Why being relaxed is so important

Progressive muscle relaxation. By tensing and releasing muscle groups gradually, you can become more aware of how your body feels when stressed or relaxed, and develop strategies to more actively handle stress-related tension.

The variations of this technique involve connecting visual images and physical sensations. By imagining a relaxing setting and focusing on its details, it becomes easier to eliminate stressful thoughts and focus on calming the physical body. Administered by a licensed therapist, hypnosis helps to tune out distracting brain activity and focus on specific suggestions related to positive thinking.

Mina Lee Ryu, MD, FACP, Internist in Internal Medicine at NorthShore , lists some of the many benefits of making relaxation a part of your daily routine: Decreased heart rate and respiration rate Lowered blood pressure and increased blood flow Decrease in anxiety, depression and insomnia Relaxed muscles Reduced pain long-term illnesses, chronic conditions A boost in energy and better sleep patterns A sense of calmness and confidence Improved coping abilities.

Relaxation slows our heart rate, reduces our blood pressure and relieves tension. It also aids digestion as we absorb essential nutrients more efficiently when relaxed, which helps to fight off disease and infection. Not only should we start our day feeling refreshed but we should continue to refresh at various points throughout our day! Schedule in 5 minutes a few times during your day to reduce stress levels and give your energy levels a boost. It is really important to try to relax at home too.

There are many simple inexpensive ways to have a little calm in your life — listen to music, take a walk, read a book, be creative, talk to a friend, exercise, take a hot bath or whatever helps you to release the stress from your mind and body. Read more about stress busters here.

Mental Health awareness week runs from 13th to 19th May! This is a great chance for you to promote some stress busting techniques within your office! Our perspective on goal setting has been changing over recent Relaxation is a process that decreases the effects of stress on your mind and body.

Relaxation techniques can help you cope with everyday stress and with stress related to various health problems, such as heart disease and pain. Whether your stress is spiraling out of control or you've already got it tamed, you can benefit from learning relaxation techniques.

Learning basic relaxation techniques is easy. Relaxation techniques also are often free or low cost, pose little risk, and can be done nearly anywhere. Explore these simple relaxation techniques and get started on de-stressing your life and improving your health. When faced with numerous responsibilities and tasks or the demands of an illness, relaxation techniques may not be a priority in your life. But that means you might miss out on the health benefits of relaxation.

To get the most benefit, use relaxation techniques along with other positive coping methods, such as thinking positively, finding humor, problem-solving, managing time, exercising, getting enough sleep, and reaching out to supportive family and friends. Health professionals such as complementary health practitioners, doctors and psychotherapists can teach various relaxation techniques.

But if you prefer, you can also learn some relaxation techniques on your own. In general, relaxation techniques involve refocusing your attention on something calming and increasing awareness of your body.

It doesn't matter which relaxation technique you choose. What matters is that you try to practice relaxation regularly to reap its benefits. Autogenic relaxation. Autogenic means something that comes from within you. In this relaxation technique, you use both visual imagery and body awareness to reduce stress.

You repeat words or suggestions in your mind that may help you relax and reduce muscle tension. For example, you may imagine a peaceful setting and then focus on controlled, relaxing breathing, slowing your heart rate, or feeling different physical sensations, such as relaxing each arm or leg one by one.

Progressive muscle relaxation. In this relaxation technique, you focus on slowly tensing and then relaxing each muscle group. This can help you focus on the difference between muscle tension and relaxation. You can become more aware of physical sensations. In one method of progressive muscle relaxation, you start by tensing and relaxing the muscles in your toes and progressively working your way up to your neck and head.

You can also start with your head and neck and work down to your toes. Tense your muscles for about five seconds and then relax for 30 seconds, and repeat. In this relaxation technique, you may form mental images to take a visual journey to a peaceful, calming place or situation. To relax using visualization, try to incorporate as many senses as you can, including smell, sight, sound and touch.