Adam Lee
28 March 2020
We all have those moments when we’re stressed or tense or anxious and we would like to be able to find some good old relaxation to wind down and find some peace and calm in our day.
In this article, I share some fantastic relaxation methods to help you in those moments they might not all resonate with you however I’m sure that there are some in there for everyone.
Don’t force it
Tip number one is to try to accept that you cannot force yourself to become relaxed. Some people are just more more relaxed than others and naturally and relaxation is more of a state that comes over you naturally when you let go of control. Which is why you cannot force yourself to become relaxed, and trying to do so can lead to some unnecessary frustration.
My advice is to create the best circumstances you can, in order to help yourself find relaxation and then accept whether it comes or not, which is where the next couple of tips come in.
Forcing yourself into becoming relaxed often just makes it worse, so whenever I’m like that, I try to just simply acknowledge the fact that I’m stressed out, and I try to see it with an objective mind.
Write, write, write!
Whenever you’re in one of those full on states, where you have lots and lots to do because the mind subconsciously is trying to repeat all your to-do list items just so you won’t forget anything, try writing it all down.
Making a to-do list for yourself can really help put your mind at ease, so you know that you won’t forget anything. You don’t have to repeat it to yourself constantly and you can just rely on your to-do list to get everything done, whenever it needs to be done.
Set the mood
My second tip is trying to set the mood a little. Often, people are very sensitive to their direct environment, so why not make the environment a little bit more easy to find some relaxation in? I suggest dimming the lights a little, lighting some candles, burning some incense even if that’s your thing. No harsh lighting, no loud noises, no loud TV or any of that.
Try to make your environment where you can naturally find some relaxation. You’ll find that people’s hearts and minds often respond very strongly to music, so putting on some relaxing music. This can really help a lot, and it doesn’t have to be new age music, it can be something that fits your personality and your style.
Slow down
Let’s try to slow down. People when they’re stressed out often move very quickly and efficiently. That effect when you are busy getting things done, getting from point A to point B, that heavy focus can really make our body stressed as well.
Whenever I feel stressed, I try to consciously slow down everything so that my body can respond to that relaxing state easier. I do things like slow down my speech, lower my voice, slow down my breath, slow down my movements and just focus on doing things slowly. I always notice if I do that only a few minutes I’m a lot more relaxed than I was before.
No afternoon caffeine
This may seem like a weird entry to our list of relaxation methods, however any caffeine that we still drink can disrupt our sleep and you will wake up feeling even more tired, needing more caffeine. It’s a vicious cycle; caffeine also really jacks up our nervous system making us feel even more anxious and more nervous than before.
Try replacing it with herbal tea can be a really great way to go. One of my favourites is chamomile tea. It really allows you to calm down, and it has a great effect. It’s so lovely it’s really yummy and it really helps you to calm down when you’re stressed.
Try Yoga
Have you ever considered Yoga? if you’re not doing yoga already, you might want to think about taking it up. It’s one of my favourite relaxation methods, and I’ve been doing regular yoga practice for over two years now and it has really helped me out in a lot of ways.
I suggest doing a very slow restorative practice to really take care of yourself and whenever you’re stressed or had a lot of nervous energy, I suggest doing a very active vinyasa flow that’s also a bit of a workout, and you will feel great immediately afterwards.
Breathe
This is a super easy and super effective way to help yourself out when you’re stressed. When you take in plenty of oxygen, we cool our nervous system and stimulate it to decrease the stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline. This helps reduce stress, and it also stimulates our body to release endorphins that boost your mood.
If you have the time breathe like this for a few minutes, if not then just do three deep conscious breaths. Focus on the breath going in and out; not thinking about anything else and it can really be helpful.
Feel great, meditate!
If you’ve read some of my other writing, you might know that one of my absolutely favourite relaxation methods is meditation. It has many wonderful benefits, and can really help you out in the moment when you’re stressed. If you do it regularly, it can also help you prevent getting too stressed in the first place.
If you’ve never done it, don’t think that you can’t do it because you can. It’s actually quite easy and natural, so everyone can do it. There are plenty of guided meditation videos and podcasts for beginners, if you go searching.
Talk about it
I find that talking about it whenever I’m stressed sometimes really helps. We just have a lot going on in our minds or a specific problem worry that’s bothering you, whenever that’s the case it can really be helpful to just talk it over with a friend or a family member.
That’s anyone really, just so you can voice your concerns even if you don’t get a direct solution to your problem. It can really help to release some of the built-up stress just by talking about it and acknowledging what’s bothering you.
Hit the kitchen
I always like cooking when I’m stressed it helps me to focus my mind on the cooking alone instead of all kinds of things that go on inside your head. So, cooking very leisurely with focus not worrying about it taking up too much time so just not worrying about doing it fast or efficient.
However, just focusing on cutting up all the veggies, smelling the great smells and just immerse yourself in the cooking as a process can really help you to put your mind at ease and it can make you some delicious meals or cookies or cake or whatever it is that you like.
Reduce phone use
Whenever you’re really stressed out, it doesn’t help to spend hours on your phone. I know it can be inviting to do that, however always being connected getting tons of stimuli through our phone every time, can really stress us out even more and stand in the way of relaxation.
I suggest taking your phone placing it away in another room or in a drawer somewhere you won’t be tempted to look at it every few minutes and just really find some relaxation and some quality time.
Go for a walk
Going for a long walk is one of the easiest relaxation methods you can do. It seems simple, yet with good reason because it really, really works wonders when we’re stressed. Walking ,preferably in nature if you have it anywhere near your home, can really have a soothing effect on us and help sort out our biorhythm as well.
It’s from way back when when we were a cave people. We still work that way, human beings still respond to green, water, nature and all those lovely things. So taking a walk in nature can really do wonders for your stress.
If you wanted to go step further, you can also exercise. Exercising is great for you when you’re stressed. It allows us to give our thinking minds a break to focus on our body, focus on the workouts ,getting stronger, getting a little bit sweaty and getting tired afterwards.
Summary of relaxation methods
So that’s it, my favourite relaxation methods for you to try whenever you’re stressed out, and feel like you need something quickly. I hope you find one or two that are of great value to you, and that it helps you reduce stress.
