Tense, overwrought, nervous and anxious, modern man is caught up in the hellish grind which drives him inexorably into stress, because his constant state of anxiety prevents him from facing up to the relentless demand of modern life which, behind an amiable and comfortable exterior, conceals an inhuman machine and an unrelenting struggle for existence. It is really surprising, then, that millions of civilized beings live with depressing feeling that they are ‘out of step’, overlaid by apparently impossible tasks with which they cannot possibly cope, and from which they can never escape.
Tranquilizers, the ‘happy’ pills of modern chemistry, do bring an apparent respite, but in long run the remedy is worse than the disease, since it does no more than dampen the roots of this anxiety and nervousness without eradicating them. But there are two sorts of remedies, both preventive and curative — controlled breathing and relaxation; the latter is the most direct antidote.
When we point out that the relaxation must be learnt, we may seem to be pointing to some far-off goal, and many people come to yoga for instant help with immediate problems. We live at a faster pace than the average oriental, and our forebearers were probably living at a faster pace than the founders of yoga thousands of years ago.
But the paths of yoga are such that immediate benefit can be gained from the very start of every new discipline, from the first yoga breath we draw and the first asana we attempt, and from our basic training in relaxation. We do not have to reach a state of perfection to start to enjoy results. It benefits us more to start to relax in the proper yoga fashion than to become mechanically adept in any other type of relaxation exercise ever devised. This is because yoga relaxation is complete, relaxing not only muscles but also internal organs, glandular system, lungs, heart, nervous system and mind as well. A few specific relaxation techniques are being described here.
Progressive Relaxation
Edmund .lacobson, a Chicago physician, has described the new technique of relaxation known as progressive relaxation. According to Dr Jacobson it requires no imagination, will power or suggestion and it is based on the promise that the body responds to anxiety — provoking thoughts and events with muscle tension. This physiological tension, in turn, increases the subjective experience of anxiety. Deep muscle relaxation reduces physiological tension and is incompatible with anxiety.
Excellent results were obtained in the treatment of muscular tension, anxiety, insomnia, depression, fatigue, irritable bowel, muscle spasm, neck and back pain, hypertension etc., in the short duration of only 2 weeks, obseving two sessions of 15 min. every day regularly WitF.olil any break.
Applied Relaxation Programme
The technique of applied relaxation was developed by a Swedish physician L. G. Ost in 1988. While working with phobic patients, who needed rapid and reliable methods to cut through the anxiety that struck when they encountered phobic sit nations, he observed that this technique achieved high rates of success, also that it could be helpful in a variety of life situations from daily fights and frustrations to chronic insomnia.
Applied relaxation training progresses in the following six stages:
Progressive relaxation: It helps in recognising the difference between tension and relaxation in each major group of muscles.
Release-only relaxation: It cuts out the first step in progressive muscle relaxation — the tensing step. That means one can cut the time down by more than half to achieve deep relaxation in each muscle group.
Cue-controlled relaxation: It reduces the time needed to relax even further, down to 2-3 minutes. In this stage one has to focus on the breathing, and to condition himself to relax exactly when desired. Such instruction helps in building an association between a cue and true muscle relaxation.
Differential relaxation: At this stage the practitioner is able to sit down in a chair at any point of time during the day and achieve deep relaxation in a few minutes. This advance stage helps the practitioner relax while busy in his daily activities. Differential relaxation helps isolate the specific muscles needed for the activity done at the time of relaxation, and allow the rest of the body to relax. It lets him do so in a variety of settings.
Rapid relaxation: This cuts down further the time needed to relax to only 30 seconds. Being able to relax that quickly can mean real relief during stressful life situations. It is good and extremely useful to practice rapid relaxation many times a day as one has to move through different activities and states of mind.
Applied relaxation: The final stage of applied relaxation training involves relaxing quickly in the face of anxiety-provoking situations. At this stage the performer is in full command to cut down the anxiety reactions before they build up.