Muscle Relaxation Techniques for Anxiety Relief

Deep Breathing
One of the most common relaxation techniques is deep breathing, which allows you to decrease your anxiety levels by controlling the way that you breathe. When you learn this technique, you learn to pace your breathing so that it helps you relax and calm down.

Progressive Muscle Relaxation
If you are particularly anxious, it may be necessary to take steps to eliminate physical tension before you even attempt to participate in deep breathing exercises. If you aren't relaxed enough to benefit from deep breathing, try engaging in progressive muscle relaxation prior to starting to try to relax via controlling how you breathe. The primary idea behind progressive muscle relaxation is to tense and relax the different muscle groups in your body, which will allow them to relax. Be certain that you relax each muscle group after tensing it.

How to Begin Progressive Muscle Relaxation
1. Select a quiet place.
2. Sit in a comfortable chair.
3. Close your eyes.
4. Calm your breathing.
5. Tense the muscles in your one of your hands.
6. Count 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
7. Relax the muscles in the same hand.
8. Move on to another muscle group, repeating the same steps.

Head and Neck Relaxation
When it's time to work on relaxing the muscle groups in your head and neck, you may find the following suggestions to be beneficial:
1. Raise and lower your eyebrows
2. Smile
3. Frown
4. Open and close your jaw
5. Move your head side to side
6. Move your head forward and back

Using Progressive Muscle Relaxation
It doesn't really matter how you work your way through your muscle groups. The idea is to isolate each group, progressively relaxing one at a time. Many people find it beneficial to begin with one hand, them move on to the are and shoulder before going on the other hand, arm, and shoulder. Some people relax the different muscles in their heads and faces in between the two arms. They then move on to their legs and feet. Again, the order is up to you. What you have to remember is that you need to work your way through every group of muscles in your body if you want to be completely relaxed.

Benefits of Progressive Muscle Relaxation
They very act of going through a progressive muscle relaxation routine can help calm your breathing and reduce your anxiety levels. While you're engaged in these activities, your breathing will very likely become deeper and slower, providing your body with additional oxygen and calming energy. When you move from progressive muscle relaxation to deep breathing relaxation therapy, you'll be in the perfect physical and mental state of mind to enjoy the maximum benefit.