It would be fair to say that we’re having quite a stressful time at the moment in our retirement what with one thing and another. I won’t go into any details at this point although, no doubt, our worries will emerge in this blog at a later stage. The blog features the good, the bad and the ugly of retirement as I’ve said before.
Because we’re having a tough time I asked Mrs Summerhouse to write a blog about a yoga exercise designed to relief stress. This is what she came up with. It’s brief and simple and effective.
There are many yoga techniques that can help you when you feel stressed, down in the dumps, unable to cope with the challenges of every day living. They all involve breathing slowly and deeply. This technique also helps to calm the mind as well as the body.
1. Sit or kneel using the floor or a chair (as in the above diagram). Close your eyes and relax all your facial muscles, neck muscles and so on downwards to your feet
2. Focus on your in-coming breath and mentally say, “I breathe in peace.”
3. Then on your out-going breath mentally say, “I breathe out turmoil.”
4. Repeat this for 10 minutes then reflect on how you feel.
The concentration on the words and your breathing will have a calming effect that will benefit the whole self.
This exercise can be repeated on a daily basis to act as a prevention of stress as well as a helpful ‘cure’. You can choose words that are relevant to you and suit your individual situation.