As promised, this is a short guided progressive relaxation exercise for stress management. Do not listen to this recording while driving or operating machinery. It is best to find 15 minutes of uninterrupted time and be somewhere you can get completely relaxed. This might be in a recliner, reclined all the way back or lying down in bed. It's also a good idea to listen with headphones or earphones to cut out any outside sounds or influences. It is guided so you do not have to think about technique. Just follow the prompts. It will start with breathing exercises to start the relaxation process, then it goes to progressive relaxation suggestions, to guided imagery, to beneficial suggestions, then you come out. It's a very simple, relaxing experience where you feel revitalized and energetic at the end. I hope you enjoy it.
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Hello and welcome to the going viral podcast. I'm Matthew Zinder, a certified registered nurse anesthetist. I'm an advanced practice nurse that specializes in the practice of anesthesia. The scope of this podcast will explore health and wellness from the broad to the specific. My aim is to educate while offering a unique perspective. Thank you for joining me today and let's get right to the show. So as promised, I wanted to offer you a progressive relaxation session for stress management. This is a very relaxing exercise that you can do anytime. I do want to remind you though, that when listening to this, you should not be driving or operating any type of machinery actually what you want to do is find a place that you can carve out a good 15 minutes of uninterrupted time and It's always good to be in a recliner reclined all the way back or possibly lying down in bed, and maybe even best to listen to it with headphones or earphones so you can cut out any outside sounds or influences. We will start with a nice breathing exercise and that will get you in the beginning stages of relaxation and I will coach you through each and every step of the way as we get started. So when you're ready, go ahead and get into a nice comfortable position. And we will start as I said, with a nice, good breathing exercise. So what you want to do is take a good deep breath in through your nose.
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Hold it for as long as it's comfortable.
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Then let it exit slowly from your mouth.
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Make this a very slow process and when you're ready to another nice Good, deep breath in through your nose.
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Hold it for as long as it's comfortable.
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Then let it exit slowly from your mouth.
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Very good. And one more time another nice good deep abdominal breath in through your nose.
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Hold it for as long as it's comfortable.
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Then let it exit slowly from your mouth.
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already starting to feel relaxation.
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Very nice.
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So as we get started, I want you to remember that it's normal to hear some outside sounds and outside influences. And if you start to hear any type of outside sounds or influences I wonder if you'll let them act as triggers to allow you to go into a deeper state of relaxation. Also, if you have To reposition, cough scratch, that's also okay. Also use those events as triggers to go into a deeper state of relaxation.
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What I'd like you to do now is pay attention to your body.
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How does your body feel?
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Pay attention to your muscles.
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I wonder if you'll pay attention to whatever muscle right now is most tightly engaged. I wonder now if you will allow that muscle to let go of its hold. Feeling relaxation now starting at the top of your head. This relaxation is now traveling down your head, past your forehead, past the back of your head past your cheeks relaxing relaxation now traveling down pasture jaw down posture, chin down past your lower head to your neck. Relaxation is now traveling down your shoulders, down your arms,
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past your elbows to your forearms,
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to your wrists,
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to your hands
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to the tips of your fingers.
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I'm wondering now how your arms feel. Are they so heavy that you couldn't lift them if you tried? Or do they feel so light that they may even start to float? Either way is correct because you were in control. This is your experience.
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This relaxation is now traveling down your chest.
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past your upper back,
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down past your lower back.
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Relaxation now traveling down past your abdomen to your waist This relaxation now is traveling down past your waist down past your hips.
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down past your
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thighs, to your knees,
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relaxation, traveling down your shins and your calves, to your
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ankles, to your feet
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into the tips of your toes.
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You are now completely relaxed from the tips of your toes and the tips of your fingers to the top of your head. All muscles that are not necessary for your continued survival are
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completely relaxed.
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Very good. Feels so good to be relaxed now. I'm going to count backwards now from five to one five being the wonderful state of relaxation you're in right now. And one being an even deeper, more tranquil state of relaxation.
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Five
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even deeper now for
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deeper relaxation,
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three, down down deep
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to
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even deeper now and one deep, deep, deep relaxation. I'd like you to go on a journey with me now. A journey to a place that you can go and feel completely tranquil and completely relaxed. I want you to create this space for yourself now. This is a place you can go and feel completely free of stress.
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completely happy.
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For some people it might be sitting on the edge of a beach on a perfect day, smelling the Solitaire watching seagulls float on the air of a perfect day. For others it might be sitting on the front porch of a cabin in the mountains. For others it might be just sitting in a favorite chair and a favorite room of a house. feeling completely relaxed and tranquil. Make it vivid, make it in color. create this place for yourself now.
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Very good.
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counting backwards now from three to one, three being the wonderful state of relaxation you're in right now and one
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being even more tranquil,
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more relaxing state.
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Three,
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even deeper,
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to
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more relaxed
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and one deep, deep, deep relaxation. Now as you continue to be in this tranquil place that you've created for yourself, I'm going to give you some beneficial suggestions. Now these suggestions can be used at any time you wish for you're in control. This is your experience. Every day you are physically stronger and fitter. You're more alert, more wide awake and more energetic. Every day your nerves are stronger and steadier. Your mind is calmer and clearer, more composed, more placid and more tranquil. You think more clearly, you concentrate more easily, your memory improves and you see things in their true perspective without allowing them to get out of proportion. Every day you were emotionally much calmer, much more settled, much more tranquil. And every day you feel a greater feeling of personal well being a greater feeling of personal safety and security, more than you have felt in a long In every day you become and you remain more and more completely relaxed and more tranquil, both mentally and physically. Because of this every day you feel more and more independent, more able to stand on your own feet to hold your own, no matter how difficult things may be. Because all these things begin to happen exactly as I tell you, they will happen, you will begin to feel much happier, much more contented, much more cheerful, much more optimistic, and every day you will do better and better.
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Very good.
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feeling completely relaxed. Now in this place you've created for yourself.
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feeling relaxed from head to toe.
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All of your muscles are relaxed from the tips of your toes, the tips of your fingers to the top of your head.
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This relaxation is restorative.
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You will come out of this relaxation session feeling restored, energetic, positive, happy in every way.
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So it's now time to come back.
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But when you come back, you will feel healed, you will feel relaxed, you will feel that your stress has been wiped away easily. And you can come back to this feeling anytime you wish. Either by listening to a recording such as this or just doing those breathing exercises that we did in the beginning. So I'm going to count from one to five. One being the wonderful state of relaxation you're in right now and five being the here and now feeling bright, positive, tranquil, but energetic, and wonderful in every way. One you start to feel Bright positive, vibrant energy starting at your toes and this bright vibrant positive energy is now traveling up your toes past your feet to your ankles. This bright vibrant positive energy is now pasture ankles up your shins and your calves to your knees. This bright vibrant positive energy which leaves only comfort behind is now passing your knees to your thighs up to your hips to this bright, vibrant positive energy is now started at the tips of your fingers and is now traveling up your hands pasture wrists, pasture for arms to your elbows. This bright vibrant positive energy which leaves only comfort behind is now pasture elbows
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of your arms to your shoulders.
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And this bright, vibrant positive energy has now passed your hips of pasture waste, three. And this bright vibrant positive energy which leaves only comfort behind is now passing your abdomen in your lower back. pasture chest, your upper back to your shoulders. For this bright, vibrant positive energy is now up pasture
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neck,
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going up pasture lower head,
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pasture jaw, as the back of your head, pasture, forehead, pasture eyes into the top of your head. This bright, vibrant positive energy is now from the tips of your toes and the tips of your fingers to the top of your head. always remembering, leave the past in the past, live for a positive present and look forward to a positive future. And five when you're ready, you can come back to the here and now feeling positive, vibrant, energetic and wonderful in every way.
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So that'll do it for this episode. I hope to see you at the next one. This is Matthew Zinder and the going viral podcast. Please stay safe and stay well.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai