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Many of us end up worrying and have high anxiety levels. Anxiety discourages us from being happy and can cause health risks.
The reasons can be varied for what causes worry. The feeling of churning stomach, endless spinning of thoughts and hence negative thoughts. How then can one conquer anxiety and attain a state of well being and calmness.
There are many changes we can make in our lives to dramatically reduce stress, enabling us to feel more fulfilled in both our personal and professional lives. Life is short, why not make it an enjoyable experience.
There are a variety of exercises that one can stick to, believe you me, a two minute routine can do wonders for you. Here are a few exercises that can help you.
1.Breathing Technique: The way you breath, can change the way you feel. You can do this exercise absolutely anywhere, as long as you feel comfortable doing so.
Close your eyes and take in a few slow deep breaths using the stomach. Then
Don't gasp for air but allow the oxygen to gently and slowly come in and go out. Once you have practised doing the breathing by itself, you can then put it together with the following:
As you breathe in, imagine that the air you are breathing in is clean and bright and is going in through your nose, penetrating all parts of your body, and cleaning out any tension in your muscles or stresses in your mind (some people imagine breathing in a bright white light)
As you breathe out, imagine these tensions from the body and stresses of the day traveling up to your nose and being literally breathed out of your nose. Visualize those negative feelings. As you do this, imagine yourself feeling more comfortable and your muscles more relaxed after having breathed out all those old tensions.
Spending as little as 2 minutes every couple of hours to do the exercise is not much time, and the benefits of being able to work more effectively far out-way the time put in.
2.The "Wide Angle" Technique (To focus in and spread awareness)
Take in a few deep breaths from the stomach, and then focus on a spot slightly above head level, say on the wall opposite you. Then, whilst keeping your eyes open, begin to broaden your field of vision (or peripheral vision) and begin to become aware of what you can see in the corner of your eyes on each side. There is nothing else you have to do apart from just to notice and become aware of what is around you. You can then expand your level of awareness to cover 360 degrees. Obviously you can't see behind you, but just use your other senses to become aware of what's behind you.
You may also become aware that your breathing has become more deep and slow, and your muscles have loosened slightly. Simply remain focused on the space around you and allow your breathing to deepen itself.
This powerful technique seems to work by allowing your mind to observe rather than be active, and there is something about focusing in this way which seems to stimulate the body's relaxation response rather than the body's stress response.
3. Bodily Awareness Technique
This exercise is helpful whenever you find yourself feeling slightly rushed or overwhelmed with what you are doing.
Close your eyes and become aware of your body and all the sensations in your body. Become aware of your feet on the floor, and your arms, and your legs. Become aware of the sounds around you. Then focus your attention on any tightness or uncomfortable sensations in the body or in the head. Don't judge, simply notice and observe. As you observe with a feeling of stillness you may find that those areas begin to loosen and relax. Don't actively try and make them relaxed, let those areas of the body do it by themselves whilst you simply observe dispassionately and in a still manner.
Gently open your eyes after a period of time and see how you feel. This technique is so simple yet it works wonders.
4: Relaxing Inner-Place
Sit or lie down in a comfortable position. Close your eyes and imagine your favorite place where you feel most relaxed, calm and peaceful. For a lot of people they imagine a place where they went on holiday, their favorite garden or beach, or even a room at home. Begin to focus on what you can see around you, and what you can hear in that place. Next imagine any smells around you. Now you are ready to soak up the feelings that you feel in that special inner place. Imagine the feelings you get when you go back to that place, and imagine really being there and enjoying that peace - nothing expected of you, nothing you have to do, nothing you have to achieve. For those few moments you can just BE in the moment (we are human beings, not human doings!). Once you have really immersed yourself in that scene, you can notice your breathing beginning to deepen and your muscles loosen. When you're ready, you can open your eyes and go about your day knowing you can go back to your inner-place anytime you like.
A regular exercise program can lead you to living a life where you focus on living happily in the present instead of worrying about the future or dreading the past.
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