One of the first truly useful relaxation exercises, progressive muscle relaxation, has been refined based on careful research to identify the most effective timing and cadence. Following the verbal instructions, the client is guided to tense and then relax every important muscle grouping in the body. This process can have a profoundly calming effect.
After using the progressive muscle relaxation exercise, one can use the imagery exercise that guides the person to mentally relax important muscle groups. This exercise also includes a Soundhealth harmonic that relaxes the brain in a manner similar to the effect of meditation. Hence, with the imagery exercise the person can relax both the body and the brain.
There are literally thousands of products designed to help you relax. Some are quite good and others useless, often adding to your feelings of tension and stress. Relaxation exercises have to be suited to the person to be effective. If not, the person feels worse not better after the exercise. Soothe includes two different forms of muscle relaxation, one active and one passive so that virtually every person will find at least one suitable to their needs. Some people find the most benefit by using either the active or the passive form exclusively whereas others like to alternate between the two forms.
Relaxation helps everything
Relaxation exercises are often the “backbone” of some psychological therapies. When one can relax the body and the mind, sleep quality gets better, tension aches and pains are minimized, one feels rested and calm, health improves, and one’s quality of life in general seems better.
Reduce mental chatter
One often hears of people who claim that they simply cannot meditate. They try to be still and focus on quieting the mind but the mental chatter won’t stop. At the end of the meditation they feel worse! They feel anxious, frustrated and often angry because the form of meditation simply was not suitable for them. Progressive muscle relaxation, the active exercise on Soothe, is a perfect relaxation exercise for these people. The procedure is active, occupying the mind with specific body movements. The effect of this active procedure is to reduce body tension and slow down the mental chatter. Jimmie, from Boston, reported that after his first use of the active Soothe exercise, the “squirrel cage in my head quieted down.”
Tension-related aches and pains
Many body discomforts are tension-related. The most obvious of these include tension headaches, restless leg syndrome, fidgetiness, arthritis, fibromyalgia, and chronic fatigue. Many psychologists, physicians, and physiotherapists recommend body relaxation exercises as part of the treatment for these disorders. Maggie, from Ottawa, wrote “it’s so wonderful to be off (analgesic medication) and be headache free. I use the exercise (passive form) everyday and I haven’t had a headache for 8 weeks (it was almost daily before treatment).”
Disciplined relaxation is time well spent
How often do we say to ourselves “I don’t have time to relax.” Once you decide on the exercise that is best for you, try doing the exercise at a specific time each day. You will be very surprised at how your efficiency improves and you emerge from your workday feeling rested, fulfilled, and content. Body quiescence clears the mind, facilitates rapid revitalization, and conserves energy output. A tense body is a serious drain on energy that is far better applied to more important uses. Muscle relaxation exercises help you conserve that vital energy.
