Learning to relax is a vital skill because our instinctive responses to stress are often more harmful than the stress itself. When things are not going as planned and we begin to feel the anxiety building up we have a tendency to overreact to some of the most insignificant situations. Think about the times you have endured stress just by thinking about something that might happen. My Mother used to tell me that I was just borrowing trouble when I did this and now I can see how right she was. We are going to learn some techniques we can use that will help us deal with or even avoid stress altogether while helping us to enjoy some relaxation in our hectic lives.

Relaxation is that wonderful feeling you have when the pressures of life seem to be non-existent and you have a positive mental outlook about your surroundings, your work and the day ahead of you. Relaxation is really a wonderful feeling and we all should make concerted attempts to enjoy the peaceful feelings that relaxation invokes. Reducing stress, creating peace of mind and just easing all the tension throughout your body has so many positive affects on your life.

Meditation is one way to bring about a sense of calmness, quietness and peaceful relaxation. Meditation allows the mind to settle down and really experience an inner state of calmness. When you use meditation on a regular basis, after a short amount of time you will begin to notice an improvement in your memory and your problem solving skills. The more you use meditation to help yourself relax the easier it becomes to bring yourself to that peaceful state of mind. Using meditation on a daily basis will help you to focus more on the positives in life, you will notice an increase in your creativity and you will find joy in the small things in life. The use of soothing music such as the sounds of nature or symphonic harmonies are perfect for relaxing your mind allowing you to enter that peaceful meditative state.

The use of visualization is another powerful tool that you may use to rid yourself of stress and bring about true relaxation. To effectively use visualization you should find yourself a place where you can be alone with no noise around you. Close your eyes and try to quite your mind then vividly imagine that you are in the most peaceful place you can think of, picture that place in your mind. Completely immerse yourself in the picture as though you are really there experiencing the whole event involve all your senses, feel the wind, imagine how it smells, hear all the sounds allow yourself to be a part of the scenery. The practice of visualization is so powerful it can remove you from the stress of real life in a matter of moments. Practice it often as the more you use it the easier it becomes to relax and really get yourself swept up into a beautiful fantasy. I visualize the perfect outcomes of many events in my life, the more you visualize something the easier it becomes for your sub-conscious mind to accept the visualization as reality.

Slow easy stretching is a wonderful exercise to use to bring you into a state of complete relaxation. When we become stressed our muscles tighten up and get sore leaving you uncomfortable and tense. Slowly stretching the muscles and tendons loosens you up in a couple of ways, first it stretches the muscles helping you to feel like your not all tied up in knots and just the act of stretching takes your mind off anything that may have been causing you stress. Stretching exercises can be done almost anywhere and while your stretching you can add to your relaxation by adding visualization as you perform your stretches. Now you have connected the body and the mind which helps to bring about a complete state of relaxation.

Muscle relaxation is a very effective technique that involves concentrating on one muscle group at a time. When using this technique you focus on tightening and then relaxing the muscle group. Using this method helps to take your mind off any worries you might have and it allows you to focus on the physical sensation of bringing your muscles to a state of relaxation. You should start tensing and relaxing your muscles in your toes then your feet and progressively work your way up through all the muscles in your body in a methodical pattern. You should tense your muscles for five to ten seconds and then relax for 30 seconds then repeat this process for every muscle group. You will find this exercise to be very relaxing and stress relieving as it frees your mind from the pressures of the day.

Bringing yourself to a state of total relaxation takes practice but the benefits you will receive such as stress relief make it all worthwhile. Whether you have a lot of stress in your life or a little and you believe you have it under control, you can always benefit from the many types of relaxation techniques. The use of soothing music such as the calming sounds of nature will only enhance the benefits you receive from using these forms of relaxation. Music therapy itself has the strong ability to bring you into a peaceful state of relaxation or to help you avoid stress altogether by playing it in the background while at work in the car or at home.

By: Howard G Platt
Hi I am Howard Platt and I have been involved with personal development for over 25 years. I have spent a lot of my time helping people overcome problem areas in their lives. I run a website that is dedicated to offering free information to help better peoples lives. I also offer some specialized CDs that are perfect for inducing relaxation and relieving stress. Please visit: http://www.positive-thinking-for-you.com/stress.html

If you feel stressed, that's a good indication that you have a lot of things in your life that are causing stress. Oh, you already knew that?

You might not be able to get rid of all of your stressors, at least not right away. It can take a while to get a different job, a new car or change relationships that cause you grief. An interesting thing is that you may have causes of stress that you aren't even aware of!

In the meantime, here are several tips to help you ease into relaxation. Pick out one and start using it right away.

1. Let your shoulders relax when you drive. Your shoulders can hike up to your ears, without you being aware that they're moving up - until you feel muscle tension and stress. Each time you become aware that your shoulders have hiked up, allow them to drop to a comfortable position. You might have to lower your shoulders many times because they tend to creep back up. They do this just because your muscles are used to doing it. Muscle stress is a stressor.

2. Gently and firmly press your shoulders into the floor or bed while you are lying on your back. Your shoulders are in front of you most of the day. This causes muscle stress. Pressing your shoulders into the floor strengthens your back muscles so they will complain less. Less pain equals less stress.

3. Imagine that you are a stick of butter, soft, warm and pale. You are melting. As you melt, all of your stress melts and slides down to the floor. It evaporates. There is no stress left.

4. Breathing is a wonderful relaxation technique. Simply pay attention to your breath expanding your ribs. On the exhale, feel the movement in your back. On the next inhale, feel your belly expand. When your exhale, feel your belly get smaller. Pay attention to each breath, and if you forget and go back to your stressful thoughts, that's OK. Just start breathing again and paying attention to your breath again.

5. Arrange to have a relaxation massage from a professional massage therapist or from someone who cares about you.

Use these tools to help relax and lower your stress level. Start with one (the "butter" strategy is easy and quick to learn) and, as you can, add another. Then, just melt and let all of your stress evaporate.

By: Kathryn Merrow
And now, I'd like to invite you to discover more ways to relax deeply and to permanently relieve the causes of your stress naturally, without drugs, at http://www.StressReliefStrategy.com

If you are feeling anxious or stressed or having difficulties sleeping, relaxation techniques can be useful in helping to calm your mind and body.

The following are some relaxation techniques you can try. Ideally, if you can, practise one or more of them on a daily basis. The techniques are designed to help you switch off and take your mind away from the immediate thoughts which might otherwise preoccupy you, so don’t use the exercises in any environment where for health or safety reasons you need to concentrate fully on another task, e.g. when driving or when operating machinery or using potentially dangerous equipment or tools!

To prepare yourself for each exercise, find somewhere comfortable, where you will not be disturbed and sit or lie in a position which you find comfortable.

Exercise A: Counting Backwards

Shut your eyes and start counting backward from a number of your choosing. This might be say, 30 or 40, or whatever number you feel is realistic for you in the time frame you have allocated for the exercise. I would suggest that you don’t set yourself too high a number if you feel that you will not be able to keep this up on a regular basis. It is better to build up gradually from a relatively low starting point than to set yourself a target that you are unlikely to be able to keep up. If you do find yourself losing impetus, then lower the target number.

Count backwards in the following way:

• Breathe in slowly and deeply, filling your lungs (if you are breathing in a relaxed way from your diaphragm, ideally your stomach should be filling out as you breathe rather than your upper chest).
• After your in-breath has finished, breathe out in the same slow, relaxed measured, manner.
• At the end of your out-breath say to yourself the number you have reached.
• Once your breath has expired you will naturally begin to breathe in again, without having to force yourself. Allow this natural process to take place and repeat the in-breath, followed by the out-breath, followed by the next number down.
• Repeat this process until you have reached zero. You can if you wish, then repeat the whole process again, starting from your target number.

NB. If you find at any time or times that you lose count of where you are or that your concentration wonders, just draw yourself back into the exercise and resume counting at the last point you can remember.

Exercise B: Tensing Your Toes

For this exercise lie on your back and close your eyes, then:

1. Focus your attention on your toes and how they feel!
2. Flex your toes upwards towards your face and count slowly up to 10.
3. Relax your toes.
4. Count slowly up to 10 again.
5. Repeat steps 1-4, eight to ten times.

Exercise C: Guided Imagery

For this exercise, decide how long you are going to do it for – perhaps 5 or 10 minutes initially, or a bit longer if you wish and have time. Once you are in the comfortable room or setting and position that you have chosen for the exercise:

Shut your eyes and imagine yourself in a place or environment that you find enjoyable, doing something relaxing and pleasurable. This will vary depending on what you as an individual like. You could, for example, be by a lake or at the sea or in beautiful scenery or you could imagine yourself socialising with good friends or on a journey. Whatever situation you choose make sure it is a harmonious one and not connected with current activities or stresses. The exercise should take you into a relaxing world.

Once you are in that relaxing world, try to imagine it in as much detail as you can – what sounds can you hear, what sensations are you experiencing in your body, who or what else is there, what is happening between yourself and others or the environment?

After the time period you allowed for the session, open your eyes and resume your normal activities.

It there is a particular calm preparatory routine (e.g. putting on particular clothing, having a drink of water or lighting an incense candle) which you can establish and repeat so that you associate it with doing whichever relaxation exercise(s) you choose, then this can also help to engender the relaxation – however, avoid ingesting substances which might alter your mood or create health risks as part of the routine, except under medical advice, as these may have detrimental effects (for example, caffeine, alcohol, tobacco or other drugs).

© David Bonham-Carter 2007

By: David Bonham-Carter
David Bonham-Carter is an international life coach and stress consultant with over 15 years experience in the field of personal change management who has been featured on BBC radio giving expert life coaching advice.
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There is an old saying, "laughter is the best medicine". Why not treat yourself to some laughter? Visit our jokes index and relax with some jokes, humor and humerous anecdotes.

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What a world of difference a deep breath can make! It is one thing to know that you need to relax, but how do you find the time? To reach the “relaxation response” at times can seem like you are trying to hit a moving target. Just ask Joan, a 31-year-old full time college student and mother of 2 active preteens. “I needed coffee today just so I could study for my exams, “she panted on her way to a class. Mike, an exhausted engineer is having difficulty sleeping through the night.

Here are some quick tips for relaxing when it seems like you cannot fit in one more thing:

Tip #1. This may require planning, however it will repay you. Eat a breakfast of whole oats or steel cut oats cooked, not micro waved. This will give your body needed fuel. Sprinkle chopped almonds, walnuts, or seasonal fruit on the oatmeal for added variety.

Tip #2. Curve your lips upward into a smile. Smiling is a way to remind yourself that you can handle your life. Practice often. Write notes around your home, office and as reminders to smile often.

Tip #3. Before bed soak your feet in warm water for 5 minutes.

Tip #4. If you are in the habit of multi-tasking, stop. Yes, un-plug the device from your ears and enjoy walking down the street or whatever you are doing. Focus your energy. Develop a habit of doing one thing at a time. It will repay you in increased effectiveness and over time you will accomplish more in less time.

Tip #5. Remember to exhale then inhale again. When we hurry and hold our breath, without awareness, for too long it generates a sense of unease.

Tip #6. Hold your thumb. Wrap your fingers completely around your thumb repeat with your other hand. Do for 3-5 minutes. This position calms anxiety.

Tip #7. Take a trip, in your mind. Sit in your office, car, etc. and visualize yourself calm, smiling and joyful. Take yourself to place that you enjoy and chill there. You did it, you’re calmer. © Catherine Carter

By: Catherine Carter
Catherine Carter, CCH is a certified Classical Homeopath and a Wellness Coach. She is located in the Philadelphia, PA area and works with local and national clients. Please visit her website: http://www.continuumwellness.org.

Featured by Resources For Attorneys, a Legal Resources and Lifestyle Resources directory for attorneys, lawyers and the general internet public.

There is an old saying, "laughter is the best medicine". Why not treat yourself to some laughter? Visit our jokes directory and relax with some jokes, humor and humerous anecdotes.

Comments: For those of you that would like to comment on this or any other post in this blog, go to the Contact me link on the upper right hand side of this page and send your comment via that link. If your comment is on topic, whether pro or anti, and even fairly well written, we will post it with the article. If you have a site that you would like to be linked to your comment please supply it and we will include it.