5 x relaxation exercises for anxiety ⋆ Sparkles Inside

In the body scan exercise you learn to experience every sensation in your body, without judging. To do this, sit on the floor, close your eyes and relax. Focus your attention on your body, and feel how your body lies on the floor. Make sure you breathe calmly and take your time. With each breath you relax more. Once you are relaxed enough, shift your attention to your left little toe. You feel how the attention is transferred to your toe.

Then you focus on your other toes, foot, calves and upper leg. Once you’ve done this, you can shift your attention to your other foot, and do the same thing as the step I just described. Then your attention moves upwards, and with each breath you become more relaxed. If you feel tension somewhere, you focus your attention on this and the tension point relaxes.

If you are a person who stores tension in the body, I highly recommend this relaxation exercise. For this you sit quietly on a chair. The advantage of this exercise is that you can also do it in the office. Start by hanging your arms at your sides and clenching your fists. Try to tense all the muscles in your upper and lower arms. The harder your muscles, the better. After this step you relax again. Then tighten the muscles in your face. You squeeze your jaw, nose, eyes and mouth together.

After a few seconds, relax your face again. Then tighten your shoulders and abs. You do this by tightening your stomach and moving your shoulder blades together. Stick your chest out. The last step of this exercise is to shrug your shoulders and tighten them. When you lower them, you also relax your muscles. These are ideal relaxation exercises for anxiety!

One of the most important relaxation exercises for anxiety is a so-called body massage. With this exercise you can quickly and effectively drain all tension and stress. This exercise is especially nice if you feel noticeable fear. This exercise is best done in bed or when you just got out of the shower. First you massage your feet. You do this by grabbing them from above and pushing your fingers into the soles of your feet. With a foot massage you can calm your whole body, because there are many nerve endings in the feet.

After showering, it is a good idea to apply body lotion to yourself. Do this a little firmer than usual. Make movements towards your heart. In addition, you can easily give yourself a head massage. Make circular motions through your hair with your fingers. You can also relax your lower back, upper legs, calves and shoulders yourself. This allows you to achieve the ultimate relaxation.

So far I have explained to you relaxation exercises for anxiety that all have something to do with massage. The next exercise, however, is slightly different. It’s called a mantra, and it’s a sound or phrase that you say to relax afterwards. If you come up with a mantra for yourself, you can always relax. This exercise can be performed anywhere; it doesn’t matter where you are. I recommend choosing a mantra that calms you down. Sit back and relax and listen to your heart. Say a few mantras out loud, and think about which one you have the most affinity with. A few examples are: ”I relax myself”, ”It’s perfect” and ”I am love”.

You say this phrase to yourself when you feel stressed or tense. In public places you say it quietly to yourself, but if you’re alone you can shout. Keep something with you that reminds you of your mantra. For example, think of a stone or a bead. Every time you touch the object, say your mantra.

One of the most effective relaxation exercises for anxiety that I can share with you is the following. Step into your own bubble. When you perform this exercise, you are forced to put yourself in a different, relaxing situation. This exercise is best performed at a time when you have time to dream. So don’t do it when you’re in the car! Start the exercise by lying down or sitting quietly, and close your eyes. Breathe in and out a few times and experience how your tension flows away.

Imagine in your mind that you are in a bubble. Feel how you begin to float. You have control over the bubble yourself. Choose to send the bubble out of the room and then ascend. You can decide for yourself where you go. Be guided by your feeling. You can stay in this place as long as you want. Try to make it realistic for yourself. Hear the sounds in the area, smell the scents and feel the wind. When you’re done, step back into your bubble. Then you fly back to reality.