Msg # 6970   
Date: 26 Oct 93  17:17:00
From: Jean-francois
  To: Martin Rene
Subj: Stress management...help!
____________________________________________________________________________

Martin Rene ecrivait recemment:
...
-> Hi.  I'd like to know how one can relax.
-> You know...  When you're down, but not really down.  Just a lot of
-> fatigue accumulated for many weeks, or just a few hard days.

Well, there are several ways. I'll just let you in on a exchange I
recently had with a user with a similar problem. It's translated from
french, heavily edited for legibility and to protect the innocent (!)
but that should not be a problem, methinks :-)

Do you know about Jacobson's progressive relaxation technique, or any
similar technique?

(user) No, doesn't ring any bells. What are those techniques?

Let's take a simple one. You sit down comfortably (this works when you
are lying down too, but it's harder not to fall asleep). Then, you
tighten all your muscles starting from the extremities, say the feet. Do
this as hard as you can for about 30 seconds, maybe counting in your
head.

You should concentrate on the feeling of tension. Once you've firmly
experiences the tension, let go suddenly. You now concentrate on the
feeling of "no tension" for several seconds. Then, go on to the next
muscle group.

This is the easiest technique to master for many people, and it is very
efficient. What is especially interesting about it is that you get
definite, unmistakable results right from the start.

(user) When is it appropriate to use such techniques?

Well, you can use them before going to bed, when you arrive to work (if
you can get a quiet corner, but that is sadly uncommon), or basically
whenever you feel like it and you have 10-15 minutes available. You
should make sure there will be no interruptions: tell people this is
your "sacred" 15-minute quiet break, unplug the phone, and so on.

(user) And what does such a technique do? You keel over dead asleep? It
wakes you up?

Neither. You come out of the relaxation break more... relaxed (wow!),
and much more mentally alert. If you do that before falling to sleep,
your sleep may progress faster to phases 3 and 4, and may thus be more
"efficient" in a manner of speaking.

(user) Please refresh my memory once more: the sleep phases, there are 4
of them, right?

Yes. A more detailed explanation would be off-topic, but suffice it to
say that you will quickly feel definite benefits.

-> I know that to help one to sleep, you can disconnect your members one
-> one in your head.  But it revealed to be more difficult to relax whil
-> thinking hard, concentrating not to be stressed, than to just roll a

That is where I believe you should rethink your approach. Thinking hard
about not being stressed is not quite the best way to go :-) Gently push
away intrusive thoughts. Concentration and relaxation are related (it is
much easier to concentrate when you are relaxed), however the techniques
to specifically improve your concentration are quite different. You
will, by practicing regularly a relaxation technique, help your
concentration. But it will be a beneficial side effect.

-> And what about those good ol' grand'ma's tricks like hot milk?  Yeah,

Hot milk works to a degree. For one, it might evoke pleasant childhood
memories, and help you feel secure and relaxed. Milk also contains
calcium and tryptophan, and both act as mild sedatives.

-> sure, it's nice once in a while, but... how does it work?  when does

The tryptophan increases the production of serotonin. Higher levels of
this neurotransmitter do many, many things, one of which is inducing a
sleepy, drowsy feeling.

-> here?  Or those strange herbal mixes?

Hmm... Can't really help you with herbs, I'll let someone more
knowledgeable pick up from here... (anyone?)

Have a good night...

Jean-Francois Vaillancourt


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