Sleep and Relaxation

 Hi,

Hope all is well with everyone!

I wrote last week about: calm vs. anxiety and stress

relaxation vs. tension

mind vs. body

For the next few weeks I’d like to put these concepts into a more practical perspective. I hope everyone tried to take some time to examine how, when, where, and why their own bodies and minds are affected by anxiety, stress, and tension. Once you identify how, when, where, and why these symptoms build up, you can then begin to develop strategies to alleviate their presents. I was very surprised when I figured out that it wasn’t so much the workload, deadlines, obligations, etc… that caused stress and tension throughout my day and this is good because I don’t have much control over those things. Sure, they do affect me, but only to a point, it is how I respond to these stressors that inevitably gets me into trouble. For me, most of what builds up my anxiety, stress, and tension are habitual and/or environmental, things that in fact I can control. With regular check ins I began to notice that when a deadline loomed close, I would find myself clenching my teeth, curling my toes, and holding my breath. The deadline may have caused me some stress, but what I was doing in response to that stress was causing the build up of body tension, which of course in turn increased my feelings of anxiety and stress…and the cycle begins.

I’ve spent a great deal of time trying to discover nightly routines that would help me to sleep and those discoveries have been of great benefit. The turning point in my journey came with the realization that routine itself was my greatest alley. (I will talk a lot about routine in later blogs) I have found it very helpful to do my regular check-ins, identify how my body reacts to stress, and try to lessen or eliminate body tension throughout the day. After my check-in I spend a moment slowing my breathing and yawning, concentrating on relaxing areas of body tension. If I can catch it early and throughout the day I find it much easier to achieve a relaxed state before going to bed.

Well I think that’s enough for now.
I wish all of you Sound Sleeping.
Karen