Guilt-Free Relaxation
- Liam Aron
- Jul 16, 2024
- 4 min read
"The time to relax is when you don't have time for it."- Sydney Harris.
The words “relaxation” can bring up a lot of judgment for people. In Western society, we place a lot of value on being a doer; any time spent not accomplishing can be looked on as wasted. However, nothing could be further from the truth. A healthy balance of self-care is a requirement for reaching your career-related and personal goals at a consistently powerful level.
According to the Advent health clinic, some of the benefits of a relaxation routine include: reduced fatigue, improved concentration, lower blood pressure, create an overall sense of well-being, lower risk of strokes, and more!
Even beyond the obvious physical health benefits, the quality of our work suffers when we ignore this crucial element of well-being. Tony Robbins, among other coaches, talks extensively about the concept of “State.”
The idea of “state” is central to the coaching system of NLP and centers around the belief which states you can control your mind and emotions by engaging your physical body. As Tony writes, “The difference between peak performance and poor performance is not intelligence or ability; most often it’s the state that your mind and body is in.” Within this perspective, there are more resourceful states and less resourceful states. Calm, focused, and energetic are resourceful states, while worry, anxiousness, and frustration are less so. What relaxation can do, is help increase our short-term performance by using our physiology to impact our state and thereby increase our capacity to achieve.
Whether we take a long-term perspective or a short-term one, there is no question that introducing some form of relaxation routine will increase the quality of our lives. These exercises don’t have to take large amounts of time from our day; short bursts of self-care exercises can have a massive impact too. Although you may find the benefits increase with more time. Here are some suggestions for some techniques to shift your state and gain calm in your life.
1. Focus on your breath:
One quick way to calm yourself is to focus on your breath. Harvard Health explains that “In this simple, powerful technique, you take long, slow, deep breaths (also known as abdominal or belly breathing).”
When you shift your focus to your breath, you create a space to disengage from your thought patterns, which is extremely helpful for shifting your focus when you find yourself in a negative pattern.
Pro tip: synchronize your breath with your hands opening and closing to ground the practice deeper in your body.
2. Visualizations:
In this exercise, you imagine for yourself a scene that epitomizes in your mind a relaxing atmosphere. It could be something from nature, your bed while it’s raining outside, or even a specific memory. Every time you use this exercise, it becomes easier and easier to go back to your visualized haven.
Pro tip: Once you have your safe place fixed in your mind, start going through all your five senses and notice what it feels like to be calm. This can help you create that sense of calm whenever and wherever you want it.
3. Change your environment:
If you find that your environment creates feelings of stress, changing it can be a great way to modify your state. Go on a short walk outside, or whatever method works in your circumstances, and come back to whatever it is you were doing after you feel the shift necessary. If you can incorporate some exercise, even mild, that will compound the benefit as exercise releases endorphins which can make us feel happy!
If you can’t physically change your environment, you can use the previously-mentioned guided imagery visualization.
4. Mindful water drinking:
If you are looking for a more discrete way to ground your focus and practice mindfulness, then this one is for you. This exercise can be done in a meeting, in class, or anywhere really, as long as you have some water.
Take a sip. Notice all the sensations that come along with the water in your mouth. Notice the temperature of the water, its texture, and taste (I bet you never realized water had a taste before!). Swirl it around and feel the sensations. Then swallow half, notice how it flows down your throat and brings refreshment and nourishment. Swallow the next half. Repeat as necessary.
5. Create:
A creative mind is a calm mind. We all have ways in which we let our creativity flow. When we tap into that power, we tap into a calm and resourceful state. Think about ways in which you feel your creativity expressed. I recommend making as long a list as possible where you feel your creative power. The more options you have to tap into this state, the better! If you ever feel stressed, take a few moments to do a breathing exercise and then dive into a creative project, even for a few minutes. Watch how fast your mindset and state will change!
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