoulders. Keep the tension as you hunch your head down between your shoulders. Relax your shoulders.
Step 7: Let your entire body relax. Feel the comfort and the heaviness. Breathe in and fill your lungs completely. Hold your breath. Observe the tension. Now exhale, let your chest loosen, and the air hiss out. Continue relaxing, letting your breath come freely and gently. Repeat this several times. and feel the tension draining from your body as you exhale. Next, tighten your stomach. Breathe deeply into your stomach. Hold, and relax. Observe the contrast to the earlier tension as the air rushes out. Now arch your back without straining. Keep the rest of your body as relaxed as possible. Focus on the tension in your lower back. Now relax, deeper and deeper.
Step 8: Tighten your buttocks and thighs. Flex your thighs by pressing down your heels as hard as you can. Relax and feel the difference. Now curl your toes downwards, tensing your calves. Study the tension; then relax. Now bend your toes toward your face, creating tension in your shins. Relax again.
Step 9: Feel the heaviness in your lower body as the sense of relaxation deepens. Relax your feet, ankles, calves, shins, knees, thighs and buttocks. Now let the relaxation spread to your stomach, lower back and chest. Let go more and more. Experience the relaxation deepening in your shoulders, arms and hands. Notice the feeling of looseness and relaxation in your neck, jaws and facial muscles.
Step 10: You are completely relaxed now. Keep lying down. Do not move. Keep your eyes closed and enjoy this peaceful experience. After a few minutes tell yourself. ‘When I get up I’ll be fresh and alert.’ Then count slowly from one to three and then from three to one. Now slowly open your eyes and turn over on your side. Keep lying down for a few more minutes, then slowly sit up with the support of your arm. It is advisable to get up very slowly after a tension-relaxation exercise, so that the body can gradually readjust to the pressure of work. If you get up too suddenly, you may feel slightly dizzy, light-headed or even nauseated, due to the sudden load on the bodily system, which has slowed down in the process of relaxation.
3. A quicker way of achieving deep muscle relaxation
It usually requires four to five sessions to master relaxation techniques and initially you may need some professional guidance too. However, it is a take-home therapy, and once learnt, can be easily self-administered. All you need is adequate motivation and commitment to benefit from this therapy. Here whole muscle groups are simultaneously tensed and then relaxed. As before, repeat each procedure at least once, tensing each muscle group from five to seven seconds and then relaxing them for twenty to thirty seconds. Remember to observe the contrast between the sensations of tension and relaxation.
Step 1: Fold both your hands into tight fists. Tighten the biceps and forearms. Hold on for a few seconds. Relax.
Step 2: Wrinkle your forehead. At the same time, push your head as far back as possible. Roll it towards the right and then towards the left, then bring it back. Now tense up all your facial muscles - press your eyes hard, wrinkle your forehead, tighten your jaws, tongue pressing the roof of the mouth. Stay in this position for a few seconds, then relax.
Step 3: Arch your back as you take a deep breath. Hold. Relax. Take a deep breath, pressing out stomach. Hold. Relax.
Step 4: Pull your feet and toes up towards the face. Hold. Relax. Now push your feet and toes down, tightening the calves, thighs and buttocks. Hold for a few seconds, then relax. Relaxation is a skill which all of you can master with sufficient practice and persistence. It is not only useful for symptom reduction, but goes a long way in improving the overall quality of your lives — provided it becomes a part of your everyday routine. Meditation music is also good option.
Uncategorized | 15.07.2008 15:55 | Comments Off