Think Happy!

I should warn you, first of all, that if you’re not used to doing something like this, it will feel silly. Deal with it.

I can honestly say that when I was first taken through an exercise like the one below, I felt like I had learnt to relax for the first time in my life. It was a complete surprise when I later discovered that I could use that feeling of relaxation to combat future stresses that I would encounter.

So, if your wondering if you can use your imagination to relax and reduce stress, I’m living proof! Enjoy these 10 steps to relaxation and stress-reduction, through the simple act of visualisation:

Use Your Imagination to Relax and Reduce Stress

Sit comfortably in a chair.

1. Close your eyes and simply take a deep breath.

Breathe in through your nose, with the same intention that you would smell a rose. You can almost feel the end of your nose tingling.

As you breath in, imagine filling your abdomen, your lower lungs and then your lungs. (Some people have said that it helps to imagine your lungs are just behind your belly button as you are breathing in.) You are practicing deep ‘diaphragmatic breathing’ (rather than shallower higher lung breathing), so when you breathe in, your abdomen should expand.

2. As you breath in, say “Re” and as you breathe out say “lax”.

Imagine yourself breathing in peace and exhaling stress.

3. After a few repetitions of this, begin tensing and relaxing your muscles, from the top of your head all of the way down.

You should try to continue the deep breathing during this stage. If you initially find this too difficult, just stick with the breathing for now.

4. Your body will begin to feel relaxed.

This feeling differs from person to person. For some, their body feels soft and light, as if it is floating on air. For others, it feels heavy, as if it is sinking in water. Feel the relaxation and give in to it.

5. Visualize yourself walking on a path at the Sea-side.

In front of you are steps leading down to the Beach. You take the first step - say “One” in your mind - and as you do so you notice the gentle warmth of the Sun.

Count down each step as you go, down to the tenth and last. With each step you take, you become more aware of your surroundings, feel more relaxed, gentler, warmer.

6. As you reach the bottom step, you are now on the warm, soft sand.

Walk across the soft sand towards the Sea. At this point, you are using as many of your senses as possibe. Hear the waves lapping against the shore. Smell the freshness of the air. Visualise the cool blue Sea. As you step into it, feel the clean, refreshing water cleansing you from the top of your head down to your toes, washing away every bit of stress and anxiety. Enjoy how fresh and clean you feel.

7. Project your thoughts forward.

Now visualise yourself in a potential stressful situation, but allow the warm and gentle feeling of relaxation to continue to soothe your thoughts. Allow the relaxed state you are feeling now to flood your vision. Your mind and body are being conditioned to respond calmly to stress.

8. Leave the Beach, via the steps

Leaving the Beach, keep hold of the pleasing sense of calm achievement, warmth and relaxation.

As you take each step up, count backwards from 10. Feel the joy of knowing you are taking your new-found relaxation with you.

9. Open your eyes slowly

Take with you this calm and relaxing feeling, remembering you can always return to the Beach whenever you choose.

10. When you face a stressful situation, recall the warmth that you felt on the Beach.

If, for example, you’re about to walk into a a stressful board meeting, pause beforehand a take some deep breaths. This has always been sufficient for me to restore the previous feelings of warmth and calm. However, you might want to experiment with taking in 10 deep breaths and going down to the Beach before going to your board meeting. Just remember to come back up at some point or you’re likely to fall asleep on the job!

I know how simple this all sounds, but all I can say is it works. Long before I began Aikido, it was taking those 10 steps down to the beach that convinced me of the effectiveness of breathing, along with the power of the mind to imagine itself out of stress and depression.

Give it a go. And let me know how you get on.