Lesson Three - How Stress Affects Your Body

This is an easy but powerful technique. Learning how to properly deep breathe can help you to reduce your stress levels quickly, and it can be done almost anywhere. Follow these steps to begin deep breathing:

• Find a comfortable position to sit in with your back fairly straight. Place one hand on your stomach, with the other on your chest.
• Take a deep breath in through your nose (the hand on your stomach should rise while the hand on your chest should not move much). Hold this for at least five seconds.
• Exhale the breath through your mouth. Try to push as much air out as you possibly can (the hand on your stomach should move again, while the hand on your chest should not move much).
• Continue breathing like this for at least 10 breaths.

* If you are having an issue getting a deep breath while sitting, you can try laying down.

This technique has two main steps involved: intentionally targeting specific muscles to tense and then fully relaxing those muscles. The more practise you have with this technique, the more aware you will become with what tension and relaxation feels like in different parts of your body. Follow these steps in order to practise this technique:

• Make sure that you are wearing comfortable clothes, preferably with your shoes off.
• You can sit or lay down for this technique, just make sure that you are comfortable. Relax your body with a couple of minutes of deep breathing.
• Focus on your right foot and how it feels. Tense the muscles in your right foot slowly, squeezing as tight as you can and hold for 10 seconds. Relax your foot and focus on how the tension is flowing out of your foot.
• Stay relaxed for a moment, taking a few deep breaths.
• Focus on your left foot and how it feels. Tense the muscles in your left foot slowly, squeezing as tight as you can and hold for 10 seconds. Relax your foot and focus on how the tension is flowing out of your foot.
• Slowly move up through your legs and through the rest of your body, continuing to consciously tense, hold, and release different muscle groups. Also try to follow the same “path” through the body each time you do this technique.

*Try to only tense the muscle group intended. Do a quick body scan and see if any other muscle groups are engaged that should be relaxed.

This type of meditation is much like the progressive muscle relaxation technique, but you do not do tense and release. Instead, with this technique, you do a slow “scan” of your body to see how each part of your body feels. One thing to remember, however, is that you should not label the feelings as good or bad, but just acknowledge that you have noticed the feeling and move on to the next part of the body. Follow these steps in order to practise this technique:

• Lie down in a comfortable position with your legs uncrossed and arms at your sides.
• Breath deeply for a couple of minutes until you start to feel completely relaxed.
• Focus on your right foot. What sensations are you feeling there? Acknowledge the sensations and continue to relax your body and breathe deeply. Do this for 5–10 seconds.
• Move to the sole of the right foot, the ankle, calf, knee, thigh, and hip. Once you have completed the right leg, switch to the left foot and move up to the hip in the same sequence, up the torso, lower and upper back, chest and shoulders. Make sure that you pay special attention to any areas on your body that are causing you any discomfort or pain.
• After you have finished your body scan, stay lying for a couple more minutes and relax while slowly breathing.

Visualization is also called guided imagery, and it involves imagining a scene that you find peaceful. The purpose of visualization is to release tension and reduce stress levels. Many apps have guided imagery that take you through different scenarios, or you can just listen to relaxing music and think of your own tension-releasing image. YouTube also offers many different visualizations.

The following are some examples for you:

A massage can help to reduce stress levels, muscle tension, as well as aches and pains. After a long day, you can help to relieve some of this pressure by massaging your neck, head, and shoulders. The following is how you can do a quick, five minute massage to help relax you before going to sleep:

• Knead the muscles in your neck and shoulders. Using a loose fist, pulsate up and down your neck. Next, use your thumbs to work little circles around the base of your skull (the foramen magnum—where the spine enters the skull). Slowly move to using your fingers around your entire scalp from back to front and sides.
• Using your thumbs and fingers, massage your face. Concentrate on your temples, forehead and jaw.

Mindfulness meditation is a technique that helps you focus on the present. This may sound easy but it actually takes quite a bit of practise to stay focused on the present and not let your mind wander to the past or future—so do not be dismayed if you find your mind roaming often! Every time you are able to bring your mind back to the present, you are training your brain to create this new habit. Follow these steps to begin mindfulness meditation:

• Make sure that you are in a quiet area and that you are comfortable, sitting with your back straight.
• Take deep breaths and find something to focus on, such as your breathing or a word or mantra that you repeat throughout the meditation.
• Your thoughts will wander (especially at first). Don’t worry about, fight, or judge these thoughts, just gently bring your thoughts back to your main focus.

This technique has two main steps involved:you are not only working out in some sort of repetitive movement, but you are also being present and not “zoning out” watching TV or listening to music while doing so. For example, if you are running, focus on how your feet feel hitting the ground with every step, how your arms feel with every swing, and how your breath is complementing how fast you are running. Some examples of rhythmic movement exercises could include:

• running
• walking
• swimming

Yoga is a combination of stationary and moving poses, along with deep breathing. It can help improve your flexibility, strength, and balance, as well as decrease stress. However, if yoga is not practised properly, you can easily injure yourself, so it is recommended that you start by taking a class or having an instructor of some sort. There are three main types of yoga that are best for stress relief:

• Satyananda–this type of yoga is the ‘standard’ kind of yoga. It involves poses that are quite gentle, relaxation, and meditation aspects. This type of yoga is good for beginners and stress reduction.
• Hatha Yoga–this type of yoga is also good for beginners. It focuses on breathing, the mind and body, meditation, and mild yoga poses.
• Power Yoga–this type of yoga is recommended for people who are experienced. The poses are intense and focus more on fitness and stimulation rather than relaxation.

Tai chi is a series of slow moving, continuous body movements. The intent of tai chi is to focus your mind on the movements of your body and your breathing, and to stay mindful of the present. This type of exercise is good for all fitness levels, including those recovering from an injury, because it is low impact.