RELAXATION TIPS AND ARTICLES

How to Properly Use The Ten Minute Relaxation CD/MP3

The Ten Minute Relaxation CD allows you to be in control of how much you will relax while providing positive affirmations so you can grow in body, mind and spirit. The Ten Minute Relaxation CD is designed to lead you via guided relaxation to refresh the mind, body and spirit. We are going to cover the proper way to use the CD so you can fully benefit from it. We are also going to talk about how you can make your own positive affirmations to insert into the CD when prompted to do so.

For Relaxation:

First and foremost, you should never drive a vehicle or operate any type of machinery while listening to this CD. Injury could result. To obtain the best results from this CD, you should find a quiet place, and ask not to be disturbed. You should also find a comfortable body position, like lying down. If you decide to sit in a chair, make sure it is comfortable. If you follow the guided commands, you will relax. This CD is a form of self-hypnosis, through suggestion. The operative word here is "suggestion". You are simply asked by a voice to give yourself permission to relax. By giving yourself permission, you are in control. You can bring yourself out of this relaxation any time, just by willing it. You will also come out of this relaxation alert and vibrant with no side effects, any time you will it. While listening to the CD, try to keep any distractions to a minimum. The CD will do everything for you by itself, so there is very little effort needed on the part of “you” the listener. Follow the audio and breathe normally. This starts a rhythm in your body, so it can focus on it and use it as a tool to allow yourself to relax even deeper.

For Sleeping:

This audio has "waking commands" to bring you back from your relaxation, or if you would like to use the CD to help you fall sleep at night you can ignore the commands and allow yourself to fall asleep.

How to make your own Positive affirmations:

There are many positive affirmation included in the audio of the CD. You will also be given about 30 seconds to add your own positive affirmations. The audio will prompt you. Making a positive affirmation is very simple, but if you follow these guidelines you can make your positive affirmations even more effective.
Know exactly what you what to say to yourself. Be Very Specific! The words “I want a better life”, are great, but they are not specific. Try, “I want to be a more caring and loving person”. If you want to get a new job, be specific. If you want to be an engineer, say it, “I want to be an engineer.” If you are specific about what you want, your unconscious mind will focus even tighter on that goal.

Take some time and find out what you really want:

You may want to make of list of your goals, then look at the pros and cons of each goal. You may find out that a certain goal is not what you really want to pursue. The brain is very powerful, when it comes to unconscious self-suggestion. Don’t waste its time on something you don’t really want.

Use one affirmation at a time:

Although there are a few on the CD, use only one of your own affirmations at a time. Research has shown that one affirmation repeated over time is more effective that many affirmations added together. Too many affirmations can draw the mind’s focus from the others.
Use this single affirmation for about two weeks. It takes about two weeks to make or break a habit. For some it takes less time. It is rare that we have an epiphany and all the sudden change our way of thinking. You need to teach your brain this new way of thinking and it comes from repetition: just like studying
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Try to keep the affirmations as simple as possible.

The shorter the better. For example, “I want to be a civil engineer”. That’s pretty easy to remember and recall. It also gets to the point. Don’t worry about adding extra information. For instance, “I want to be a civil engineer that graduates from a Top 10 school: then volunteers for the Peace Corps and builds a hydroelectric damn to provide power for people in a third world country.” That is just too much to remember, let alone repeat. Anyway, you can’t build the damn if you are not a civil engineer, right? It is Ok to set long range goals, but short-range goals work much better during positive self-suggestions. Plus your wont confuse your mind with all the extra wants and needs. When you get focused on a goal, doors will open for you.

Here is how to use The Ten Minute Relaxation CD:

Get comfortable. Do not force yourself the breathe. You body knows how to breathe. You do it all day long. Just let it go. If you want, take the air into your stomach area, not the chest. You are using the diaphragm to fill your lungs with air.Allow yourself to relax. The more you allow it, the deeper you will relax.
If you choose to use a positive affirmation of you own, do your homework and have it ready. Don’t waste time on something you aren’t sure of. Use only one personal affirmation at a time.So relax, enjoy it and find out how refreshed it can make you feel. (back to the top of this page)

10 Tips for Better Relaxation

• Changes in latitude, changes in attitude - Yes it is an old song and an old cliché. But sometimes you need a change. If you live where it is winter 8 months out of the year with overcast skies, going to a location where the sun shines most of the time can make a difference in how you feel.
 
• Change your current circumstances - We are all stuck in jobs we dislike, unhealthy relationships and even in 2008 with a looming recession we worry about finances. Be proactive, not reactive! If we can’t change the overall circumstance that we are in, say a job we hate, find ways to make it better. Inside every situation, things can be changed, especially by having a positive outlook. Always know that you have the power to change your situation, even if you have to change it a little at a time

• Exercise - Jog, Walk or go to the Gym - Do something active! Exercise releases endorphins (the body’s natural painkiller). Exercise gives you more energy, heightens your mental alertness, helps you sleep better and used up all that pent up energy you have been storing. It also will tone you up and you could eventually loose weight.

• Diet - You are what you eat. So east well. We are so busy that we don’t have the time to cook and watch what we eat. It is so easy to grab some fast food take it home or back to the office. It is OK to eat fast food once in a while, but there are lots of chemicals and preservatives in fast food that can affect your body’s chemistry. So cut back and cook your meals. If you can’t cook, call your mother. Also cut back on caffeine and other stimulants, especially in the afternoon to evening.

• Do a Good Deed (or Two) - Nothing makes you feel better than doing something for someone else. Help out a struggling coworker; baby-sit for your sister so she can have a night out. Go down to the soup kitchen and volunteer.

• Get a massage - If you can’t afford one have your partner give you a massage. Human contact even though a massage has show to relieve stress. Massages also work out tense muscles and allow muscles to release toxins stored in the muscle tissue.

• Avoid Negative People - Misery Loves Company, and misery will do everything it can to keep its company. When you are feeling stressed out, it is best to avoid negative people. Even thought their intentions may be good, you will almost always get caught up in their problems, just making yours worse.

• Take a vacation (if even a small one) - Get Away from it all. If you can’t afford a week, take a weekend. Just try and get away from your surroundings even for a short time so you can rejuvenate. 

• Take a Bath - Yes Men, you can do this too. Bath’s are not just for women. A nice hot bath will relieve muscle tension. When those muscles relax, the rest of your body will follow.

•  Laugh - When was the last time you had a good laugh? Laughter is good for the soul. It releases tension and is very contagious. Watch a funny movie, or see a play or comedian. Just laugh with friends around a dinner table.(back to the top of this page)

Good Stress versus Bad Stress

Basically there are two types of stress. There is good stress and there is bad stress. Good stress, “is just a term” for the natural stress an organism encounters throughout its life. Good Stress can bring about necessary changes and keep the organism from harm. For example, you are sun tanning on a beach and your skin starts to sting just a bit. Chances are, you are starting to get sunburned. Although not quite in any danger, your body senses this stress and tells you do take action. If you are smart, you will get out of the sun before you become sunburned.

This is a crude example of good stress, but if your cat is meowing outside at the door on a cold winter night, she wants to come in so she doesn’t freeze. Here is a final example. Microorganisms can sense chemical changes in their environment. This causes a “stress” on the microorganism. It then tries to move to a safer environment.

Bad stress is extreme stress or long-term stress brought on by many factors. Bad stress causes your body to eventually wear itself down. Bad stress is what can lead to high blood pressure, heart attacks, and anxiety as well as accelerating chronic illnesses. It is becoming widely accepted in the medical community that the mind is linked to the immune system. When we are under stress: say someone is overworked or has trouble getting a consistent good night’s sleep, the physical body begins to weaken and usually a person comes down with the cold or a flu. A cold or flu is the best-case scenario. It causes us to stop and rest. We are forced to take the time to let our bodies heal. By the way, we are exposed to germs all the time. We get sick when our body isn’t able to fight them off properly. This is due to being rundown physically and we are also tired mentally.
So we have a pretty good idea of what bad stress can do to your body. Now here are some of the types of bad stress that we encounter.

Job – We work about 1/3 of our day, which is based on the 40-hour workweek. Most of us work up to 70 hours per week.

Finances – This is another big stress “maker” in our lives. As this article is written, it is March 2008 and we are in the midst of a recession combined with high fuel prices and a sub prime mortgage meltdown. It is very hard to relax and live life when you are worried if you are going to loose everything in a few weeks or months.

Relationships – These will always be stressful. It is the nature of the beast. Now if a relationship is causing you undue stress, then you should reconsider being in it. Money issues can lead to relationship stress.

Self-Imposed Stress. This is the stress that we put on ourselves. Maybe you are a perfectionist, over achiever or you are always trying to meet other’s expectations. This can wear you down as well.

Above were a few quick examples of good stress vs bad stress and some of the types of bad stress that you may find in your environment.
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Let Go and Let It Happen

Simple Right? All you have to do is step back and wait for the outcome. But, do we ever just wait for the outcome? No we don’t. We will do everything in our power to make it happen. Have you ever thought that no matter what you do, it is going to happen anyway. Lets not take this literally. You always have to do a little work to get what you want. Say, laying the ground work to get that interview and get that new job.

But here is where we mess up. We obsess so much about getting that job that we can actually sabotage our efforts. We put in too much work trying so hard and we wear ourselves out trying.Here is what I have learned. A little thing called patience. Now I do the work necessary to move me towards my goal. In the film and TV business I rely on myself to find work, but if the client doesn’t want to green light the project, I don’t work. The waiting used to drive me nuts. Then one day I learned to Let it go and let it happen. I did my marketing and sent out my demos. I met with clients and bid on jobs. Then I would sit back and let probability take over. Remember the 80/20 rule of sales? The phone rings pretty consistently for me. And you know what? Instead of spending all that time worrying, I just enjoy my life for what I have. AND, my stress level has dropped considerably. So Let Go: and Let it Happen. (back to the top )