 In a few moments with Charles he gave me a sense of ANYTHINGS POSSIBLE which I can tap into at will This has been a quantum change in personal happiness and my career Jillian Whitelam | About tension and relaxationThe majority of health issues that people encounter are stress related. To understand the method of relaxation that we teach, it is helpful to understand the principles or relaxation, and also to understand its opposite - tension.True relaxation is experienced by the body/mind when little or no energy is consumed. Relaxation is nature's way of re-charging the vital life forces. Since every action, conscious or unconscious, uses stored energy, relaxation is necessary for good health and peace of mind. Without proper relaxation, the body/mind becomes overworked, inefficient, and prone to ill-health. Action involves using energyAll action creates a type of stress, and, although no-one can live without some stress, undue tensions wear out the body/mind. Every action involves a process. First of all, stimuli are taken in through the senses and are transmitted via the nervous system to the brain. The brain then analyzes the stimuli and decides what action, if any, is to be taken. The brain sends an impulse to the appropriate muscles, along with an extra supply of energy to carry out the action. The impulse, enforced by the energy, causes the muscles to contract and act. Many aspects of modern life make it increasingly difficult to relax. Working conditions, entertainment (for example films and television), and social activities (for example alcohol, drugs and loud music), leave the body tense, over stimulate the emotions, and deplete stored energy. One of the ways to relax is to reduce the number and duration of stimuli to which we are subjected. This is good, and necessary, but the key to relaxation, and health, ultimately rests in learning how to BE relaxed as we go about our every day lives (as opposed to having to temporarily withdraw from it - to take time out.). Stress & anxiety: An emotional early warning systemStress is the word used to describe a state of physical embrace that a person adopts when faced with real or perceived danger. Muscles in the body tense and the physical structure of a person adjusts to accommodate this. Some people never release this state of physical embrace and built upon over time it begins to have serious health implications unto itself, the early signs of which are usually aches and pains. Anxiety is driven by fear, and a fearful person is hyper-vigilant, on edge, keyed up, and prepared for possible disaster. For a person with a health issue, the anticipation of “what if?” can become larger than life, resulting in the body being in a perpetual state of alert. The main treatment given by GP’s for stress and anxiety is medication or a referral for cognitive behavioral treatment/therapy, or a mixture of the two. Alternatively some people “self prescribe” with substances that will “lift their mood”. Unless a person learns how to be relaxed within themselves, they risk becoming dependent upon things on the outside to do it for them. Ill-health leading to stress and anxiety or vice versaWhich ever appears to come first, the result is that a persons sympathetic nervous system is activated, and the effects of this (which are brought about through an over abundance of certain hormones) bring about health issues such as hypertension, cardiac rhythm disturbances and insomnia. This in turn causes a worsening of the feelings of stress and anxiety, which in turn leads to a worsening of health. A negative and harmful vicious cycle. Physical relaxationCertain physical relaxtion techniques increase the body's energy, but this is futile if we continue to waste energy by constantly keeping the muslces in a state of readiness when there is no need to do so. Some people find that they have trained their muscles to be so tense, that they cannot relax them even at night, creating a constant energy drain. Even more alarming, the majority aren't even aware that they are holding muslces tense, because they have got so used to it. Tense muslces are contracted muscles, and prolonged tension tires them and makes them forget how to relax. Relaxed muscles indicate well trained muscles. They have been allowed to relax between work, rather than being kept tense. Mental relaxationWhen the brain is constantly bombarded with stimuli, it becomes over loaded and exhausted. We may be unaware that we are doing it, but by thinking and worrying we are using up tremendous amounts of energy. The tension put on the brain by worries, whether real or imagined, can use as much (or more) energy than actual physical output. When worries get out of hand, energy resources are strained. Fatigue of the body/mind sets in, and wear and tear on the physical body occurs. Total efficiencyTotal efficiency comes when a person is able to be relaxed WHILE ENGAGED IN THE WORK AT HAND. This is what our Functional Relaxation System teaches, and we have a range of services to help you do that. Developing a positive habit that will serve you a life time is just a few clicks away... |
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