ProNurse

As a hypnotherapist who encounters a fair number of stressed folk, it is clear to me that most people don't know how to relax. The standard response to this suggestion is "how do you need to LEARN it  - just flop on the armchair and put your feet up!" However there is far more to relaxing then letting your body flop on the sofa. To properly relax, you must also relax your MIND - which is more challenging when you have unpleasantness rolling round and round in your mind.

Many attempt to solve this problem by a DISTRACTION - immersing the mind in something absorbing. But doing this does not set off the parasympathetic nervous system. For that you will need to learn to make your mind still. Our culture has by and large completely lost the ability to do this. When I see stressed and traumatised clients, the first thing I teach them is how to relax properly.

MEDITATION is the best way to relax the mind - no longer the preserve of hippes and Zen monks, meditation is a tried and tested way to learn calm. There are many variants, but the simplest is to focus on breathing - do not force your breathing in any way, just observe it closely, all the movements, feelings and sounds. Allow all your thoughts to carry on flashing across your mind, but simply be aware of them rather than acting on them.Carry on doing this for 15 minutes and you'll be surprised how much better you will feel. Just 15 minutes a day every day gives an astonishing rise in the ability to cope, as the effect is cumulative. With clients I plant a posthypnotic trigger to make the process easier and deeper.

You've nothing to lose and everything to gain by letting your mind become calm for 15 minutes a day, and the results are life-changing.

Gary Blonder http://www.garyblonder.co.uk http://garyswordsofwisdom.blogspot.com