Muscle relaxation
Among the many methods of psychotherapy, neuromuscular relaxation( relaxation) is the most widespread.
The main effect of neuromuscular relaxation is based on the fact that the patient learns to distinguish between tension and relaxation. The whole system of muscle relaxation is aimed at reducing the stress level of a person, which is associated with muscle tension. After a person learns to relax his muscles, he gets into his own hands a universal remedy with which you can fight with various pathological conditions and diseases associated with stress. Neuromuscular relaxation is effective in the treatment of sleep disorders, hypertension, headaches, anxiety, it contributes to the formation of a more relaxed psychological setting, which can become a preventive factor in many diseases.
Progressive Neuromuscular Relaxation
Immediately before using the technique of progressive neuromuscular relaxation, the patient should undertake the following.
1. It is necessary to determine whether he has any contraindications related to muscle or neuromuscular disorders, for example neurologic disorders, weakness or damage to the muscles, as well as bone pathology, which may be exacerbated by neuromuscular relaxation. In doubtful cases, it is advisable to skip the exercises for muscle groups, the state of which is unclear, until the specialist's conclusion is obtained.
2. It is necessary to provide the most rational conditions for engaging in neuromuscular relaxation: a) a quiet, comfortable place, if possible darkened, so that you can fully concentrate on bodily sensations;b) loosen cramped clothing;if you want, take off your glasses and shoes;c) the body should have the maximum support( with the exception of the neck and head, otherwise the patient involuntarily falls asleep).
3. It is necessary to understand the differences between the desired muscle tension and unwanted muscle contraction( spasm).
Stress is characterized by a slightly unpleasant feeling of contraction in the straining muscle. With contractures, there is pain in the muscles, joints and ligaments, as well as uncontrolled tremor( trembling) of the muscles. The contracture is in fact an excessive muscle tension.
4. During the muscle strain, breathing should not be delayed. Breathing is necessary as usual or should be inhaled during stress and exhaled during relaxation.
The neuromuscular relaxation session must begin with the relaxation of the lower body muscles and end with the relaxation of the facial muscles. This is done because after the tension and relaxation of the muscles you need to try not to allow them to re-tension. The facial muscles are most prone to repeated tension, therefore, to exclude such an opportunity, they should be relaxed in the last place.
Immediately before the session of neuromuscular relaxation, you need to give yourself basic instructions."Now I'm ready to consistently relax the main muscle groups of my body to achieve a state of complete relaxation."
Lean back, please, and settle very, very comfortably. You can loosen or remove the embarrassing details of your clothing, such as shoes or a jacket, tie or glasses. Try to get as comfortable as possible. Close your eyes. Just lean back and close your eyes. First direct your attention to the breath. Breathing is the metronome of the body. So let's feel this metronome. Feel the air enter through the nostrils and go further into your lungs, as your breasts and stomach expand on inspiration and how they fall out on exhalation. Concentrate on breathing( here, give a pause of 30 seconds).For each group of muscles on which we will concentrate, I will always describe in detail the relaxation exercise before you begin to perform it.
Before beginning the exercises, read and try to memorize the entire relaxation formula below.
Chest. Let's start with the chest. Take a deep breath. Try to breathe in all the air around you. We do it now. Ready? Have begun. Take a deep breath. A very deep breath;Deeper, deeper, deeper, delay. .. and relax. Just exhale all the air from your lungs and resume normal breathing. Have you noticed tension in the chest on inspiration? Did you notice relaxation on exhalation? If so, could you describe the difference between stress and relaxation? Remember this when we repeat the exercise. Ready? Have begun. Breathe in very, very deep. Even deeper. Deeper, deeper. Hold your breath - and relax. Just exhale and resume normal breathing. Could you feel the tension this time? Could you feel the relaxation? Try to focus on this difference when we perform the exercise for all muscle groups.(After exercises, there is always a pause of 5-10 s).
Feet and lower legs. Let's now move to the feet and calf muscles. Before we start, put both feet with the whole surface on the floor. Now, to complete the exercise, leave the socks on the floor, and at the same time lift both heels as high as possible. Ready? Have begun. Raise your heels. Raise both heels very high, very, very high. Keep it and relax. Just let them gently sink to the floor. You should feel some tension in the back of the calf muscles. Let's repeat this exercise.
Ready? Have begun. Raise your heels very high, very, very high, higher than the first time. Higher. Keep it and relax. With relaxation, you may feel a tingling sensation, warmth. You may feel warmth while your muscles become soft and relaxed. To work the opposite group of muscles, lift both toes very, very high, leaving the heels on the floor. Raise them as vertically as possible. Let's do it now. Ready? Have begun. Raise the socks higher, even higher. Higher. Keep it and relax. Let's repeat this exercise. Ready? Have begun. Raise your socks high, higher than the first time. As high as possible, hold it and relax. You should feel a tingling or heaviness in the lower parts of your legs. They are there. You should just look them up. For some time, try to feel this tingling, warmth or perhaps heaviness, which will tell you that your muscles are now relaxed. Give these muscles to become more relaxed, more and more severe( pause 20 s).
Hips and abdomen. The next group of muscles on which we will concentrate are the muscles of the thigh. This exercise is quite simple. On your team, stretch your legs in front of you as straight as possible and lift them( if this exercise is an inconvenience for the patient, he can make it with each foot separately).Do not forget to keep caviar free. Do not strain them. Let's do this exercise now. Ready? Have begun. Straighten both legs in front of you. Very straight. Very straight. Even more direct. Keep it and relax. Just let your feet gently sink to the floor. Did you feel tension in the upper thighs? Let's repeat this exercise. Ready? Have begun. Straighten your legs. Very straight. More directly than the first time. As straight as possible. Keep it and relax. To work out the opposite group of muscles, imagine that you are on the beach and bury your feet in the sand. Ready? Have begun. Bury your feet on the floor. With great effort. Even stronger. Stronger. And relax. Now let's repeat this exercise. Ready? Have begun. Heel your heels in the sand with great effort. With great effort. Stronger. Even stronger and relax. You should now feel the relaxation in the upper parts of your legs. Let them become more and more relaxed - more and more relaxed. Concentrate now on this feeling.
Hands. Let's get to the hands now. Squeeze both hands at the same time very tightly in fists, as tight as possible. Ready? Have begun. Squeeze your fists very tightly. Very hard. Stronger. Even stronger. Keep it and relax. This is an excellent exercise for those who print or write a lot during the day. Now let's repeat. Ready? Have begun. Squeeze both fists very tightly. Very hard. As hard as you can. Keep it and relax. To work the opposite muscles, just spread your fingers as wide as possible. Ready? Have begun. Spread your fingers very wide. Wider. Even wider. Keep it and relax. Now let's repeat this exercise. Ready? Have begun. Spread your fingers wide. Wider. Wider. As wide as possible. Keep it and relax. Focus on the sensation of heat or tingling in the hands and forearms( here a pause is 20 seconds).
Shoulder. Now let's work with the shoulders. We tend to store a lot of stress and stress in the shoulders. This exercise consists simply of lifting the shoulders vertically upwards towards the ears. Imagine that you are trying to touch the tips of your ears with the tips of your shoulders. Let's do this exercise. Ready? Have begun. Pull your shoulders up. Very high. Even higher, even higher. Keep it and relax. Now let's repeat. Ready? Have begun. Pull your shoulders up. Higher. Higher. Higher. As high as possible. Keep it and relax. Let's repeat this exercise again. Ready? Have begun. Pull your shoulders as high as possible. Higher. Higher. Keep it and relax. Very good. Now focus on the feeling of heaviness in the shoulders. Lower your shoulders, let them completely relax - stronger, stronger( here a pause is 20 seconds).
Face. Let's move on to the face area now. We will start from the mouth. First smile as widely as possible. Smile "to the ears."Ready? Have begun. Very wide smile. Very wide. Very wide. Wider. Even wider. Keep it and relax. Now let's repeat this exercise. Ready? Have begun. Smile very widely. Broad smile. Wider. Wider. Keep it and relax. The opposite group of muscles will be activated if you gather or compress your lips together, as if trying to kiss someone. Ready? Have begun. Gather your lips together. Squeeze them very tightly. Even stronger. Even stronger. Keep it and relax. Now let's repeat this exercise. Ready? Have begun. Tighten the lips together. Stronger. Even stronger. Keep it and relax. Let your mouth relax. Let go of the muscles, let them relax, more and more;even more.
Now let's move higher - to the eyes. I would like you to keep your eyes closed, but squeeze them even harder. Imagine that you are trying not to let the spray of shampoo get into your eyes. Ready? Have begun. Close your eyes very tightly. Very hard. Very hard. Even stronger. Stronger. And relax. Let's repeat this exercise. Ready? Have begun. Close your eyes tight. Stronger. Stronger. Keep it and relax.
The last exercise is simply to raise your eyebrows as high as possible. So, remember that your eyes remain closed, and you raise your eyebrows as high as possible. Ready? Have begun. Raise your eyebrows high. Higher. Much higher. Much higher. Keep it and relax. Now let's repeat this exercise. Ready? Have begun. Raise your eyebrows higher. Higher. As high as possible. Keep it and relax. Take a short pause to let yourself feel the relaxation of the face( pause 15 s).
The final part. Now you have relaxed most of the basic muscles of your body. In order to make sure that they are relaxed, I will go back and list the muscles that we have previously activated and relaxed. When I call them, let them relax even more. You will feel how relaxation descends with a warm wave all over your body. Feel now the relaxation of the muscles of the forehead: it goes down to the eyes, cheeks;you can feel how the feeling of heaviness when relaxed descends to the jaw, neck, descends the shoulders, to the chest and hands, to the stomach, in the hands. Relaxation descends to the legs - to the hips and to the calves and below, to the feet. Your body is very heavy now. Very relaxed. It's a pleasant feeling. For some time, enjoy this feeling of relaxation( here a pause of 2 min).
Transition to wakefulness. Now, once again, focus your attention on yourself and on the world around you. Count from 1 to 10. With each account you will feel how your mind becomes more and more fresh and active. When you count to 10, you will open your eyes and feel better than ever before today. You will feel cheerful, fresh and energized, ready to resume daily activities. Let's start: 1-2 - you begin to feel cheerful, 3-4-5 - you are more and more awake, 6-7 - now stretch your hands and feet, 8 - stretch your arms and legs, 9-10 - now open your eyes!!You feel cheerful, awake, your mind is clear, and the body is fresh, cheerful.