How to become more relaxed and counteract the negative effects of stress.
30-Second Summary:
- Relaxation is a state of inner balance where your mind is calm, and you feel emotionally and physically harmonious.
- Signs of relaxation include a relaxed posture, an optimistic attitude, resilience to stress, inner contentment, and steady breathing.
- Becoming more relaxed has positive effects on almost every aspect of life: it enhances creativity, productivity, and resilience, and helps break free from negative thought patterns.
- Achieve relaxation through physical relaxation techniques, mindfulness practices, and nurturing a positive self-relationship.
What is Relaxation?
Relaxation is a state of physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Becoming more relaxed means calming your mind, reducing stress, and finding inner peace.
The following signs indicate that you are in a state of inner balance:
- Muscle relaxation
- Calm facial expression
- Relaxed posture
- Resilience to stress
- Deep, slow breathing
- Optimistic attitude
- Inner contentment
- Laughter and smiles
Modern busy lifestyle, amid noisy traffic, open offices, and huge concrete buildings surroundings, often makes relaxation a challenge in daily life.
According to science, this can have long-term effects on our physical and mental health: chronic stress can lead to various issues such as sleep disturbances, anxiety, concentration difficulties, high blood pressure, and many others.
Make a conscious effort to prioritize relaxation in your life to counteract the negative impacts of stress.
Becoming More Relaxed with 12 Tips
To become more relaxed on a physical, emotional, and mental level, you will find the following 12 valuable tips below.
01. Relaxation Exercise
In addition to meditation, there are other valuable tools, known as relaxation techniques, to find inner balance.
Relaxation exercises help you connect with your body, allowing you to regulate your autonomic nervous system. For example, you can influence your heart rate and the release of stress hormones.
- Breath Work: Connect with your own breath. Breathing exercises have been proven to reduce stress.
- Autogenic Training: By using affirmations like “My breathing is calm and even,” you can progressively relax different parts of your body until you reach a state of relaxation.
- Progressive Muscle Relaxation: By consciously tensing and then relaxing specific muscle groups, you reliably achieve a state of deep relaxation throughout your entire body.
02. Coaching
A good coach can help you identify stress factors and develop strategies to handle them, ultimately helping you become more relaxed.
For example, if you often feel stressed because you have difficulty balancing work and personal life (friends, relationships, family), a coach can assist you in setting priorities. This way, you can focus on what’s essential – your resources – and find more relaxation.
In short, coaching can be a valuable resource in achieving a healthier work-life balance and reducing stress.
03. Journaling
Journaling is a form of written self-reflection to process your thoughts and feelings: Write everything down daily to clear your mind.
From positive psychology, we know that you can become more relaxed by also jotting down your positive emotions.
So, don’t just focus on stress factors; for example, write about what you are grateful for in your life.
Journaling serves as a very effective tool for many people to become generally more relaxed. This is because putting thoughts and emotions into writing helps stop the cycle of rumination.
04. Meditation
Meditation is a form of mindfulness practice aimed at:
- To calm your mind,
- To connect with your senses, and
- To redirect your attention inward.
In practice, you focus on the present moment. For example, you can direct your attention to your breath. Observe thoughts, memories, and images without getting lost in them.
Learn to let go of thoughts as if they were passing clouds in the blue sky.
Scientific research confirms that regular mindfulness practices like meditation have a relaxing effect, not only in the moment of meditation but also beyond.
You learn to control your mind, including your stress response.
05. Exercise
Regular physical activity will make you feel more balanced and relaxed in your daily life. A physically active and sporty lifestyle helps regulate the stress hormone cortisol, as studies show.
For some people, just half an hour of yoga in the morning can work wonders: it connects you with your body, turns off your mind, and carries that moment of calm with you throughout the day.
Others swear by strength training, preferably in the morning or early afternoon. The muscular tension during the workout is followed by a long-lasting phase of balance and relaxation.
Important: Discover which sport personally brings you joy to maintain motivation for physical activity in the long run. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with exploring different sports that you enjoy and that promote relaxation.
Let the following questions inspire you to find the suitable sport for you:
- Team sport or solo sport
- Outdoors or indoors
- Strength training or endurance training
- With a coach or without
06. Restorative Sleep
Thanks to scientific studies, we know that quality of sleep has a significant impact on overall stress levels.
Restful sleep is, therefore, a crucial prerequisite for feeling relaxed.
To identify potential causes of sleep problems, take a moment to reflect and consider which of the following behavioral patterns apply to you:
Tips for Restful Sleep
For many people, the “10-3-2-1-0 sleep method” works well, combining various scientific insights into a sleep rule.
- 10 hours before bedtime: Avoid consuming caffeine.
- 3 hours before bedtime: Avoid alcohol and heavy meals.
- 2 hours before bedtime: Stop working.
- 1 hour before bedtime: Avoid screen time and the light emitted by electronic displays.
- 0 times hitting the “snooze” button on your alarm clock.
Following these guidelines can help improve the quality of your sleep and contribute to feeling more relaxed.
07. True Friendships
Genuine friendships are characterized by the emotional security they provide.
In essence, in true friendships, you build trust. Within this trust, you feel free to be yourself and can relax.
You know that your friends have your back even in stressful situations and are there for you. This knowledge relaxes us because we know that we are not alone in difficult times.
So, focus on deep friendships rather than superficial acquaintances. Build deep connections and trust by:
Genuine friendships are characterized by the emotional security they provide.
In essence, in true friendships, you build trust. Within this trust, you feel free to be yourself and can relax.
You know that your friends have your back even in stressful situations and are there for you. This knowledge relaxes us because we know that we are not alone in difficult times.
So, focus on deep friendships rather than superficial acquaintances. Build deep connections and trust by
- Investing time in the friendship,
- Finding common hobbies,
- Actively listening to each other, and
- Being honest about your feelings.
Psychologists suggest that you can recognize that you are relaxed in a friendship through the following behaviors:
- You use informal language,
- You laugh a lot together,
- You tease each other.
08. Avoid Energy Drains
If you want to become more relaxed, you should avoid energy drains: Energy drains can be both people and situations that “get on your last nerve.”
For example, you meet a friend for coffee, and she complains about her life or others throughout the entire conversation.
After the meeting, you feel:
- Energyless,
- Irritated, and
- Exhausted.
Identify stress factors like these and be mindful not to let them dominate your daily life.
Of course, energy-draining situations are a part of life, but they should not take over; otherwise, your relaxation gauge may become imbalanced.
Seek relaxation havens as needed to recharge. This way, you can reduce your everyday stress and become more relaxed.
09. Positive Affirmations
Do you get easily upset? Instead of letting stress overwhelm you, find stability and security in positive affirmations. These can vary depending on the situation.
To become more relaxed, lovingly repeat the following affirmations to yourself in stressful situations:
- “Strength lies in calmness.”
- “I can do this.”
- “I rest within myself – no matter what happens on the outside.”
- “I can ask for help.”
- “I am enough.”
- “I can relax at work.”
- “I connect with my breath.”
10. Get to Know Yourself
Do you often feel restless and dissatisfied without knowing exactly why?
Through self-reflection exercises, you can identify which aspects of your life are causing you distress and take steps to improve them.
This helps you feel more relaxed and balanced overall.
Restlessness often arises from the fact that people are not aware of their true needs, desires, or goals. They may then act contrary to their inner emotional compass, which can eventually lead to a feeling of constant stress.
11. Regulating Emotions
If you carry emotional baggage with you and often feel tense, you may lack the right strategy to handle your emotions.
The ability to regulate your emotions in a healthy way is essential for becoming more relaxed.
Learn to regulate your emotions better in three steps and ask yourself the following questions:
01. Identify the emotion:
- What emotions am I experiencing right now? Can I name them?
02. Accept the emotion:
- Can I give my feelings space? Can I accept it?
03. Manage the emotion:
- How can I best relax in this situation? What is good for me?
12. Self-Compassion
The relationship you have with yourself is one of the most important resources in stress management. According to studies, being mindful and compassionate toward yourself is a crucial pillar of inner balance.
Become your own best friend: Adopt an attitude characterized by
The relationship you have with yourself is one of the most important resources in stress management. According to studies, being mindful and compassionate toward yourself is a crucial pillar of inner balance.
Become your own best friend: Adopt an attitude characterized by
- Forgiveness and forgiving,
- Self-love,
- Openness, and
- Gentleness.
With self-compassion, you will find more ease and relaxation. Negative beliefs and self-talk conducted with your inner critic will occur less frequently.
Thanks to self-compassion, you release the pressure to be perfect. You accept yourself as you are, without losing sight of your personal growth.
