The Top Ten Ways to
Relieve Stress Using Visualization Techniques
Too much stress can cause major problems including restlessness, muscle tension, depression, migraines, and can sometimes be associated with heart disease. In order to avoid these serious conditions, it is important to pay attention to your body and to do exercises to lower your stress levels. Visualization Techniques for stress relief have to do with visualizing yourself in a better place. Below are 10 tips to help you along the road to a life with a reduced amount of stress.
1. Find a place where you can relax.
Fill your bathtub with lavender and bubbles and a bath pillow and lie back, or grab a few pillows and lay down in your bed. Sometimes it is hard to find a place to be alone and to relax. Make sure that if you live in a busy house, to find a way to give yourself some alone time every day in order to help lower the amount of stress in your life.
2. Find your happy place.
I’m sure you have heard the term “happy place” used by a therapist or a friend who sees a therapist. Don’t laugh, many people use this technique to decrease anxiety, or to stop an oncoming panic attack and it truly does work. It may take a while to find the perfect happy place, but it is important to pick one that works for you. If you have a fear of sharks, than imagining yourself on the beach might not work for you.
3. Set a timer.
It is important to give yourself 10 minutes or more to relax in order for this to work. Set your timer for 10 minutes and do not let yourself come back from your happy place until the timer goes off.
4. Close your eyes and visualize.
Once you have your happy place, lay back and envision yourself there, imagine all the details around you, are you reading on a beach with a soft breeze blowing through your hair, are you laying on a floating chair in a pool in your back yard letting the warm of the sun warm you to the core? Imagine your body relaxing in a calm and secluded area.
5. Let your body relax.
As you imagine yourself in your happy place, be aware of your body and let go of any tension you feel as you lie there.
6. Dismiss negative or stressful thoughts
Sometimes when a person is visualizing their happy place, they let their mind wander to a stressful thought or they let dark things enter their happy place. Sometimes it is easy to dismiss the thoughts and focus on the happy place again, but in other cases you might need to choose a new happy place and start over. There are no stressful or negative thoughts allowed when in your happy place.
7. Breathe in positive energy breathe out negative energy
As you breathe, envision yourself breathing in the positive energy located in your happy place and when you breathe out envision yourself depositing all of that negativity away from you.
8. Focus!
Sometimes it is hard for people to focus. They have many thoughts running through their head all at once. Sometimes it helps to start out by just focusing on your breathing or to purchase a cd that can guide you to a happy place and talk you through the relaxation. This way you can focus on what you are being asked to do. This can be easier for some people.
9. Enjoy it!
This should be a relaxing and happy time for you. Make this time your own. Put on your favorite pajamas, light your favorite scented candle, and do what you need to do to make this time as relaxing and enjoyable as possible.
10. Remind yourself that you can always go back to your
happy place.
Your happy place should be an imaginary personal paradise that you can return to by just closing your eyes and breathing when you need to.
