In my last Blog post I suggested some ways for coping with stress (walking, progressive muscle relaxation, daydreaming and guided imagery, meditation, and candle gazing).

But when you feel stressed and don’t have a lot of time on your hands, you can still de-stress with mini-relaxation breaks:

Take a few DEEP breaths periodically throughout the day. (Concentrate on expanding and widening your ribcage as you fill up your lungs—slowly inhale through your nose to the count of five, and let the air out of your mouth to the count of eight.)

Take time for a self-massage:
—Move your scalp slightly back and forth making circles with your fingertips (with your thumbs behind your ears and your fingers spread on top of your head). —Place your fingertips at your nose bridge and slowly slide your fingers down your nose and across the top of your cheekbones to the outside of your eyes. Repeat 4 times.
—Place your ring fingers under your eyebrows near the nose bridge and slowly increase the pressure for ten seconds and then release. Repeat 3 times.
—Give yourself a foot massage…gently stroke from the toes to the ankles, use a circular motion with a fist and move along the sole of each foot, squeeze and gently twist and stretch each toe, stroke around your ankle and up towards your leg and back to your toes…
—Rub the palms of your hands together quickly to build up heat and then place your hands and heated palms over your face and take deep breaths (taking air in through the nose, hold, and slowly release through the mouth).

In my next Blog post I’ll talk about reducing your stress by controlling your thoughts.

Melanie Hack
Author of Who Killed My Sister, My Friend
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