Last updated: Thursday, September 28, 2006 | 9 Views
“There is no need to go to India or anywhere else to find peace. You will find that deep place of silence right in your room, your garden or even your bathtub.”
- Elisabeth Kubler-Ross
Sometimes in the course of a day, we build up stress and anxiety. These are normal conditions and what we do about them to de-stress could change the course of our day and the stress level we experience.
So, we must understand that periods of relaxation are not a waste of time. We need breaks to quell stress, lower inhibiting hormone levels, clear out distractions and extend energy reserves. A little relaxation also improves attention and concentration.
Research by noted psychobiologist Ernest L. Rossi, in private practice in Los Osos, Calif., and others suggests that our bodies benefit most from a 20-minute reprieve about every one and a half to two hours. If we do not allow ourselves this recovery time, our performance will begin to deteriorate, and we will start to feel worn down. And the losses may not be immediately evident, but they build up, depleting brain and body and making us agitated, aggressive, hypersensitive or depressed.
And you don’t have to retreat to a tropical paradise to revitalize your life and de-stress yourself, the best active relaxation is a short mental vacation.
So, find a comfortable sitting position and close your eyes, breathe calmly and regularly, and give your mind one of this well-deserved mental vacations recommended by Marc Salem:
If you have 5 minutes:
Try the gravity-free workout. Eyes open or closed, visualize your body taking up a larger and larger space, until it seems to float away. It’ll feel as if you’re in a hot-air balloon, without the view.
If you have 10 minutes:
Think of nothing. This is hard at first. The trick is to think of a nonsense syllable (like “smo”) over and over again, and let nothing else enter your mind. Try this, and after 10 minutes, you’ll feel refreshed.
If you have 3 hours:
Play hooky, using technology. Let the sheer depth of the Internet carry you away - news, music, women, men, ancient Icelandic customs, whatever. The goal is to enter a world outside yourself so you can mentally shut down.
“Mental movies” can also quickly lead to moments of deep relaxation. Here, try this mind game:
Close your eyes. Breathe calmly and regularly. In your mind, picture a particularly relaxing moment. Choose any scene you want, such as a quiet afternoon walk on a beach. During this imagined trip, think of as many sensations as possible–feel the soft sand between your toes, smell the salty air, hear the surf, enjoy the warmth of the sun on your face.
To make your mental movies most effective, when you close your eyes think of a phrase to initiate the exercise each time, such as “I’m now going on vacation.” Then focus all your attention on your breathing. When you begin to breathe in and out, fully expand and contract your lungs: inhale slowly for six seconds, hold the air for three seconds and exhale for six seconds. To help control your breathing, imagine there is a candle in front of you; you are not trying to blow it out but simply to make the flame flicker. Do this exercise a second time and take note of the letting go you begin to feel.
If you can repeat this exercise numerous times, your epinephrine levels will subside and feelings of stress and anxiety should taper off. Then you can really enjoy your mental vacation, whether you are at the beach or on a mountaintop. When you want to end the exercise, be sure to return to your surroundings as gently as possible. Try mildly contracting all your body muscles while slowly opening your eyes.
Use this exercise at any time you desire. The best time to beat stress is before it has a chance to take hold. Use it before entering those stressful periods of the day or during a highly stressful period, and since it only takes a few minutes excuse yourself and practice it wherever you can (in the outdoors, a quiet spot, or even in the restroom). Once you practice this exercise, you will be able to relax in just about a minute.
So, take a break and treat yourself with a mental vacation!
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“[...] think of a nonsense syllable [...]” is essentially Trancendental Meditation without the fluff.
[...] По материалам статьи: Take Mental Vacations Перевод: Гончарова Светлана, Пермяков Александр Источник: MedBlog.Ru [...]
[...] 28. Get away for some time. A well-deserved vacation does wonders for your biological clock. Take advantage of any opportunity to go on vacation in order to release some of your stress. Going somewhere tropical also brings you more in tune with nature and the simple life another reason why Latinos live longer. [...]
[...] Read more about how to do mind relaxation here. [...]
[...] 18. Don’t be afraid to take vacations. Too much to do at work? Add another task to your list: take a vacation and relax. People can’t operate at full throttle on the job day after day. When you do get away, leave your work cell phone and BlackBerry at home. You need to recharge so you can be at your peak when you get back to work. [...]
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