A lecturer, when explaining stress management to an audience, raised a glass of water and asked “how heavy is this glass of water?”

He continued “The absolute weight doesn’t matter. It depends on how long you try to hold it. If I hold it for a minute, that’s not a problem. If I hold it for an hour, I’ll have an ache in my arm. If I hold it for a day, you might have to get an ambulance.”

He Continued “and that’s the way it is with stress management. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, we won’t be able to carry on. As with the glass of water, we have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again.”

So we all need to find time to put our burdens down and relax

Here are some steps to help you relax

1. Make time to relax each day.

2. Get comfortable. Sit or lie down and close your eyes

3. Imagine a soothing restful scene e.g.: bush or beach

4. Start to relax all the muscles in your body by tensing and then relaxing them.

5. Begin with your toes and work through your body until every muscle is relaxed.

6. Next, concentrate on your breathing—slow and deep, slow and deep.

7. Clear your mind by only concentrating on your breathing

8. Spend at least 15 minutes on the above each day.

If you would like to discuss creating the time to relax and more relaxation techniques —please give me a call.