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Relaxation techniques are nothing new. They have existed as long as we have. As our lifestyle has progressed so have the solutions to our daily troubles. It is common to feel stressed. But when it goes beyond the “normal” scale, that is when the problem begins and these techniques come to the rescue.
Ask yourself…
How often do I feel anxious for no reason?
How often do I find myself stressing over things that usually end opposite to what I thought?
How often do I find myself beating my head because of work or relationships or just life in general?
Stress has always been an inevitable part of our lives. It leads to flooding the body with hormones. This affects the heart rate, breathing speed, and tenses the muscles. These normal reactions to threatening situations are what is called the “stress response”. Taking stress is engraved in our prehistory. The famous “survival of the fittest” is what led to stress back then. Survival threats like an animal attack or a natural disaster were the reason to top the list in ancient times. In the modern world, the reasons for problems have changed but the intensity has surely grown. Hence, to effectively destress, one needs to activate their body’s natural relaxation response. This helps by developing healthier ways of responding to situations and handling the circumstances in the calmest way possible. But, the question is, how do we do that?
The answer is relaxation techniques. Relaxation techniques are a great way to cope with stress and manage it effectively.
How relaxation techniques are beneficial?
Practicing relaxation techniques doesn’t require anything fancy or luxurious. Learning the basic of these techniques and performing them regularly can help you with the following:
Improved sleep quality
Boosting confidence
Reduces cortisol levels and blood pressure
Problem-solving
Improves your immune system
Reduces heart rate
Increased blood flow
Better mood
Improved concentration
Reducing the activities of stress hormones
Maintaining normal blood sugar levels
Reduces frustration and anger
These are some of the ways in which relaxing techniques can help you combat stress. Now, let’s dive deep into what techniques one can follow to destress and relax in their daily life.
Deep breathing
Deep breathing is one of the most simple yet powerful relaxation techniques to practice when you feel stressed. It can be practiced anywhere and is easy to learn.Stress makes your body go into the “fight or flight” mode by activating the sympathetic nervous system. Stress hormones are released during this process, leading to experiences like a faster heartbeat, quicker breathing, and constricted blood vessels. Relaxation techniques help in activating the parasympathetic nervous system. The deep breathing exercise aims your concentration on your breath, making it slower and deeper. Diaphragmatic breathing, a type of deep breathing, helps in slowing the heart. When you deep breath through your nose, the lungs expand and the belly rises. This allows you to focus on your breathing and lets you feel more peaceful.
Journaling
As a writer, I’d always vouch for writing it down to handle the stress. When you have a gazillion of thoughts running in your mind, jotting them down on a piece of paper is always helpful. Journaling is a very powerful habit. When you are swamped with negativity, it becomes important to slow down and catch a breath. It helps in dealing with mental stress and anxiety. Because writing down your thoughts lifts a heavyweight from your chest and helps you in calming your mind.
The new feature of our 360Wellness app will work well as your companion. It provides you your personal space to journal your thoughts at any time of the day.
Aromatherapy
Aromatherapy has become quite popular as a stress reliever and healer in the recent few years. The unique properties in the oils help by reducing the feeling of stress and anxiety. Lavender, rose and sandalwood are some of the most soothing scents. Aromatherapy has sincere stress-relieving benefits. It helps you to feel more energized, more relaxed, and more present in the moment. According to research, the scent of the essential oils alters brain wave activity by stimulating the hypothalamus and decreasing the activity of stress hormones in the body.
Spend time with loved ones
We are social beings. Social surroundings and social expectations are an inevitable part of our existence.
Studies have concluded that spending time with friends and children, specifically for women, helps in dealing with stress as it releases the hormone oxytocin, a natural stress reliever. This effect is opposite to the “fight or flight” response and is called “tend and befriend”. Another study, on the other hand, also suggested that men and women with very few social connections were more likely to suffer from depression and anxiety. So, how about you join the wellness sessions on the 360Wellness app from our instructors along with your family members and friends and keep your loved ones’ wellness in check? The social wall in the app is a great opportunity for all you wellness enthusiasts to connect and build meaningful relationships with like minded people.
Listen to soothing music
Listening to music has a very soothing and relaxing effect on the body. It is a good way to relieve stress and calm your mind. Slow-paced instrumental music helps by inducing a relaxing response in the body. It lowers blood pressure and heart rate and decreases the effects of stress hormones. Natural sounds from the environment have a very calming effect on the mind. This is a strong reason why you would often hear them in relaxation and meditation music.
Conclusion
Stress is very natural to us. But, unfortunately, the solutions are not practised as naturally. We have become quick to overthink, divert and stress our minds even to the slightest of the things. But, we are yet to reach a stage where we prioritise to stop for a while and simply let ourselves be.
We, at 360Wellness, aim to help you improve your overall wellness. And our inbuild Wellness tracker does that by giving you different ways to cope up with your stress and stay fit, both physically and mentally. To keep you ahead of the game in the journey of your growth, the Wellness tracker acts as the perfect companion one could ask for.
So, what are you waiting for? Set your wellness goals with our Wellness tracker. Download the 360Wellness app on your android and iOS to start your wellness journey with us. Our wellness instructors are looking forward to the grove with you.
Authors’ bio: Shweta is a freelance content writer in the Lifestyle and Wellness space. Residing in the beautiful country of India, she is an avid reader. You can easily find her on her couch watching her favorite shows online or learning more about skincare and haircare when not writing.
Follow Shweta: Instagram. LinkedIn. Shweta’s writer website.
By Diksha
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