Christmas – Relaxation is Critical to Help You Deal with Stress

Joshua 1:8a - Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it.

Relaxation at Christmas may be even more important than other times of the year and it is critical to help you deal with stress.
 
The kind of relaxation I’m talking about isn’t sitting down in front of the TV or even reading a good book, though these can be an important part of helping you unwind. Relaxation sessions are setting time aside in a room that is quiet for the specific reason to just relax.
 

• Relaxation is therapeutic, not a luxury
• Relaxation will give your body a chance to get energized for the rest of the day
• Will keep your attitude relaxed

 
How often?
 
It’s best to set time aside in a quiet room, but if that’s not possible; then you can do smaller sessions even at your desk at work, if that’s all the time you have.
 

• Relaxation sessions at the start of your day will give your body a chance to get energized for the rest of the day.
• During the day, these sessions will help relieve pain and will keep your attitude relaxed.
• You may need to schedule relaxation every 30-60 minutes on bad days.

 
There are two main types of relaxation methods – progressive relaxation and visualization.
 

• Progressive relaxation
  •  Progressively tightening and then relaxing sets of body muscles starting at the top of the head and ending at the feet
• Visualization
  •  Imagining yourself, in detail, in a relaxing environment

 
I like to visualize myself in a quiet setting beside a stream just downstream from a waterfall. The important thing is not where you imagine yourself being but imagining it in as much detail as possible.
 
Skillsyouneed.com in their article, “Christmas Stress Relief,” can be found some great advice on how to make your Christmas the least stressful as you can. One of the ideas is plan ahead and make a list of the things you will need to take care of before the big day. Along the same line is to make sure to get your Christmas cards out early. Many people are removing this form of stress by posting a Merry Christmas on Facebook or Instagram. My favorite idea is to decide a date when you will stop on Christmas preparations and spend some time enjoying the holidays. What good does it do if you have all the things on your list checked off if you find yourself frazzled and with no energy to enjoy your family and friends?
 
And even in the Bible, as the verse above says, it’s important to meditate on God’s word. There are many verses in the Bible about meditation. You can feel relieved that meditation is a good thing. Sometimes I choose when I’m doing a relaxation session, to focus my attention on a Bible verse and meditate deeply on it. And since we’re talking about relaxation at Christmas, why not choose a section of the Bible that tells the story of Christ’s birth and focus on what’s really important at Christmas.

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Key words: Christmas relaxation, therapeutic to body, visualization sessions, progressive relaxation, change of focus