2,99 €
Mehr erfahren.
- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Ratgeber
- Serie: In A Day For Dummies
- Sprache: Englisch
- Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2012
Discover how relaxation can help you reduce stress and calm your mind Become More Relaxed In a Day introduces you to a range of relaxation techniques and exercises that can help you to keep your life in balance, and stop stress from taking over. Designed to contain a day's reading, this handy guide helps you to discover the benefits of relaxation for your mind, body and spirit. Open the book and find: * How to make relaxation a part of your daily routine * Top tips for using exercise to help you relax * Advice on using massage and self-massage to help you relax * Ways to ensure you have time and space to relax at home * Guidance on maintaining your work-life balance
Sie lesen das E-Book in den Legimi-Apps auf:
Seitenzahl: 103
Ähnliche
Become More Relaxed In A Day For Dummies®
Table of Contents
Become More Relaxed In A Day For Dummies
by Shamash Alidina
Become More Relaxed In A Day For Dummies®
Published byJohn Wiley & Sons, Ltd The Atrium Southern Gate Chichester West Sussex PO19 8SQ Englandwww.wiley.com
Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, Chichester, West Sussex, England
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, Chichester, West Sussex
All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except under the terms of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 or under the terms of a licence issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, Saffron House, 6-10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS, UK, without the permission in writing of the Publisher. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, England, or emailed to [email protected], or faxed to (44) 1243 770620.
Trademarks: Wiley, the Wiley logo, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, A Reference for the Rest of Us!, The Dummies Way, Dummies Daily, The Fun and Easy Way, Dummies.com, Making Everything Easier, and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc., and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.
Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: The publisher and the author make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this work and specifically disclaim all warranties, including without limitation warranties of fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales or promotional materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for every situation. This work is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional services. If professional assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. Neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for damages arising herefrom. The fact that an organization or Website is referred to in this work as a citation and/or a potential source of further information does not mean that the author or the publisher endorses the information the organization or Website may provide or recommendations it may make. Further, readers should be aware that Internet Websites listed in this work may have changed or disappeared between when this work was written and when it is read.
For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 877-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax 317-572-4002.
For technical support, please visit www.wiley.com/techsupport.
Wiley publishes in a variety of print and electronic formats and by print-on-demand. Some material included with standard print versions of this book may not be included in e-books or in print-on-demand. If this book refers to media such as a CD or DVD that is not included in the version you purchased, you may download this material at http://booksupport.wiley.com. For more information about Wiley products, visit www.wiley.com.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data: A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 978-1-118-38039-0 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-38040-6 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-38041-3 (ebk)
Introduction
For over a decade my work has given me the honour and privilege of helping adults reduce their stress. I’ve been fortunate enough to help thousands of people, through personal consultations, workshops, books, audios and online classes – a truly humbling thought. In that time, one thing has stood out: most people don’t know how to relax. Relaxation is a skill. You may think you relax when you rest on your sofa watching TV, or even when you sleep, but that’s not the deep or nourishing relaxation that is explored in this book.
Relaxation not only prevents disease but also promotes wellbeing. If you’re under the right amount of pressure rather than overly stressed, the more intelligent and creative parts of your brain function effectively. You can process emotions well, thereby improving your relationships. You get fewer mood swings, you see things in a more light-hearted way, and you understand situations from a bigger perspective. You make better decisions and fewer mistakes.
Ultimately, a well-balanced life combines effective, regular relaxation techniques together with a wise attitude to daily living. This wisdom is already within you, and learning to trust your inner intuition allows you to access this wisdom regularly.
If you want to book a telephone consultation, appointment, workshop or offer some feedback, please get in touch with me through http://learnmindfulness.co.uk – I’d love to hear from you. Thank you!
What You Can Do In A Day
As part of the In A Day For Dummies series, I designed this book to contain about a day’s reading (or a couple of days if you’re taking your time). I focus on some of the key relaxation techniques that can help you to live a more relaxed life – all of which can be easily digested in a day. You should have enough information to be able to feel the difference in your stress levels immediately.
Foolish Assumptions
In writing this book, I made a few assumptions about who you are:
You want more relaxation in your life but don’t know where to start.
You’re willing to try the various relaxation techniques and strategies I suggest a few times, before judging whether they’ll work for you.
You’re willing to set aside some time in your day to practise a relaxation technique.
Beyond those, I’ve not assumed too much, I hope.
Icons Used in This Book
You will see various icons sprinkled through the book to guide you on your way. Icons are a For Dummies way of drawing your attention to important and interesting stuff and things you really need to know not to do.
Handy titbits to help you get the best from your relaxation studies. These little ideas summarise key relaxation concepts in bite-size chunks so you can access relaxation that little bit more easily.
This is stuff you need to know: whatever else you carry away, note these bits with care.
Take careful note of the advice under this icon, and you’ll avoid unnecessary problems.
These are examples of situations that I’ve encountered that I feel will help you to better understand how the techniques of relaxation can be used in everyday life.
This is a practical publication. This icon offers you an opportunity to try certain relaxation techniques or strategies. By putting the theory into practice, you can begin to experience a greater sense of wellbeing.
Some of the concepts in this book can get a little tricky. If you’d like a little more explanation, look out for the tech stuff icon.
This icon marks some of the additional material you can find on the book’s companion website at www.dummies.com/go/inaday/becomemorerelaxed.
Chapter 1
Discovering Relaxation
In This Chapter
Uncovering the basics of relaxation
Seeing how relaxation benefits all aspects of your life
Making relaxation part of your daily routine
The phrase ‘just relax’ sounds so simple. To relax you really just need to stop ‘doing’. And yet ‘stopping doing’ is easier said than done. Your life has probably got more demanding over time. In those few moments that you have for yourself, relaxation may seem elusive. You may ask yourself questions like ‘How do I relax?’, ‘What’s the best way to relax?’ or ‘Why am I so stressed all the time?’
In this chapter, I help you begin your journey from anxiety and worry to discovering ways to find greater ease and peace in your life.
Understanding Relaxation
Relaxation is a state of mental calm and focus, free from unnecessary bodily tension. Relaxation is associated with a feeling of peace and tranquillity. You can achieve greater relaxation in two main ways:
Using relaxation techniques such as meditation, progressive relaxation or guided imagery.
Doing relaxation activities such as taking a bath, going for a walk, improving your time management skills or playing a sport.
Relaxation techniques reduce your stress and put you into a state of body and mind where you’re deeply relaxed. This effect is called the relaxation response and is the opposite of feeling stressed. When your relaxation response is turned on, positive changes take place in your body and mind. You’re better able to digest food and fight disease. You feel calm and at peace.
Relaxation activities help to reduce stress rather than put you into a state of relaxation. Most relaxation activities don’t engage your relaxation response unless they encourage a calm focus of your attention, such as when you’re stroking a cat or doing a hobby that requires gentle attention.
You may not be good at relaxing at the moment, but you can definitely get better at relaxation. Relaxation is a skill and improves with practice. Learning relaxation techniques requires some time and effort, and you get the hang of them through trial and error, just like learning anything new.
Most people say activities like watching TV, having a cup of tea and chatting to a friend are relaxing. These activities do reduce stress and are certainly valuable, but they don’t turn on your relaxation response, so they’re stress-reducing but not deeply relaxing.
The state of relaxation isn’t sleeping. If you use a relaxation technique and you fall asleep, that’s fine but after you fall asleep, you don’t get any better at relaxing – you’re just asleep. In true relaxation you feel calm and free of tension, but quite focused too.
Living a relaxed lifestyle requires relaxing activities, regular practice of relaxation techniques and a relaxed attitude, as I show in Figure 1-1.
Figure 1-1: Three components of a relaxed lifestyle.
Discovering the relaxation response
When you’re stressed, your body turns on your stress response. Your blood pressure rises and your body prepares to run or fight. This is a process that’s automatic and hard-wired in your body once triggered. No effective drug currently exists to counteract the harmful effects of chronic stress, so the best way to counteract stress, with no known side effects, is to regularly elicit your relaxation response.
