How to Destress

By following these five simple instructions you can learn simple techniques that will enable you to destress in ten minutes.  You might first want to go outside and get some fresh air and try to do your destressing there but if not you can do these exercises anywhere you are.

1. Gentle breathing (1 minute) Sit comfortably on a chair with your back straight and both feet on the ground.  If you can't sit down, stand as straight as possible without slouching or leaning against anything.  Close your eyes and focus on your breathing.  Try to let thoughts pass by, rather than pondering on them or daydreaming.

2. Tense and relax (4 minutes) Make a fist with your right hand and tense all the muscles in your forearm.  Hold the tension for five seconds and then relax your muscles for about 10 seconds.  Now do the same thing for each part of your body.  Tighten each group of muscles, hold the tension and relax fully.

3. Visualize (3 minutes) Next, try to recall a place or time where you felt content and relaxed.  Use your imagination to reconstruct the place and how you felt when you were there.  It might have been a beach vacation or mountains where you went hiking.  Let yourself become totally immersed in the scene.

4. Let go (1 minute) Once your mind and body are completely relaxed, let go of your stress.  Visualize a stream of light or energy pouring through your bodyand washing your stress away, or imagine the stress leaving your body with each breath out.  Picture yourself getting through the rest of the day without stress by trying to anticipate any potentially difficult situations.  Thinking about how you can get through them calmly will help you put this into practice.

5. Stretch (1 minute) Keep your eyes closed and breathe in and out deeply.  Enjoy the feeling of relaxation and rest.  Move your fingers and toes playfully.  Then breathe in and stretch your arms up over your head.  Stretch your legs out in front of you.  Now open your eyes.

The more often you do this 10 minute stress-relief plan, the better.  You may be surprised at how relaxed and confident you start to feel, and how the challenging parts of your life no longer feel nearly so daunting and stressful.

I have been using these exercises for over ten years now and can not begin to tell you where I was before I started.  If you do it on a regular basis, you'll begin to wonder where the stress went to and why it took you so long to find these relaxation techniques.

Good luck to all of you who try these...