Relaxation can occur when you’re just sitting and watching t.v. in a lounge chair (which is what some people think of when they think of the word ‘relaxation’), but having a more structured plan for relaxation can be more helpful in the face of stress.

Here are some relaxation strategies to help you combat stress:

• Breathing Exercises
  These can be your first line of defence against stress. Breathing exercises are wonderful for relaxation because they can be used anytime and at any place, they work quickly, and are easy to master.

  Why Breathing Exercises are Popular

  I often recommend breathing exercises for stress relief, as a stand-alone strategy or to be used in conjunction with meditation, yoga, and other stress relief techniques. And I’m not alone. I often see breathing exercises recommended for stress relief in magazine articles, blogs, and in best-selling books. They’re one of those ‘golden’ stress relief strategies that work simply, easily, and are effective for virtually everyone. Breathing exercises are one of the most popular and commonly-recommended stress relievers for good reason:

  • They work quickly.

     

  • You can do them anywhere.

     

  • They take very little practice to master.

     

  • They’re free.

     

  • You can use them in the middle of stressful situation to stay calm.

     

  • They can effectively reverse your stress response, helping you avoid the negative effects of chronic stress.

  The Benefits of Breathing Exercises

  Breathing exercises bring wonderful benefits because they can reverse your stress response, which, if chronically triggered and not reversed in a timely manner, can lead to chronic stress. This can really wreak havoc on your body. Therefore, breathing exercises can be said to bring the over-reaching benefit of reversing the myriad problems caused by chronic stress. Purposefully slowing the breath has been shown to trigger sometimes powerful states of relaxation and raise body temperature. Additionally, breathing therapy has been successfully applied in the treatment of the following conditions:

  • Feelings of tension

     

  • Hyperventilation

     

  • Burnout

     

  • Headache

     

  • Chronic fatigue

     

  • Sleeping problems

     

  • Concentration problems

     

  • Anxiety and phobia

     

  • Panic disorder

     

  • Depression

     

  • Heart disease

  (It’s important to note that breathing exercises should not replace a doctors care in the treatment of serious conditions, but that breathing exercises can be an effective part of treatment.)

  When To Try Breathing Exercises

  Breathing exercises can be used to reduce physical stress and aid relaxation at any time. However, there are some times in which breathing exercises -- on their own or in conjunction with other stress relief strategies -- are the best choice, and there are other times that other strategies are more effective.

  Breathing exercises are most effective when:

  • You’re feeling stressed or overwhelmed and want to calm down quickly.

     

  • You’re stressed and you want to think more clearly.

     

  • You want to release tension in your body.

     

  • You’re feeling frustrated and want to ‘slow things down.’

     

  • You’re in the middle of an altercation and you want to feel more centred.

  When To Try Other Strategies

  Obviously, breathing exercises can’t solve the world’s problems, and other stress relief strategies need to be used in certain situations. Breathing exercises are excellent for reversing your stress response and reducing stress that you’re feeling in your body right now, but they can’t prevent future stressors from occurring. Practiced regularly, however, they may make you less reactive to stressful situations you may encounter.

  If you find yourself experiencing the same stressors repeatedly, breathing exercises can help you respond to the stressors in a more relaxed way, but proactive strategies that change your lifestyle to eliminate some of the stressors may also be a good idea. For example, changing conditions at your job to prevent work stress, or developing communication skills to combat relationship stress may be more effective than just using breathing exercises when you experience daily stress from these situations.

   

• Meditation
  Many people try meditation and find that it’s a wonderful relaxation tool. Many others consider trying it, or try it a few times, and decide it’s not for them. If you’re in the second group, you may want to consider giving meditation another look—it’s excellent for relaxation as well as developing a more positive attitude and, if practiced long-term, greater resilience toward stress. Learn more about the benefits of meditation and different meditation techniques you can try.
   

   

  Benefits of Meditation
  Meditation is widely recommended as a healthy way to manage stress, and for good reason. It provides many health-enhancing benefits, like reducing symptoms of stress and anxiety, relieving physical complaints like headaches, and even enhancing immunity to illness.

  Basics of Meditation:
  Meditation can be practiced in many different ways. While there are numerous different meditation techniques, a common thread runs through virtually all meditative techniques:

  • Quiet Mind: With meditation, your thinking mind becomes quiet. You stop focusing on the stressors of your day or your life’s problems, as well as solving these problems. You just let that voice in your head be quiet, which is easier said than done. For example, start thinking about nothing now. (It’s OK; I’ll wait.) If you’re not practiced at quieting your mind, it probably didn’t take long before thoughts crept in.

     

  • Being In The Now: Rather than focusing on the past or the future, virtually all meditative practices involve focusing on right now. This involves experiencing each moment and letting it go, experiencing the next. This, too, takes practice, as many of us live most of our lives thinking toward the future or relishing and rehashing the past.

     

  • Altered State of Consciousness: With time, maintaining a quiet mind and focus on the present can lead to an altered level of consciousness that isn’t a sleeping state but isn’t quite your average wakeful state, either. Meditation increases brain activity in an area of the brain associated with happiness and positive thoughts and emotions, and some evidence shows that regular practice brings prolonged positive changes in these areas.

  Types of Meditation Techniques:
  Researchers generally classify meditation techniques into two different categories: concentrative, and non-concentrative. Concentrative techniques involve focusing on a particular object that's generally outside of oneself: a candle's flame, the sound of an instrument, or a particular mantra. Non-concentrative meditation, on the other hand, can include a broader focus: the sounds in one's environment as well as internal body states and one's own breathing. There can be overlap with these techniques, however; one meditation technique can be both concentrative and non-concentrative.

  There are many, many different ways to meditate. Here I’ll mention some basic categories of meditation techniques so you can understand some of the main options and how they differ from one another. This is certainly not an exhaustive list, but it can give you some ideas.

  • Basic Meditation Techniques: This involves sitting in a comfortable position and just trying to quiet your mind by thinking of nothing. It’s not always easy to do this if you don’t have practice with it. But a good way to begin is to think of yourself as an ‘observer of your thoughts,’ just noticing what the narrative voice in your head says, but not engaging it. As thoughts materialize in your mind, just let them go. That’s the basic idea.

     

  • Focused Meditation Techniques: With this technique, you focus on something intently, but don’t engage your thoughts about it. You can focus on something visual, like a statue; something auditory, like a metronome or tape of ocean waves; something constant, like your own breathing; or a simple concept, like ‘unconditional compassion’. Some people find it easier to do this than to focus on nothing, but the idea is the same -- staying in the present moment and circumventing the constant stream of commentary from your conscious mind, and allowing yourself to slip into an altered state of consciousness.

     

  • Activity-Oriented Meditation Techniques: With this type of meditation, you engage in a repetitive activity, or one where you can get ‘in the zone’ and experience ‘flow.’ Again, this quiets the mind, and allows your brain to shift. Activities like gardening, creating artwork, or practicing yoga can all be effective forms of meditation.

     

  • Mindfulness Techniques: Mindfulness can be a form of meditation that, like activity-oriented meditation, doesn’t really look like meditation. It simply involved staying in the present moment rather than thinking about the future or the past. (Again, this is more difficult than it seems!) Focusing on sensations you feel in your body is one way to stay ‘in the now;’ focusing on emotions and where you feel them in your body (not examining why you feel them, but just experiencing them as sensations) is another.

     

  • Spiritual Meditating: Meditation can also be a spiritual practice. (It does not have to be, and certainly isn't specific to any one religion, but can be used as a spiritual experience.) Many people experience meditation as a form of prayer -- the form where God 'speaks,' rather than just listening. That’s right, many people experience ‘guidance’ or inner wisdom once the mind is quiet, and meditate for this purpose. You can meditate on a singular question until an answer comes (though some would say this is engaging your thinking mind too much), or meditate to clear their mind and accept whatever comes that day.

  Whichever meditative techniques you use, the potential benefits are clear and numerous, making it one of the more commonly recommended stress management practices.
• Music
  Playing music is a great way to relive stress and promote relaxation for your family and friends as well as yourself. (Okay, maybe your co-workers won’t enjoy hearing your tunes as much as you do, so perhaps this one is best saved for home and in the car.) Because music brings real benefits in terms of wellness (music therapy is a growing field), it can be conveniently used effectively for relaxation as well. Learn more about using music for stress relief.

• Exercise
  It may seem that exercise is the opposite of relaxation, but a good workout can actually make you feel more relaxed afterward for a few reasons. First, working out can be a good way to release stress and blow off steam. Second, the endorphins released during a good workout can aid relaxation quite nicely. Additionally, exercise can get you into a state of flow where it’s difficult to stay stressed—your body has to move toward relaxation as your stress response begins to reverse. Find ways to work exercise into a busy schedule.

   

• Have Fun!
  Yes, these relaxation methods don’t all have to be clinical and practiced. Letting loose and having fun with your family and friends is an excellent way to relieve stress and experience relaxation. The problem is that people don’t always prioritize plain old ‘fun’ as an important part of life—they don’t fit time for it in their busy schedules (at least not nearly as much as they should) because they don’t realize the value of fun for balance as well as physical and emotional health. Well, now is the time to start working more fun into your life.
  Having fun is an important part of stress management. Because studies show such wonderful health and stress relief benefits to laughter and even the anticipation of laughter, we should all work on getting more giggles into each day. And because of the many wellness benefits of leisure time, having fun should be a priority in the life of anyone who wants better health, greater happiness and less stress. Here are some strategies for having more fun in your life:

  Have Friends Over More Often

  Most people find themselves very busy these days — often busier than they want to be. While the activities that occupy our time are important, having fun is equally important. While busy lifestyles can sap us of our spontaneity, having friends over and setting aside some time just to play can offer a regular outlet for having fun. Worried that your house is too messy to have people over? There are simple and stress-relieving methods for cleaning, and you’ll likely find that less clutter leads to less stress anyway.

  Tell Jokes

  Aside from forwarding emails that make us chuckle (which isn’t bad, as long as you’re sure not to forward things that people may find annoying), most people don’t just tell jokes anymore, which is too bad. If you cull the internet, Reader’s Digest and other sources for just one or two good jokes, you’ll find that the laughter is often contagious, others may share jokes right back, and you’re suddenly having more fun in your life.

  Have a Regular Game Night

  Many people associate having fun with games, but how many people regularly indulge in a game night? Whether you rotate hosting the game night among a group of friends, you stay home and play with your family, or you go out and find a sports league or bingo night somewhere, finding a regular outlet for playing games can be a great stress reliever and method of having fun.

  Be ‘In The Now’

  There’s currently a lot said in the media on mindfulness and "being in the now," and for good reason. When you’re basing yourself firmly in the present moment (rather than ruminating on past or anticipated stressors), you’re more open to happiness, laughter and having fun.

  Maintain a Sense of Humour

  You can turn your stresses into fun with an attitude shift if you focus on maintaining a sense of humour in your daily life. With a light-hearted attitude, events that would normally be annoying become amusing; big hassles become humorously absurd; major stressors become really great stories waiting to be told. Having a sense of humor is a big part of having fun — it’s a way to actively seek out fun and happiness instead of waiting for it to come to you.