Relaxation Techniques for Stress

Both Muscle State Recognition and Scanning the Body are useful relaxation techniques for anxiety and stress as they allow you to recognize the results of stress on your body and to learn to let it go. A related video on Ellen's Video blog from March 26, 2011: Two Quick Stress Management Techniques

Muscle State Recognition

This guided relaxation audio teaches you to tell the difference between a tense muscle and a relaxed one. Why do you need to learn to do that? Since most of your response to stress is automatic, you become aware of it after you have sore muscles or headaches. The ability to recognize and relax before the pain, before the exhaustion, before the mistakes at work, is very helpful.

How can you let tension go, how can you learn to relax, when you can not pinpoint when or where you are holding tension? Muscle state recognition will teach you to develop this skill in any area of your body, not only the usual tension sites of neck, shoulders, and back.

When applied regularly, this guided relaxation mp3, will teach you to notice the tension as it begins. You then have the choice to relax the skills to do so.

Use your skills throughout the day

It is most helpful to apply formal, seated, relaxation techniques while you are engaged in activities. You want to decrease stress during times of tension. Both of these guided relaxation mp3's teach skills you can apply throughout your day - while active.

Learn them formally at first, in a quiet area of your home, with no interruptions. Later, after you are confident you have learned what you need to release tension, use your new skills when engaged in everyday tasks. Brushing your teeth or hair, any daily hygiene activity or as a passenger in a vehicle are all good times to begin to apply them. Use the scanning and muscle state recognition techniques in every activity of your day. Break your life-long patterns. Choose again.

      Scanning the Body

This guided relaxation mp3 is a gentle, stress-changing practice. It teaches you to stand back from your physical body and become aware of habitual ways of reacting to stress. You begin to notice how and where you hold tension, as well as how quickly your respond to it. Scanning brings your automatic or sub-conscious responses, to conscious awareness.

As you learn to watch, to observe, and to mentally "stand back" from the body, it is allowed to function without interference from your responses to stress. The scanning practice brings awareness of your patterns to front mind – to your immediate notice.