Description

When the day has dished out its share of problems and missed opportunities, it’s time to rejuvenate with this relaxation CD program.  As you listen to soothing, original music by Eugene Kwok, the relaxing voice of Neal Harris guides you through four proven relaxation methods; Abdominal Deep Breathing, The Relaxation Response, Autogenic Training and a Visualization leading you on an excursion into the forest during a light rain.  Each method gives you time to practice with soothing music as background. With practice, the methods contained in this relaxation CD program will surely lead to greater peace in difficult situations, and a renewed sense of emotional and physical vitality.   Release the tensions of the day, and truly Exit The Storm.  Click below to listen to a sample:

Practices include:

Abdominal Deep Breathing:

Place one hand above and one below your navel.  Now take a slow deep breath through your nose or mouth and cause your stomach area to inflate like a balloon to its greatest extent.  When you have inflated the “balloon” to its greatest extent, hold your breath to a slow count of 4. Now release the breath slowly by letting it drift out between your pursed lips (as if whistling, but only hear the sound of escaping air). On the exhale, count slowly to 4, as the stomach area deflates back to normal. After several breaths, when you have felt your stomach area inflating and deflating several times, you can remove your hands and continue the breathing.

Practice Time: 1–2 minutes/session, as often as you feel the need.

Indications: Insomnia, Anxiety, Anger, Muscular Tension, High Blood Pressure, Fatigue and Asthma.

Best Time To Use: When starting to feel uncomfortable (nervous, anxious, etc.) in you car, while participating in a stressful interaction, before giving a public presentation, before going to sleep or after awakening and having difficulty returning to sleep.

The Relaxation Response:

Developed by Dr. Herbert Benson, Harvard Medical School, 1968.

Guiding Principle: Positive physiological changes in the body occur through the silent, mental repetition of a relaxing word or phrase; heartbeat and respiration slow down, need for oxygen decreases, blood pressure and blood sugar are reduced and, over time, there is a decrease in the rate of physical aging as the metabolism slows down.

Breathe comfortably and naturally. Each time you feel the natural need to exhale, say to yourself the word “peace” or see the word peace in your mind’s eye as you continue to breathe comfortably and naturally.

*Note: Other words or phrases can be substituted for the word “peace,” whatever you find most relaxing, e.g. “love,” “relax,” “God,” etc.

Practice Time: 1–2 minutes/session or until you feel comfortable again.

Indications: High Blood Pressure, High Blood Sugar, changing brainwave patterns from alert beta wave activity to more relaxed and creative alpha activity.

Best Time To Use: In your car, sitting at a workstation, on a bus/train, before sleep, vacuuming, doing dishes, directly following any of the prior breathing techniques.

Autogenic Training:

Developed by Dr. Johannes Schultz & Oskar Vogt, Berlin, 1932.

Guiding Principle: The pictures we create with our minds can directly influence various bodily responses toward renewed health and relaxation.

Sit or lie comfortably, and begin by repeating this phrase slowly to yourself, “My hands are warm, relaxed and warm.” As you do, imagine that you are lying on a beach on a warm summer day with your hands immersed in the very warm sand. Feel the sunlight shining down upon you and warming your whole body, as you continue to repeat to yourself, “My hands are warm, relaxed and warm.” As you feel your hands getting warmer, imagine or cause that warmth to spread to any part of your body where you are feeling pain, discomfort or tension. Really focus the warmth in that area. For example, if your neck is stiff or painful you might say to yourself, “My neck is warm, relaxed and warm,” while focusing that warm feeling in your neck area, and so on. Feel the relief this warmth brings with it. Then, when you are ready, take in a slow, big deep breath; as you exhale, gently open your eyes.

Practice Time: 1–2 minutes/session.

Indications: Muscular Tension, Headaches, High Blood Pressure, Irritable Bowel, Ulcers, Nervous Stomach.

Best Time To Use: In a quiet place, anytime of the day or night.

Visualization-Journey Into The Forest:

Guiding Principle: Creating body responses through use of mental images. For example, when you are sitting at the breakfast table on a Sunday morning preparing to partake in a pancake breakfast, what tells you that you are sitting there and not at your desk at work? Your five physical senses. In other words, the sight of your dining room gives your body clues as to where you are; you smell pancakes cooking, you hear sausage sizzling in the pan, and you feel yourself sitting on those distinctive chairs at the dining room table. When the food is brought to your table, you taste the pancakes and sausages. Mmm … good. The total picture generated by your five physical senses now becomes your reality; you are sitting at the table eating delicious foods. This is how we perceive reality. Now pretend that you are holding a whole lemon: What does it look like? How does it feel? Now take an imaginary knife and cut it in half. What does it smell like? Squeeze it until juice squirts out. What does it sound like? Take a big bite of it. What does it taste like? You have now successfully experienced a lemon with all five of your “mental” physical senses. Just as at one point you experienced a real lemon with several of your physical senses, you have re-created the reality called “lemon” in your mind from memory. When the mind does this, the body does not recognize the difference between a recalled lemon and an actual one. I’ll bet you proved that one to yourself earlier when you bit into the imaginary lemon. Your mouth physically puckered, didn’t it! This is why visualization works.

Another example, conjure up an image of yourself lying on a beach in Hawaii: smell the ocean air, see seagulls flying above the pristine, white sand, hear the waves as they thunder against craggy rocks at the shoreline, and feel the warm nurturing sand beneath you. If you go swimming in the ocean, you taste the harsh salt on your lips. Because of the way the mind-body connection works, your body benefits as if you really were on a beach in Hawaii. For example, muscle tension decreases, heart rate slows, blood pressure lowers and so forth.

Practice Time: 2–10 minutes/session.

Indications: Mental and/or physical fatigue, emotional or physical tension, Anxiety, Insomnia, physical pain.

Best Time To Use: Anytime.