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Stress Busting

Achieve Complete Mental Relaxation & Inner Peace

There are countless aspects of our busy modern lives that trigger stress and anxiety in our minds. For some, it can be a stressful job, an embarrassing bodily condition, an overachieving nature or perhaps an unhappy relationship.

While we all have our unique set of problems, we can always find support in the common stress-busting practices that are popular throughout the world.

Here, take a look at some of the best practices and techniques that promote mental relaxation:

Meditation

Meditation allows us to balance all our energies, eliminate all negativities and surround us with positive energy. Practicing mindful meditation allows us to focus our attention towards our present and all the things that are happening to us in the present moment.

It allows us to silence all those stressful and anxiety-ridden thoughts and listen to our body. It helps us regulate our breathing patterns and listen to all the sounds of nature, such as trees whooshing, birds chirping and even the tranquillity of silence. It is truly the best way to calm your nerves and drive out stress from your body until nothing remains but peace.

Breathing Techniques

Breathing exercises are an excellent technique to achieve instant relaxation, and they are quite beneficial for managing stress, particularly when you are exposed to a very stressful situation. The trick is to take a few minutes, leave everything you are doing and concentrate on inhaling and then slowly, exhaling. Repeat this simple exercise a couple times and you’ll be able to feel the calm washing over your body.

Warm Baths

Soaking up in a warm bath is one of the best traditional remedies to bust stress and cleanse your body free of all those stressor that are nagging your mind and vanquishing your inner peace. Fill up a tub with steaming hot water, light up some scented candles, throw in some essential oils, such as lavender, peppermint or rose, and allow the scintillating aroma to drive out all the stress from your limbs. You can even use some Epsom salts, which are excellent at promoting deep relaxation and eliminating anxieties, or spice things up with colourful bath bombs that will explode in your tub into a kaleidoscope of exciting colours.

Soothing Music

Soothing music, peaceful instrumentals and whatever music that helps promote relaxation in your mind is also a terrific technique to bust stress and achieve relaxation. When faced with complications or a stressful situation, just put on your headphones and listen to that one track that helps you get rid of all the anxieties plaguing your mind.

Keeping a Journal

If you’re dealing with depression, traumatic events, or exposure to any kind of stressors that are plaguing your peace for prolonged periods of time, writing about it is one of the most powerful techniques of developing a deeper understanding of yourself. Writing about everything that bothers your mind will help you identify your problems, which will naturally help you develop stronger strategies to deal with these problems. It will also allow you to empty your mind and heart of all the pain and suffering that is triggering the stress, and as you transfer your thoughts on to paper, you’ll end up feeling much lighter and peaceful.

Guided Imagery Techniques

Guided imagery has emerged as one of the most popular techniques to achieve both your goals, of personal and professional growth. It is extremely effective at regaining your calm and peace and feeling relaxed upon being exposed to stressful circumstances.

Basically, it involves imagining yourself in a stress-free and relaxed setting where you are your happiest self. You can achieve these therapeutic benefits through audiotapes, scripts, or even a teacher who can help steer your way through the entire process. You can even find some helpful videos on YouTube to effectively manage your stress and gain instant relaxation.

Yoga

Yoga is a form of therapeutic exercise that has countless benefits for both, the mind and the body. With a few simple moves that focus on stretching your muscles and cleansing your respiratory system, yoga can help you de-stress your brain and achieve a complete state of mental relaxation. By relaxing your muscles, yoga aids in fighting off stress and anxiety, and uplifting your spirits to feel motivated and happier. You can take yoga classes, or even get some books and videos so you can practice your own routine at home.

Progressive Muscle Relaxation

Another modern stress-busting practice that focuses on our muscles and involves tensing and relaxing every single muscle group in the body to drive out stress and anxiety and relieve muscle tension. This is particularly beneficial for those who have troubling fall asleep due to extreme stress, as it will help overcome your sleeping problems by relaxing your muscles, which will automatically signal the body to prepare for sleep. This process helps drive out stress and build up the strength of muscles so you can combat your challenges with a stronger resolve and greater awareness.

A Brisk Walk

The importance of a brisk walk can simply never be undermined for it is one of the simplest and easiest ways to avoid a stressful situation and carve out some time for mindful reflection, relaxation and self-awareness. If you have encountered a stressful situation at work or at home, just take out 20 minutes to walk around the block, gather your thoughts and relax your mind. It will help you find a new perspective to deal with this problem, and make light of your circumstances.

Luxuriating Massages

Our stressful routines and the plethora of chores we must engage ourselves with each day never allow us to carve out some me-time and luxuriate ourselves in the pleasures of being pampered. Therefore, it is essential to treat yourself to a massage every now and then and allow an expert to work out all those tensions and anxieties that knot up your muscles and keep your stress all day long.

If you have any specific areas that complain of stress, for instance, the back or the shoulders, allow the expert to work his/her magic as masseuse know special techniques of driving out stress and ensuring relaxation. On days you simply don’t have time for a massage, ask your partner to give you a nice back rub to drive out the tension and restore your calm.

A Warm Drink

Having a warm non-caffeinated and non-alcoholic drink, for instance, warm milk, green tea, herb tea or even hot chocolate, can help combat stress and anxiety by relieving your nerves of the stress and anxiety that is causing all the restlessness and despair. Green tea is particularly effective in such instances for it packs up a large concentration of powerful antioxidants that bust stress and promote deep mental relaxation. Chamomile tea is another extremely effective solution.

Colouring Mandalas

Prominent Swiss psychoanalyst, Carl Jung, was the first person to introduce the Asian art of mandalas to Western society for he was highly impressed and fascinated by their therapeutic benefits. He introduced the idea of coloring circle mandalas in order to bust stress and anxiety, and gain deep mental relaxation.

In modern day, you can download countless mandala coloring apps on your smartphone, or even invest in some coloring books if you prefer doing it the traditional way. This form of artistic expression will help you get rid of the stress that is nagging your peace and tranquillity.

What do you think?

Written by Lara Kroft