For rest and complete relaxation. MedAboutMe - Relaxation: history, methods and methods of relaxation

The sad fact of life is that often people do not realize the utmost importance of physical rest and relaxation. The very concept of “physical rest” can evoke images of a discipline, for example, yoga or various rituals on a schedule at certain times of the day. In fact, physical rest does not necessarily mean a system as such.

Rest and relaxation: the heart of the matter

Physical relaxation (or relaxation) simply means that you intentionally and consciously release tension that has somehow entered your body. For example, when you just sit in the dentist's chair, it already causes tension, doesn't it? The dentist should therefore tell you to relax. All you really need in this case is to force yourself to consciously relax all the muscles in your body at the same time. One clear command to relax all muscles works very well.

Stress is known to cause muscle tension, which leads to various types of pain. On the contrary, physical rest and relaxation release muscle tension, which makes the situation easier. This is why it is so important that you try to relieve muscle tension immediately when any pain appears or occurs in your body. You may have noticed that when a person is asleep, they feel less pain (or no pain at all) than when they are awake. Why is this happening? The body relaxes and recovers during sleep, but during the working day it is influenced by stress and your mental attitude.

Constant stress causes fatigue, which gradually depletes all your physical and mental resources to cope with the affairs of life. On the contrary, relaxed muscles are able to work longer without making you tired. When a person is overly stressed, a lot of useful energy is wasted. Physical rest relieves fatigue and increases energy, helps keep the mind calm and improves sleep. When you are rested, your productivity, self-esteem and self-confidence will also increase, which will also help in your relationships with other people.

To get results from physical relaxation you must practice it for at least half an hour a day. It is important not to be hard on yourself, take your time and learn to relax at your own pace. This process may take some time to change and improve the quality of your life.

You can also do different activities throughout the day and take a minute or two between activities to relax. By practicing this, you will soon find that you can release tension and quickly relax everything you need during normal work.

Laughter as physical relaxation

There is an interesting built-in mechanism for relaxation that makes humans unique. Man is the only creature that laughs and can laugh from the heart (unlike animals). Laughter, even specially provoked, provides not only emotional satisfaction, but also significant physical relaxation. Laughter is based on a deep breath using the diaphragm, followed by rhythmic exhalations, which helps equalize the pressure in both cavities and, in addition to venous outflow, also causes a massage of the internal organs. So, have a good laugh.

However, relaxation is not only about relaxation techniques, breathing or the practice of laughter. Like many things, relaxation begins with a change in attitude. We have to change the way we look at life, learn to take things in stride and keep a cool head in many situations. It is important to honestly acknowledge the first signs of your tension, and then it will be much easier for you to free yourself from them.

What role does relaxation and physical rest play in your life? And how often do you laugh heartily?

So, in the previous article we talked about what gives the right relaxation, and why is it even needed?

In this article we will continue the conversation and look at ways and effective relaxation techniques.

Relaxation methods and techniques

There are many ways to relax. If you don't consider technology and use the simplest and most accessible methods, we can highlight:

• peace and sleep
• alternating tension and relaxation
• physical activity and sports
• alcohol and cigarettes

Let's look at them in more detail.

1. Rest and sleep.

There is nothing better and more effective than sound, healthy sleep. During the REM sleep phase, our muscles relax as much as possible, which cannot be achieved without special techniques while awake. At the same time, our thought processes are also slowed down, therefore, the brain takes a break from powerful information loads.

In this way, a person naturally restores all physical and mental resources. Therefore, overnight, a rested person begins to think better and pushes past problems into the background, worrying much less.

Note

To achieve acceptable relaxation and peace, it is not necessary to go to bed. Despite the effectiveness of sleep, you can’t sleep everywhere. However, you can sit down and relax almost anywhere. Therefore, if the tension is high, sit in peace and quiet, trying not to think about anything, and directing your focus to your body, gradually relaxing it.

2. Alternating relaxation and tension.

This alternation is even more relaxing than usual. relaxation, due to the structure of our muscles.

The main task is to relax, but it is not necessary relaxation must be accompanied by calm. Dancing, swimming, laughter are options for so-called motor relaxation.

Useful feature

If the internal tension is severe enough, the art of kiai can help you. This strange eastern word in this context means nothing more than... to scream. Scream, scream, destroying the energy of negative emotions. Just not at people, but in the chosen space :)

3. Physical activity and sports.

from physiology to sociology and theory of motivation.

Who remembers Maslow's pyramid?

Primary needs These are the physical needs of a person. Let's say, if your boss yelled at you, but you have nothing to eat, will you take the insult? Of course not! Because resentment does not interest us when physical, primary needs are not satisfied.

Using a clear example: agree, when you get very sick, you don’t care about problems. Everything fades into the background, just to get well soon!

It's the same with relaxation. When you work hard as hell in training, on the tatami or in the gym, you become relaxed and calm, free from mental stress and muscle tension.

Personal psychotechnics

I knew one person who constantly said something like this:

Do you doubt it? Beat the makiwara!

Have you stopped believing in yourself? Beat the makiwara!

Can't relax and find harmony?... Hit the makiwara!

Psychotraining is simple and effective. Of course, this technique is more suitable for developing the inner core and will, but believe me, it is also not bad for relaxing.

That is why, in my opinion, one of the most effective ways to relieve tension is to properly beat a pear while listening to the brutal screams of your own “kiai”.

4. Alcohol and cigarettes, drugs.

It’s better not to talk about this at all, but this method cannot be ignored.

• Alcohol relaxes the body, but at the same time gives an outlet for mental subpersonalities from your subcortex, destroys internal organs and STRONGLY destroys the brain and neural connections, leading to personality degradation. By the way, the moment of “intoxication” is nothing more than your body’s reaction to the death of neurons, due to the sharp impact of toxins on the brain.

As a way to relax and unwind - I don't recommend it! In any quantity!

• Cigarettes are relaxing due to deep, rhythmic breathing. Due to the substitution of concepts, first your focus of attention, and then your subconscious, is tied to the object of relaxation - cigarettes. It should be understood that cigarettes themselves (like ventilation of the lungs with fumes) do not relax. Relaxes with a calm, deep breathing rhythm. By the way, over time, smokers have the opposite effect, when a cigarette becomes a psychotechnic – a habit of the brain: you can relax only by “activating” a special technique, i.e. smoking a cigarette. Just breathing gives a weak effect. I don’t explain why.

I don’t recommend it as a way to relax and unwind!

• Narcotic and psychotropic drugs– relax due to the direct impact on the psyche. I think there is no need to explain what this impact leads to.

Note

Regarding the tablets.

The global economic system, our world as we know it, rests on three pillars - pharmacology, chemical and food industries. Moreover, the wealth of the latter depended and still depends on the penultimate one. Look at the composition of food products for the presence of preservatives, dyes, carcinogens and other tripe. Their diversity is impressive. And any of them does not pass without leaving a trace on your body. We are high-precision mechanisms, not “steel machines,” and this means that damage to any “module” disables the entire mechanism as a whole.

Most of what we eat is terribly unhealthful, and often downright harmful. But in case of any failures, the problems are solved with the appropriate tablet. This is business.

It is beneficial for the world and the smart people who created it that we remain stupid. It is beneficial to impose the “choice of the majority.” Having realized this, dictate your own rules of the game.

I do not recommend using drugs, psychotropics, or relaxation pills. They relieve symptoms and have a temporary effect, BUT at the same time they destroy your brain, nervous system, and the body as a whole.

Relaxation techniques

So, currently there are a large number of negative factors affecting the body, leading to stress, weakening it, affecting internal organs, affecting the nervous system, resulting in diseases.

In order to protect yourself from the negative influence of the information age, combine active activity with relaxation. For example, using the above methods or those suggested below relaxation techniques.

Relaxation technique No. 1. Aquarium.

The simplest and most well-known technique is to “stick” to aquarium fish. It helps a lot of people right away. I'm not describing it.

Relaxation technique No. 2. "Here and now".

Meditation technique, Zen style.

Sit comfortably.

Breathe deeply and calmly.

Focus your attention on the place where you are now: only on the space in which your body occupies and only on the object standing nearby.

Stay focused on the “space” and “subject” until your mind is free of tension and thoughts.

Relaxation technique No. 3. Music (Psychoacoustics).

Music itself can accelerate or slow down our mental activity, which is a sin not to take advantage of.

Calm rhythms are suitable for relaxation (slowing down activity): meditation music or the harmonious forces of classics and sonatas, various types of “chill-out” and simply liquid step. I recommend using music along with the correct breathing rhythm for more effective relaxation.

Note

Correct rhythm:

...inhale-exhale-hold your breath-inhale-exhale-hold your breath...

Those. Hold your breath briefly before inhaling.

But after you inhale, exhale immediately.

Note: breathe with your belly

Relaxation technique No. 4. Going to the sauna, bathhouse, visiting hot springs

Under the influence of steam and high temperatures – The blood vessels dilate, which means the blood supply to the muscles improves. This in turn relaxes them.

At the same time, some stagnant processes in the blood supply system are eliminated, and from the center the blood spreads to the periphery, which is also beneficial for the body - the blood flows away from the brain and our nervous activity begins to slow down - a state of relaxation ensues.

• you cannot visit the sauna after eating;
• you should not visit the sauna if you have a cold;
• you cannot enter the sauna wet;
• do not stay in the sauna for a long time, this can lead to collapse;
• in the sauna, air humidity should not be more than 10%;
• Do not suddenly plunge into a pool of cold water;
• You can’t go to the sauna very often;
• drink more regular water.

Relaxation technique No. 5. Jacobson's progressive muscle relaxation.

A psychotherapeutic method of relaxation, a way to get rid of stress. Or in other words, a psychotherapeutic technique for finding harmony and peace :). This method protects the psyche and body from the negative effects of stressful everyday life.

Its essence is as follows.

All muscles are divided into 16 groups. The patient, by concentrating on a certain group, begins to tense the muscles for 5-8 seconds. Afterwards, it relaxes the muscles of the group. In this case, the patient focuses on the sensations in order to remember the “feeling of relaxation.”

Result: during training, over the course of six months, a stable “feeling of relaxation” of the body is developed, which a person remembers through reflexive thinking. Subsequently, relaxation occurs when focusing attention on any muscle group without preliminary tension, thus relieving mental stress.

This psychotechnics is very effective and efficient.

Technique No. 6. Tai Chi - Quan.

Our movements are controlled by our consciousness.

In the West, this art is called “shadow boxing.” And this force is controlled by a calm, quiet flow of energy.

I'm not describing it. An educational film to help you.

Relaxation technique No. 7. Autotraining.

Use straight lines relaxation techniques:

• Aquarium

• Meditation

• Music

• Relaxation

• Taijiquan

And finally, an additional easy “focus of attention” technique

User psychotechnics

For an ordinary adult, busy person, you can safely train relaxation for 5 minutes 5 times a day.

It's quite simple.

During this time, you should focus on your body, releasing all tension from your face and shoulders, calming your breathing, relaxing the muscles of your forehead, eyes, releasing your stomach and diaphragm.

In 2 months, you develop fairly stable relaxation abilities in a wide variety of normal and emergency situations :)

In order to solve fairly complex problems and difficult decisions, it is necessary to master Ericksonian trance self-induction. We will look at one of them in the next article:

Learn to control your body, and you will learn to control your thoughts!

Best regards, Vadim Berlin

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By consuming and processing food, our body provides itself with energy and everything necessary for life.

In this way, it resembles a small power plant that produces energy that is purposefully spent on the needs of the body.

However, at our “power plant”, like at any other enterprise, energy losses are inevitable, reducing the amount of useful energy generated.

One of the main reasons for energy loss is muscle tension, which quietly drains it. By straining and getting tired, the muscles tire the entire body, destroying our performance within 2-3 hours after a night's sleep.

In addition, being under constant tension, the muscles are forced to work, and this contributes to the appearance and maintenance of painful muscle tightness. Perplexed, we believe that we need to train weakened muscles, but when there is no energy, the battery does not work and the light bulb does not light.

Remember!

Tired muscles cannot be strong and efficient. The best rest for such muscles is relaxation and peace, which will allow you to accumulate strength, get rid of pain, relieve tension, and restore the working condition of the muscles.

However, not every body position will provide relaxation and rest to a tired, tense muscle. Moreover, we ourselves often aggravate the situation when we use uncomfortable furniture, for example, we force ourselves to sleep on a hard bed, sit on a “bad” chair, etc. until we feel the muscle tension becoming more and more painful.

Unbearable pain forces us to intuitively find a position that relieves it. And with the disappearance of pain, we forget about it and only with the next exacerbation do we begin to look for a comfortable position. It is these comfortable poses that allow the sore muscle to relax.

They can be used to relax tired muscles both during breaks at work and during night sleep. Resting in such positions will be most effective, and pain will noticeably decrease or disappear completely.

The “Fold and Rest” technique for relaxing and restoring tired muscles will help you find these poses and rationally use them during rest.

Relaxation and recovery technique “fold and rest”

The technique consists of four stages.

Stage I. Awareness of pain

Similar to the first stage of the “Find and Wait” technique.

Stage II. Finding a healing pose

Knowing the location of the diseased muscle and its function, you need to create a position in which pain and tension will stop and relief will appear. As a rule, the muscle in this position is as relaxed as possible. Once in it, she is able to relax automatically.

Control the tight muscle by applying pressure to any painful areas and “folding” around it until relief occurs. Sometimes a healing pose looks awkward, but if it relieves pain, you're on the right track.

You will not find this position right away, after several attempts, gradually getting closer and closer to it.

Stage III. Relaxation

Unfortunately, in cases where severe spasms and BMU occur, the simple command to “relax” does not work. There are many ways to make spasming muscles relax. To do this, you can use the “Find and Wait” technique. Having achieved relaxation, proceed to the next stage.

Stage IV. Rest-recovery

Having found a healing pose, maintain it for a while, during which the affected muscle will calm down and the pain and spasm will go away. To prevent the spasm from returning, try to move slowly, maintaining a healing pose, and carefully awaken the dormant muscle.

Remember!

Relaxation is an important condition for rest, but does not replace it, just as the ability to fall asleep does not replace night sleep.

Therefore, use the opportunities of such rest for recovery during breaks at work, daytime rest and night sleep as needed. The duration of relaxation can vary - from several minutes to several hours.

Leontyev A.V.

Drink green tea: Herbal tea has an excellent relaxing effect. Green tea is a source of L-theanine, which helps relieve anger. Boil water, brew tea, and take a soothing sip—it only takes a couple of minutes.

Chocolate bar: A few pieces of dark chocolate will help relieve stress and improve your mood. Dark chocolate regulates levels of the stress hormone cortisol and stabilizes metabolism, but keep in mind that it is not advisable to abuse it.

Remember about breathing: Is there an easier way to relax? Slow, deep breathing can help lower blood pressure and heart rate. For a change, try pranayama breathing. This yogic technique involves breathing through one nostril and then the other, and is used to reduce anxiety.

Try progressive relaxation: Are you tense? Use progressive relaxation to learn how to relax in any environment. This method consists of step-by-step training in selective tension and relaxation of certain types of muscles.

Count back: Yes, this method is known to everyone, but it really works. Try counting forward and backward several times. Your brain won't have time to worry if it's busy with numbers.

Close your eyes: If you can, then everything is fine. Just isolate yourself from the noise of the office or the chaos of the street behind the protection of tightly closed eyelids. This is an easy way to restore calm and focus.

Body relaxation

Give yourself a hand massage: Of course, you will not be able to use the services of a professional massage therapist at your workplace. But it’s quite possible to do it yourself. This will be especially useful for people who spend a lot of time in front of the keyboard. But if you have a little more than five minutes, then it’s quite possible.

Try acupressure: Acupressure is acupressure that owes its origins to ancient Chinese medicine. This method is less painful and completely safe, while being universally applicable and easily accessible to anyone.

Ride a tennis ball: Take off your shoes and roll a regular tennis ball with your feet. This makes for a great impromptu foot massage. This is especially nice if you have to wear high heels.

Wet your wrists with cold water: If you feel like this, then go to the toilet and just wet your wrists and the area behind your earlobes with cold water. This will help you quickly calm down and relieve tension.

New environment

Be alone: Not everyone needs a cabin in the woods, but five minutes of solitude will help you gather your thoughts and clear your head.

Create your own Zen zone: Find or create a special place for yourself to relax. This is a place where no one and nothing will disturb you. Perhaps it will be a comfortable chair in the hall or a secluded bench in the yard - the main thing is that you associate it with peace and relaxation.

Look out the window: If you constantly look at the TV screen or monitor, then five minutes of contemplating real life outside the window can greatly clear your mind.

Get organized: The daily clutter around you can be a much bigger source of irritation than you think. The chaos on your desk is very often a reflection of the chaos in your head. Remove all that is unnecessary, put in order what is necessary, and you will see how beneficial it will be for you.

Exercises

Stretching: Does this word bring to mind an image of a gym and graceful gymnasts in the splits? This is not at all necessary - you can stretch without even getting up from your workplace. Try to stretch well up and to the sides, various rotations of the body, tilts, or, for example,.

Yoga: Many people think that yoga is very difficult and not entirely suitable for a noisy city. However . Yoga is a great way to take control of not only your body, but also your mind.