When we’re exhausted, we gravitate toward activities that drain us even more. Or we think we don’t deserve to take a break, so we ignore our body’s need to relax.
Here are 5 ways that you can relax, recharge and refresh.
Breathing Exercises
Focus more on one of the simplest and shortest activities available to us; our breath. Yoga expert Anna Guest-Jelley suggested taking five deep breaths. “As you do, notice the natural pause between your inhale and exhale, and then between your exhale and your next inhale. Your body has a built-in break — how great is that?!”
Write
Write, even though you don’t consider yourself a writer. Writing down your feelings or about how your day has been helps in relaxing. But it is advisable to not do it if it starts to feel like a task.
Make a list of your accomplishments
It could be a physical or mental list. When we’re stressed, we tend to focus more on the negative things instead of the positive. This makes it more difficult for our brains to relax. It is helpful to write down or make mental notes of the top three good things that happened to you today.
Use the power of your imagination
“The brain can’t distinguish between reality and imagination, so visualization can be a powerful tool to help you unwind in a snap.” Imagining yourself in a place or situation you want to be helps keep your brain off the stress of reality.
Connect to your inner child
Playing is a wonderful way to unwind, especially for grown-ups. Play is anything that’s purposeless and pleasurable. You don’t necessarily need to go out and play with sand or go on rides. You can play board, video or phone games. This also helps to keep your mind off of the difficulty that is a reality.
Distractions help you relax and give a boost of positivity.