Progressive Relaxation
Preparation
- lying face up or sitting position;
- raise the tongue against the hard palate,
- close the eyes slightly;
- breath in and breath out evenly and slowly;
- focus the thought at the Dan Tien
Relaxing Cycle
Play for three to five cycles each time:
- switch your thoughts to your body, mentally scan the body: notice areas and feel the tension in them, then loosen up the areas quickly. This can let all your muscles, organs, blood vessels and nerves be relaxed generally. Scan the body as follows:
- Bilateral sides of the head > sides of the neck > shoulders > upper arms > forearms > wrists > hands > fingers, then focus the thought at the middle fingers for one to two minutes;
- The face > neck > chest > abdomen > front thighs > knees > front lower legs > back of the feet > toes, then focus the thought at the big toes for one to two minutes;
- Back of the head > back of the neck > upper back > waist > back of the thighs > back of the knees > back of the lower legs > heels of the feet > soles of the feet, then focus the thought at the center of the soles for one to two minutes.
- pay attention to the respiratory movements, focus on one area when inhaling, loosen up the area when exhaling
- say a mantra to yourself like “loosen up”
At the end, take the body as a whole to relax completely, and say “loosen up” to yourself again