Relaxation Technique

[Guest guest]

Day dreaming? Don't wish to be caught napping? If the answer is yes,

we beg to differ. Yes, day dreaming or more scientifically

visualisation (which is the force behind your dreams) is a great

stress reliever and we strongly recommend it as a creative way to

beat those blues.

 

What Is Visualisation?

 

Visualisation is the technique of using your imagination to create

what you want in life. It is based on the principle that the mind and

the body are intimately connected. And hence you can use

visualisation in a positive way to beat stress and relax.

 

Here is a little exercise for you. Sit in a comfortable position

close your eyes and imagine a real hot big pizza is lying in front of

you. At the smell of all that melted cheese, your mouth will begin to

water especially if you are hungry. Now give this a minute.

 

See how your mind is connected to the body. By just imagining that

there was something delicious lying in front of you your mouth began

to water. Everybody uses visual imagery all the time, albeit

unconsciously. Day dreaming, memories, self-talk are all facets of

visualisation.

 

What Can It Do?

 

Visualisation is an effective technique that can be used for treating

many stress-related and physical illnesses, headaches, muscle spasms,

chronic pain and many times even general and situational specific

anxiety. For instance, if you are in pain, and try and think of

something pleasant, most often it works.

 

Consciously visualising may take some time to learn. You may even

experience that the images are discouraging and uncooperative. This

means that your images will be flickering on and off, moving around

or disappearing altogether. A lot of time they may even be

interrupted by another image. All you need is some practice. Remember

that practice makes perfect, so try to practice the technique of

visualisation at least thrice a day. Do not get discouraged

initially. With continued practice and determination, you can master

any technique.

 

Method Of Visualisation

 

* Loosen your clothes, lie down in a quiet place, and close your

eyes.

* Try to relax any tense muscles in your body. Just give into

gravity. Drop your complete self on the bed or where ever you are

lying down.

* Try to involve all your senses. Imagine you are in a very big

garden, smell the flowers, hear the chirping of the birds and the

sound of bells. In the distance somewhere is a spring, walk towards

it and feel the cold water.

* Use positive self-talk. Avoid using negative statements.

* Practice this technique at least thrice a day and soon you will

begin to feel the difference.

 

Tips

 

There are a few things that you need to keep in mind while using this

technique.

* Visualisation is best done lying down, though it can be done

sitting down on the chair too.

* Be realistic while setting your goals, which means that you must

set an easy target for yourself.

* Stick to simple and easy images rather than images.