Stress is the curse of modern life. Everyone suffers from stress, and the stress we suffer takes a heavy toll on our bodies, emotions, and minds.
If you’re feeling stressed out, worn out by fatigue or just simply having a miserable day, you must learn how to relax.
Anger contributes to heart disease, particularly for men (read more here). Mental stress leads to irritability. Too much stress brings about ischemia that can cause a heart attack.
Considering this, relaxation takes on added importance. Managing anger is crucial for heart health, and relaxation helps you manage stress.
Relaxation lowers the activity level within the brain's limbic system; this is the emotional centre of our brain. Slowing this down improves your overall health and wellbeing.
If there are thousands of reasons why we can get stressed, there are many ways we can relax. So how do we achieve relaxation?
Before you continue reading, don’t watch TV to relax. It’s common to think this is a great way to chill out. It has the opposite effect, as it is too stimulating.
Enjoy watching TV for entertainment and as a source of information, but don’t rely on it solely to relax. There are better ways…
1. Transcendental Meditation
Studies have also shown that the transcendental meditation method might reduce artery blockage, which is a major cause for heart attack and stroke.
People practice transcendental meditation by repeating soothing sounds while meditating. This is to achieve total relaxation.
Researchers found that practitioners of transcendental meditation significantly reduced the thickness of their arterial wall compared with those who didn’t practice transcendental meditation.
2. Acupuncture
Another study showed acupuncture reduces high blood pressure by encouraging the brain to release chemical compounds known as endorphins. Endorphins help to relax muscles, ease panic, decrease pain, and reduce anxiety.
3. Yoga
Yoga is another well-known method for relaxation and may also have similar effects as acupuncture.
Yoga is a progressive relaxation technique. In this study, Yoga showed clinically meaningful reductions in blood pressure.
4. Breathing
Breathing is one of the easiest methods to relax. Breathing influences almost all aspects of us. It affects our mind, our moods and our body.
Simply focus on your breathing. After some time, you will feel its effects.
There are several breathing techniques that can help you reduce stress.
5. Exercise
If you feel irritated, a simple half-hour of exercise will settle things down and exercise is a great way to manage weight, which is a bonus.
I suggest keeping it moderate and balanced. I’m a firm believer that excessive exercise is just as bad as none.
Try to exercise outdoors if you can, as this is more beneficial.
6. Massage
To gain full relaxation, complete surrender to the touch of a professional therapist is essential.
There are several types of massages. Before you book one, always check the practitioner is qualified with a recognised organisation.
A simple web search should be enough to find a suitable person for you.
7. Biofeedback
The idea behind biofeedback is that, by harnessing the power of your mind and noticing what’s going on inside your body, you can gain more control over your health.
Researchers aren’t exactly sure how or why biofeedback works. They know that biofeedback promotes relaxation, which can help relieve several conditions that are related to stress.
8. Hypnosis
Some people consider this a controversial relaxation technique. Perhaps there is a lot of misinformation out there about hypnosis.
Certainly, there are charlatans out there that have given the technique a bad name, but I’m talking about self-hypnosis.
Performed correctly, it’s powerful.
It is an excellent alternative for people who think that they do not know what it feels like to be relaxed. It is also a suitable alternative for people with stress related health problems.
9. Drugs
This might look like I’m going into shady territory. I’m not.
I stress, though; you need to do research for yourself to assess if they are suitable for you so you can make an informed choice and only purchase from reputable retailers.
There are herbal remedies that have evidence for inducing relaxation. For example, passionflower, valerian, chamomile, lavender or lemon balm. Read more here.
You can also try CBD oil, which is gaining more and more evidence for treating anxiety and pain. It’s legal in many countries, but check first that it is legal in your country before you buy it. It may not be yet.
Conclusion
These relaxation techniques are just some ways you can achieve tranquillity.
Once you add regular relaxation techniques into your lifestyle, you’ll never look back.
So choose a technique that you believe you can do consistently.
That way, you will be successful and gain permanent benefit.
