Relaxation Therapy For Fibromyalgia

Relaxation therapy helps to provide a person with physical, emotional, and spiritual relaxation. It actually involves numerous techniques that reduce stress and fatigue and work to invigorate the mind and body. Most relaxation techniques involve using both the body and the mind together; they often pair concentration with specific bodily movements or breathing exercise to achieve deep relaxation.

There are two main classes of relaxation therapy:

Brief Relaxation Therapy:

Brief relaxation therapies require less time and skill to perform. They include: self-controlled relaxation, deep breathing and paced relaxation.

Deep Relaxation Therapy:

Deep relaxation therapies take more time to learn and to perform, but can provide a more intense sense of relaxation. These therapies include: meditation, progressive muscle relaxation, and autogenic training.

Relaxation Techniques

There are a wide variety of different techniques that can be used to help promote relaxation.

Deep Breathing:

Deep breathing techniques require a person to focus on his inhalation and exhalation. This can be done by sitting or standing comfortably and placing the hands firmly on the stomach and then slowly inhaling through the nose. As a person inhales, his stomach begins to expand outwards – this is a sign that he is inhaling as much oxygen as possible. Repeating for 10 minutes, three or four times daily is vital.

Meditation:

Meditation is a technique that helps to relax the body and settle the mind at the same time. Meditation uses focused concentration in order to achieve relaxation. Either by repeating a word or sound, or by focusing on breathing, sufferers can clear their mind and achieve complete relaxation. They concentrate on inhaling and exhaling or repeating a special word. This process is continued for about 20 minutes.

Yoga

Yoga is both a physical and mental practice that can help the patients to achieve complete relaxation. It is a low-impact workout, which focuses on stretching and relaxing all major muscle groups in the body. This makes yoga an excellent choice for fibromyalgia patients, as it helps to increase muscle mass and strength. Yoga relaxation therapy also teaches how to control and monitor breathing, allowing individuals to relax and focus as they complete the workout.

Progressive Muscle Relaxation

Progressive muscle relaxation is an excellent choice for fibromyalgia patients because it is so easy to do. Sufferers can do it while sitting in a chair or when lying in bed, whichever is the most comfortable for them. Progressive muscle relaxation works on all major muscle groups in the body. It helps to reduce tension and work out the muscles at the same time. Progressive muscle relaxation requires no equipment and can be done by all age-levels and abilities.
This technique reduces stress and tension by helping them to focus on particular muscles in their body. The ritual begins by tensing the muscles in the feet, holding this contraction for 8 seconds or so. Then releasing the tension and relaxing. Tensing of all the major muscles in the body, right up to the head is continued. By the time the ritual finishes, individuals are completely relaxed.
Many relaxation therapy techniques can be performed at home, while others can be performed under the guidance of an instructor at a relaxation therapy clinic.

By relaxing both the physical body and the mind, an individual can actually help to reduce the effects of stress. This is known as the relaxation response. Relaxation helps to lower blood pressure and heart rate, and also helps to slow down breathing. Additionally, it promotes oxygen flow throughout the body, helping to heal damaged areas.

Relaxation therapy can also be extremely helpful in reducing the many symptoms caused by fibromyalgia. Meditation and progressive muscle relaxation techniques help to reduce insomnia and other sleep disorders. They promote the production of melanin in the body, which is essential for deep sleep.

There are several known factors that patients can either avoid or emphasize to ensure that they reduce their cases of pain. One of the most common fibromyalgia self help techniques that people can use is to eradicate stress. Most patients have confirmed that stress has always been a contributing factor to their fibromyalgia attacks.

Relaxation therapy has also been proven to moderately reduce anxiety and depression, which are also symptoms of fibromyalgia. Moreover, all relaxation therapies have proven effective in minimizing the intensity and duration of migraine headaches.

A Simple Relaxation Technique You Could Try Today

1. Find a location that’s quiet and where you know you won’t be bothered. You are looking for ten to twenty minutes of undisturbed meditation here. Turn off all telephones and anything else that could become a distraction.

2. Now, sit comfortably and quietly. Keep your back in position with your spine vertically aligned. Remember that posture is something that you need to make happen.

3. Commit to what you are doing right now. That means not allowing distraction to play a role now. Commit to not being interrupted by anything happening in the world around you. Most importantly, remove anything from the room or from your line of view that could be a potential distraction. Commit to performing meditation.

4. Select a word that fits into your natural belief system. For example, use “love” “peace” or others. If you are religious, select a work of a short phrase that signifies what you believe. “Hallelujah” or “Om” make good choices. Close your eyes once you’ve selected the right word. Closing your eyes helps you to enter into relaxation.

5. Now, we’ll go through the body and relax each of the muscles in it. Start with your toes. Consciously think to yourself that your toes should relax and feel them relax. Next, move to your feet, your legs and so on. You want to allow each of your muscles to relax. Make sure to include your neck, your jaw, your pelvis, back, your arms, fingers and hands, and shoulders. As this happens, feel the tension leave your body.

6. Continue to breathe through the process in deep, long breathes and repeat your mediation word over and over again. Breathe in, say your word, breathe out, and repeat. You don’t need to say the word out loud, but rather mentally pronounce it.

7. Use the passive attitude that we’ve talked about. If any thoughts come into your mind while you are sitting, relaxing, let them go out simply by telling yourself “oh well.” Most people will have trouble with this at first, so don’t worry about how well you are doing. Just let go of those words the best that you can. Keep repeating your meditation word, too.

8. Keep this going for ten minutes at least and strive for twenty. Don’t use any alarm to warn you, just open your eyes for a moment to check.

9. Sit and relax for several minutes once you’ve come out of your meditation. Keep your eyes closed for a couple of minutes before opening them. Don’t stand up just yet. Allow yourself time to come back into reality before doing so.

You should try to do this simple meditation at least once a day but two or more times per day really can have a positive effect on your daily stresses. Many people find that this simple meditation works well before they get their day started, when they are fully rested and before they have eaten breakfast.

When you have practiced this type of mediation for several days or even longer, you should learn the benefits of meditation and what it can offer. If you don’t feel any different, you may not be following each step appropriately. You need to focus on your body and breath and not on whether or not meditation is going to work or not.

This Article is a just some of the information found in our eBook: My Fibromyalgia Breakthrough