For Stressful Times Take Five

You don't need the headlines to tell you these are stressful times. The mortgage crisis, jobs lost, inadequate health care, wall street and bank bailouts. If you're not directly affected, you probably know someone dear who is. On top of that you've got your own "stuff" - jobs, families and other responsibilities and the stress begins to take its toll. The outward signs may be hard to detect in the beginning, but one sure sign of stress can be seen in your eyes. Take a moment to look directly at your eyes in the mirror. Normally you see the whites on either side of the iris. If the whites are visible under the irises, that's a symptom of high stress. If you see the upper whites of your eyes, above the irises, that is a sign of chronic stress. These are signs that you need to take care of your overall health....now. Make time in your schedule to rest and release some of that stress and negative emotion. Try the following techniques for relaxing relief in just five minutes.

Rest Your Eyes And Clear Your Mind

Reiki, or energy therapy (sometimes called healing touch) is an ancient Japanese healing tradition for stress reduction and relaxation. Reiki Hands is a quick technique when you need a deeply relaxing break - especially for those times when you need to concentrate and think more clearly. So, let's get started by relaxing the eyes. Seated, place your elbows on a desk or table. Vigorously rub and clap your hands together to create warmth. Cup your hands over your eyes. Take slow, deep breaths and try to see nothing but black. Tibetan yogis believed that black is the color for optimum relaxation of the optic nerve. Stay with this exercise a few moments or until you feel relaxed enough to continue with your day.

Stop Feeling Overwhelmed

NLP or Neuro Linguistic Programming is the study of how language, both verbal and nonverbal affects our nervous system, thoughts and emotions. By using a simple NLP signal you can change feeling nervous, tense and overwhelmed into a much more relaxed state in minutes. All you have to do is touch your thumb to your forefinger (your NLP signal to relax) making an "OK" sign. Take a deep breath and as you slowly exhale say to yourself, "I am calm and relaxed. The outside world does not concern me right now. My thoughts are serene, calm and relaxed". Repeat until you begin to feel sensations of relaxation. Go to your place of special memories - something that makes you feel good. Allow a few moments to feel good about yourself. Practice this NLP technique and in no time you will be able to feel relaxed just by touching your thumb to your forefinger.

Fighting Mad - Blow it Off

The next time you hear news that makes you tense, stressed or angry, notice where you feel it on your body. Stomach in knots? Tightness in chest? Pain in neck or shoulders? Wherever you feel it, try the following technique to relieve it. Close your eyes and mentally get in touch with the area of discomfort. Visualize/imagine that this feeling has a size, shape and color. Then begin to manipulate the size - make it longer, shorter, wider, and finally smaller than a dot. Make the shape smoother, rounder, weightless. Make the color lighter, brighter, softer, - becoming billowy and airy. Allow this airy feeling to travel up your body. Imagine it reaching the back of your throat. Then take a deep breath and forcefully blow it out of your body! Scan your body. Do you still feel tense, stressed or angry? If so, close your eyes and repeat this technique a few times until the feeling is gone. You are now back in control.

You Deserve To Be Happy and Healthy

If you are like most of us your day begins at 7:00 am and doesn't end until 10:00 pm or 11:00 pm. That's approximately a 16 hour day - or 960 minutes to schedule five minute relaxation breaks just for you. Surely that's not too much to ask for your health and well being. Whether you are in a state of high stress, chronic stress, or just have a desire to be proactive in your approach to stress management, the above techniques can be applied quickly and easily to bring you relief.

*Adapted from my book "When You Need a Timeout", http://www.thecalmingbreath.com/ .