relaxation

Exercise can be an important part of mental health treatment. Often those experiencing difficulty with anxiety can benefit from regular cardiovascular exercise, which allows the opportunity for the body to learn recovery from arousal. On the other hand, yoga has been researched as a treatment for PTSD, or post-traumatic stress disorder. In two studies, the PTSD sufferers that were taught and practiced yoga experienced greater symptom reduction than those that were only a part of more traditional treatment.

Yoga is used as a relaxation technique because it focuses the mind and slows down the body. Simply learning to control your own breathing can allow you to feel more in control of yourself.

Most of us have a daily routine that includes various responsibilities. Perhaps your weekend feels like free time, but many use that extra time to catch up on errands, housework, and rest. Sometimes it can feel like you are stuck in an endless cycle of the day-in-day-out, repeating this week what you did last week.

What percentage of your day includes things you need to do versus things that you want to do? Responsibility is a positive thing, a stressor that encourages growth in many cases; however, we need to recover from responsibility and take time to relax every day. This renews us to act positively again the next day without burning out.