Relaxation For Your Personality Type

by Aimee Amodio | More from this Blogger

06 Oct 2007 06:38 PM

We're all different. And we all relax in different ways! Lately, I've been having trouble getting my mind to shut up when I'm ready for bed.

Sometimes I distract myself with television; other times I try a relatively simple (but effective) visualization technique: fully visualize (using all your senses) at least one thing for each color of the rainbow. A strawberry. An orange. A banana. A handful of blueberries. Leafy green spinach. A juicy purple plum. Food is easy because it quickly engages all five senses. Not enough to shut your brain down? Try three things for each color. Some nights, I do five. Focus your brain on fully realizing each object with all your senses -- sight, sound, feel, taste, and smell. Even when my mind is extra noisy, I don't get beyond yellow.

But this might not be the best relaxation technique for you. I tend to be an imaginative person, and because I'm a writer I tend to think about the senses when creating scenes and locations. Try some of these relaxation techniques:

• If you like soaking in the bathtub, try soaking in a hot spring. A study from the University of Maryland found that a hot spring soak can help your body lower levels of stress hormones, which reduces inflammation in muscles and joints.
• If you like meditation and visualization, try qigong. This form of active meditation uses graceful, dance-like movements. You'll be concentrating on repetitive motion and breathing, and your mind will clear quickly.
• If walking is your favorite way to unwind, try a labyrinth (I've also seen them called mandalas). These mazelike paths aren't actually mazes -- one continuous path leads to the center and back out again. There are more than a thousand labyrinths across the United States, so you should be able to find one near you.
• If a massage is your stress reliever of choice, try Reiki. Reiki is energy work, rather than body work -- your therapist will manage the flow of energy into and around your body.

Learn more about Aimee Amodio

Aimee is a fiction writer... dog lover... music lover...

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