We all experience stress, anxiety and insomnia at times. Work, school, money, family, friends, life changes, and everything in between can cause stress. Its a good idea to have a go-to routine to deal with stress, anxiety or insomnia. Here are some easy things to try. If you do these all at once, it is virtually impossible for the stress and anxiety to keep its power over you.
4 Easy Steps to Relax, Let Go of Anxiety in 10 Minutes (You may fall asleep)
Do the following steps in a quiet, cozy, dark or semi-dark room.
1. Put on music for relaxation, anxiety, or sleep using the following YouTube clips. If you do not enjoy listening to music there are other relaxing sounds like rain and crackling fire on YouTube. Find what works for you.
- For relaxation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwvMcvzEITI
- For anxiety: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNUHb5ZzqLQ
- For Sleep: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzYIQMYjao4
2. Use aromatherapy by lighting a candle, incense, using a essential oil diffuser, putting a few drops of essential oil into a bowl of potpourri, or simply peeling an orange, lemon or lime and smelling the peel. Scents associated with relaxation are: lavender, bergamot, jasmine, chamomile, frankincense, rosemary, orange, sandalwood.
3. Sit on a pillow with a wall behind you and close your eyes. We put the wall at our back because many times we feel vulnerable or disconnected in a dark room with our eyes closed if we are not anchored to the structure of the room.
4. Follow the 478 breathing pattern 5-10 times: Breathe in for a count of four. Hold your breath for a count of 7. Exhale for a count of 8. This 478 technique is based on an ancient yoga method and was developed by Dr. Andrew Weil.
Stay like this for at least 10 minutes and watch the stress and anxiety melt away.
One last thing as you finish your relaxation, before you open your eyes and resume your life, SMILE. Research shows that smiling reduces stress, lowers our heart rate and blood pressure.
You got this!