| Relaxation and Yoga
Free Audio Recordings - Simple Meditation to Cultivate Six Healthy Emotions (6 minutes, 5 MB). - Relax to Rest and Gain Strength. (10 minutes, 9,2 Mb). - Yogic relaxation in English (MP3, 13 minutes, 12,5 MB). Links to relaxation videos in English - Simple One Minute Meditation. - Relax and Replenish Energy. - Yogic Relaxation. - Nine Articulations: Simple, Effective and Relaxing. - Mysterious Vessel: Simple Guided Meditation. - Simple Smiling Relaxation. - Ear Relaxation: Tiny Ear Muscles Are Important. - How to calm down during daily activities: 12 simple tips. Many more are at www.youtube.com/drnespor Relaxation in Your Daily Life - Brief and Easy You can use these techniques almost any where, but there are a few exceptions. Obviously it is not a good idea to relax when driving a car (relaxation may sometimes turn to sleep) leave your hotel because a fire is raging. Relaxation is not difficult; it is often enough simply to let relaxation happen. Inward journey Assume a relaxed posture and with eyes closed be aware of the inner space of your body. Travel through your body from the tips of the toes to the top of the head. If you feel tension anywhere, let it relax. If this not possible, you may use a simple trick. Instead of relaxation increase the tension for a while, and afterwards let the tensed part of the body relax and feel how loose and heavy it is. This technique is called postizometric relaxation which means that relaxation is easier and often appears spontaneously after previous tension. Relaxation of strategic parts of the body Some parts of the body are more important for general relaxation than others and their relaxation influences the whole body and mind. The hands and shoulders. There are a great many nerve endings in the fingers and the hands, and it is comparatively easy to be aware of the hands and to relax them. Unconscious lifting of the shoulders protects the vulnerable sides of the neck and it is often associated with fear. Relaxing your shoulders may calm you. The stomach. Tensed abdominal muscles protect the internal organs against an external attack but at the same time it inhibits proper breathing because the diaphragm cannot move freely. Relax your abdominal wall in stressful situations is usually a good idea. The face. The muscles of the face are closely related to emotions. If you are able to relax the facial muscles, it is easier to manage your emotions. Beside this, with a relaxed face you will be even more beautiful. The legs. Tension in the legs is often associated with fear and with the wish to escape. You may ask yourself, whether your legs are not tensed e. g. during your next visit to a dentist. The vocal chords. These small muscles are crucially important for speech. According to Dr. E. Jacobson, the relaxation of vocal chords inhibits unpleasant verbal thoughts. The eyes. According to Jacobson, the relaxation of the eyes inhibits the formation visual thoughts. By the way, to reduce stress it is often enough to close your eyes for a while. The overused or vulnerable parts of the body. You may strain some parts of the body more than others or some parts of the body may be weaker. You should be aware of them and to take care to protect and relax them. Relaxation and breathing Respiration influences everything in the body including your brain. Resting on the back, sitting upright or even standing relax the upper part of your stomach and be aware of the movements of the abdominal wall away from the spine during inhalation and back toward the spine during exhalation. To enhance the passive concentration on breathing you may count one with inhalation, one with exhalation, two with inhalation, two with exhalation, three with inhalation, three with exhalation, etc. In a similar manner it is possible to observe the sensation of the incoming and outgoing breath in the nostrils. Beside simple breath observation, you may prolong your exhalation. Exhalation is two times longer (or even more prolonged) than inhalation in many yoga exercises; this has calming effects both physically and mentally. Surfing on your thoughts This practice is called "antar mauna" in yoga and surfing in behavioral psychotherapy. A very similar practice is known as vipassana in Buddhist tradition. Witness with a detached attitude external sounds, bodily feelings and thoughts. Maintain a strictly impersonal attitude and avoid judging what is good and what is bad. Just witness everything without responding or, if you still react, just observe your reactions. Focusing For a while stare without blinking the eyes and with the eyelids half closed at some object (such as a tree, something on your desk or even the tip of your nose). This technique is called tratak in yoga. Instant relaxation and cue controlled relaxation This can be achieved using your imagination. Use some of the following notions: 1. Your body is passive like a rag doll. 2. Your body is like a drop of fluid honey. 3. Your body is passively floating in warm salty water which buoys it up. Cue controlled relaxation is an advanced technique. First you must learn to relax. Afterwards you associate the state of relaxation with some cue (e. g. with the command "relax!" or with some posture). Then you may use the cue to induce immediate relaxation. Laughter and relaxation Laughter may also help you to relax in your daily life. You may use whatever technique of laughter described at this web site according to your preference and the situation. My Papers about Relaxation and Yoga in English to Download
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