Helpful Tips For Stress - Part II

Part II - Relaxation

Relaxation can help enhance your overall well being. It is important to take time out for yourself every day. There are many forms of relaxation from breathing to exercising. Use the technique that works best for you. I will cover breathing, exercise, mediation & visualization.

Breathing

Poor breathing habits can cause one to feel anxious or nervous. One exercise I like to practice is the relaxing breath. To implement this technique you must practice abdominal breathing. To check if you are doing the exercise correct, place one hand on your chest and one hand on the abdomen. As you inhale, your hand on your abdomen should raise first, then the hand on your chest. Practice this until you get abdominal breathing down. Here are the steps tot he relaxing breath:

1. Sit, stand or lie comfortably with your back in a good posture.

2. Inhale through your nose and abdomen, count to 4 slowly during the inhale.

3. Hold for a count of 4.

4. Place your tongue between your front teeth and root of your mouth and exhale slowly (count to 4)

5. Repeat steps 1-4 for 5 minutes every day. You can do it for up to 20 minutes a day. You can spread it out to 4 times daily or whatever works best for you.

There are various exercise for breathing. Find what works best for you.

Exercise

Exercise helps to promote relaxation through the release of endorphins. Endorphins are chemicals that help to tell the brain to relax. Aerobic exercises such as walking, biking, or swimming are the best form of exercises for relaxation. Always consult with your physician before starting any exercise program.

Yoga is also a great form of non aerobic exercise for relief of stress. It helps to join the mind, body, and spirit as one. Many of the techniques in yoga induce relaxation. There are many forms of yoga, but is is best to take an introductory class to for beginners.

Meditation & Visualization

To practice meditation one has to have complete concentration on a mental image, a thought, a phrase, or inspirational passage. You do not think about anything else, but this one thing that you have chosen to focus on. Meditation can be achieved many ways including sitting, standing, mirror gazing, through hypnosis, and many other methods.

Visualization is a mediation technique through guided imagery. I like to think of it as positive day dreaming. Have you every visualized yourself 10 lbs lighter and how you would look and feel. Well who knew, that this was a form of visualization and it is goof for you! Positive visualization has been proven to have an healing effect on the body. Be careful, because negative visualizations can also have ill effects on the body. One thought to keep in mind with visualization, is to think happy thoughts!

References Balch, Phyllis A, "Prescription for Herbal Healing": 430-433