release it on the LAX .
Finish by tensing your lower legs. Keep your eyes closed and contract your feet and lower legs by pushing them into the carpet or bed. Hold the tension for 15 seconds, then relax. By now you should feel your body getting warm and heavy.
Once you have completed the exercise, remain lying down for a while. You may go to sleep, so if you have other things to do, set an alarm clock before you begin.
Imagery relaxation
Much stress is caused by thinking about negative situations, so for some people relaxing muscles may not be enough and they must also relax their minds by blocking stressful thoughts and trying to stop worrying. Relaxation imagery involves imagining a relaxing scene by using sight, sound, smell and touch, which distracts a stressed person from worrying.
Choose a relaxing image that you most associate with calmness, peace, tranquility, serenity and harmony. It may be a real-life scenario, such as walking through countryside, or a fantasy image, such as drifting along with the clouds in the sky. Try to involve all your senses in your image, so think about what you can see, hear, touch and smell. The 2 practice images described in the instructions below involve clouds and a warm house in winter. Try these images and then develop your own.
When practising relaxation imagery, a warm, darkened, carpeted room is recommended. You should lie on your back with your arms by your side. Make sure your clothing is not tight or uncomfortable. Also make sure you do not have any injuries that cause you discomfort when lying in this position.
Now create the flowing scene in your mind. You are on a warm, white beach. You are the only one on the beach and the water is calm and green, and the sky is a vivid blue. Focus on the sky. In your mind’s eye, you see nothing but blue. Now focus on the green and turquoise colours of the sea. Focus on the smell of the ocean, let the fresh smell of the sea flood your mind. You can feel a gentle sea breeze blowing against your face. Next, focus on the sky, where you can see a small white cloud slowly descending to the beach. The cloud becomes larger until it finally settles under you. You are lying on top of this small cloud. The cloud lifts you into the air and you see the beach becoming smaller and smaller. Your body is becoming lighter and lighter. You are feeling warm, secure and relaxed.
Now the cloud descends, and your body is feeling more relaxed. As the cloud touches the beach, you are feeling warm, heavy and relaxed. Focus on your breathing. Use your cue word for 2 breathing cycles: RELAX. At the end of the second cycle, open your eyes. You should feel energised and ready for action.
Alternatively, picture a warm house in the middle of winter. Keeping your eyes closed, think about the house – is it a country house or a town house? Is it modern or old? What sort of plants are in the house? Can you hear the cold wind outside? Can you feel the warmth inside the house? Perhaps you can smell the aroma of your favourite food drifting from the kitchen. Move through each room of the house, concentrating on what you can see, hear, smell and feel before going on to the next image. Once you have spent a short time exploring, you should know your house so well that you could describe it to someone else.
*
Note that when you use relaxation imagery techniques, it is not the same as visualising with your eyes open. When visualising with your eyes open, you get a sharp, focused picture that remains steady. In contrast, mental images tend to be more fluid – more like ideas of what something looks like rather than a reproduction of reality.
Relaxation on the go
If stress symptoms occur in the workplace, then following some of the strategies below may help you manage your daily work stressors. Once you have finished a session of work, take a 5-minute break where you can:
sit down and have a healthy snack, such as a piece of fruit;
remove yourself from your working
Finish by tensing your lower legs. Keep your eyes closed and contract your feet and lower legs by pushing them into the carpet or bed. Hold the tension for 15 seconds, then relax. By now you should feel your body getting warm and heavy.
Once you have completed the exercise, remain lying down for a while. You may go to sleep, so if you have other things to do, set an alarm clock before you begin.
Imagery relaxation
Much stress is caused by thinking about negative situations, so for some people relaxing muscles may not be enough and they must also relax their minds by blocking stressful thoughts and trying to stop worrying. Relaxation imagery involves imagining a relaxing scene by using sight, sound, smell and touch, which distracts a stressed person from worrying.
Choose a relaxing image that you most associate with calmness, peace, tranquility, serenity and harmony. It may be a real-life scenario, such as walking through countryside, or a fantasy image, such as drifting along with the clouds in the sky. Try to involve all your senses in your image, so think about what you can see, hear, touch and smell. The 2 practice images described in the instructions below involve clouds and a warm house in winter. Try these images and then develop your own.
When practising relaxation imagery, a warm, darkened, carpeted room is recommended. You should lie on your back with your arms by your side. Make sure your clothing is not tight or uncomfortable. Also make sure you do not have any injuries that cause you discomfort when lying in this position.
Now create the flowing scene in your mind. You are on a warm, white beach. You are the only one on the beach and the water is calm and green, and the sky is a vivid blue. Focus on the sky. In your mind’s eye, you see nothing but blue. Now focus on the green and turquoise colours of the sea. Focus on the smell of the ocean, let the fresh smell of the sea flood your mind. You can feel a gentle sea breeze blowing against your face. Next, focus on the sky, where you can see a small white cloud slowly descending to the beach. The cloud becomes larger until it finally settles under you. You are lying on top of this small cloud. The cloud lifts you into the air and you see the beach becoming smaller and smaller. Your body is becoming lighter and lighter. You are feeling warm, secure and relaxed.
Now the cloud descends, and your body is feeling more relaxed. As the cloud touches the beach, you are feeling warm, heavy and relaxed. Focus on your breathing. Use your cue word for 2 breathing cycles: RELAX. At the end of the second cycle, open your eyes. You should feel energised and ready for action.
Alternatively, picture a warm house in the middle of winter. Keeping your eyes closed, think about the house – is it a country house or a town house? Is it modern or old? What sort of plants are in the house? Can you hear the cold wind outside? Can you feel the warmth inside the house? Perhaps you can smell the aroma of your favourite food drifting from the kitchen. Move through each room of the house, concentrating on what you can see, hear, smell and feel before going on to the next image. Once you have spent a short time exploring, you should know your house so well that you could describe it to someone else.
*
Note that when you use relaxation imagery techniques, it is not the same as visualising with your eyes open. When visualising with your eyes open, you get a sharp, focused picture that remains steady. In contrast, mental images tend to be more fluid – more like ideas of what something looks like rather than a reproduction of reality.
Relaxation on the go
If stress symptoms occur in the workplace, then following some of the strategies below may help you manage your daily work stressors. Once you have finished a session of work, take a 5-minute break where you can:
sit down and have a healthy snack, such as a piece of fruit;
remove yourself from your working
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