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Dr. Herbert Benson, a Harvard cardiologist, has made
a study of the counterbalancing mechanisms of the body's stress reaction. He discovered that while
the fight-or-flight response is part of the hard wired response to stress, there is an opposite response, he called the relaxation
response. The relaxation response causes the body to calm itself. Metabolism decreases, heart rate decreases, blood pressure
decreases, breathing rate decreases and muscle tension decreases. Dr. Benson has discovered that the relaxation
response can be elicited by a number of techniques including:
- Diaphragmatic breathing
- Meditation
- Yoga
- Body
scan exercise
- Mindfulness meditation
- Repetitive exercise
- Progressive muscle relaxation
- Imagery
- Repetitive
prayer
Those who elicit the relaxation response regularly, such as on a daily basis,
report these kinds of changes: - Improved sleep
- Decrease
in stress-related symptoms
- Decrease in anxiety
- Increase in concentration and awareness
- Greater
self-acceptance
- Enhanced performance and efficiency.
- Freedom from compulsive worrying, self- criticism, negative thoughts
There
are the basic steps in learning to elicit the relaxation response: · A mental
focusing device, such as attending to your breathing, or repeating a word, phrase, prayer, sound, to help you shift
your mind from everyday worries. He suggest you use the word ‘one’ or ‘calm’ as your device. ·
Gently direct your mind back to your mental or physical relaxation exercise when you notice yourself
getting caught up in a train of thought. Keep a passive attitude toward distractions. Possible
instructions for patients to elicit the relaxation response include: Step 1: Pick
a focus word, phrase, image, or prayer. Step 2: Sit quietly in a comfortable position. Step
3: Close your eyes. Step 4: Relax your muscles. Step
5: Breathe slowly and naturally, and as you do, repeat your focus word or phrase as you exhale. Step
6: Do not worry about how well you are doing. When other thoughts come to mind, simply
say to yourself, "Oh well," and gently return to the repetition. Step 7:
Continue for ten to twenty minutes. Deep breathing is the body’s natural way to relax. We seem
to know how to breathe as children but as we grow up, we forget. We tend to breathe in a very shallow way in the upper part
of the chest.
Try these:
- Lie down on a bed or on the floor. Bend your knees and relax your
toes. Keep your spine straight. If need be put a small pillow under your lower back for support.
- Scan your body for tension. Imaging the tension just draining away.
- Place on hand on your abdomen and one on your chest.
- Inhale
slowly and deeply. Notice which hand moves the most. For many people it is the hand on the chest.
- Continue breathing deeply. Concentrate on moving the hand on your abdomen more than the hand
on your chest.
- Continue this for 5 or 10 minutes. This is a
way to learn abdominal breathing and to learn to breathe yourself into relaxation.
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