MEDIA BRAKE...

Detox your mind and soul by keeping a media brake. Most of us read the newspaper in the morning. On the way home from work, we likely to tune into a news bulletin on the radio too. Some people are listening the radio the whole day at work. So instead choose a nice music chanel. Given the often unsettling and tragic headlines we are fed. It's no wonder we feel anxious at times. Just for a week, try focusing only on the good news and nice soothing music that suites you. Cut your TV watching time in half and only watch positive programs, no news, no crime series, just funny and anything that you can maybe learn something new.
Tune out and made a date with your CD collection. The right piece of your favorite music in the evening makes you calmer and relaxes you. Soothing, calm music can have a profound and immediate effect on your stress levels. After a week you feel much better...

RELAXING BATH

Have a bath treatment at home...Your sense of smell is directly linked to the limbic system in your brain- the seat of emotion. this explains the extraordinary power fragrance has over your body and mind. indulge in a aromatic bath with some bath salts and aromatherapy oils and light few candles around you.

Cocoon your soul in the fragrant pleasure of a perfect bath... Close the door...Close your eyes. Breathe in the calming scents of essential oils and herbs. breath out stresses of the day. Relaxing in a warm bath relieves sore muscles and joints, reduces tress, and promotes a good night's sleep. Add soothing music, soft lighting and a bath with lavender and chamomile essential oils to calm your senses. You can create a real spa experience in the privacy of your own home.

There must be quite a few things that a hot bath won't cure,

but I don't know many of them

-sylvia plath

JUST IMAGINE...

...How wonderfully restful it would be to get a good night's sleep. If you find it difficult to drift off, try this once you have switched off the lights. Imagine yourself on an island at twilight. Feel the warm evening breeze against your skin, carrying with it the sweet perfume of delicate flowers. Look at the darkening water and listen to the rhythmic sound of the lapping waves. taste the faint traces of salt and sand on your skin. The more vivid your visualisation, and the more senses you involve, the more effective it will be.

6 WAYS TO RELAX YOUR BODY & MIND

Feeling tense, irritable and overstretched? Pause for a minute...And breath...Deeply...And then experiment with these slow-down ideas...

1. EXAMINE YOUR EVENING

Skimping on sleep affects your stress levels and immune system. Leaving you sluggish, forgetful and tense. Aim for at least seven hours of sleep every night, and if your schedule allows it, a 20 minute power nap in the afternoon too. Remember, rest and relaxation go hand in hand. Have an effective wind-down routine, which includes switching off the TV at least an hour before you climb in to your bed. And avoid heavy meals and alcohol shortly before turning in.

2. GO THE HERBAL ROUTE

Try a few drops of lavender essential oil on your pillow at night to encourage restful sleep. When you feel stressed during the day, inhale a few drops of basil, clary sage, lavender and sandalwood essential oils on a tissue. If your anxiety is also accompanied by a headache or muscular tension, add drops of marjoram and chamomile. A soothing soak in a scented bath with few drop of these oils in the bath water can also aid relaxation.

3. STROKE A CAT

Or hug a dog. Animal "therapy" is powerful medicine, and a wealth of research shows that close contact with a much-loved pet can greatly reduce your anxiety levels.

4. EXPRESS YOURSELF

When certain feelings are uncomfortable for you, pick up a pen. Putting things down on paper is a healthy way of releasing emotions you don't want to express physically. Writing is a way to rid yourself negativity and anger, but it's also therapeutic tool for self awareness. As you commit words to paper, you begin to observe your patterns and wrestle with your demons. Writing helps you to explore concepts like forgiveness, courage and authenticity.

5. MEDITATE

Find a comfortable spot and sit or lie on your back . Choose a specific word that has positive connotations for you - a mantra, of sorts- and close your eyes. Next start consciously relaxing your muscles. Begin with your toes. Feel them loosen up, work through your feet, legs and torso, and all the way up to your head. Breathe deeply and slowly, and repeat the chosen word on every exhalation. After five minutes you should be able to sense the tightness leaving your body.

6. REMEMBER TO BREATHE

Give yourself the gift of 10 minutes. Lie down on your bed, or on a towel on the floor, with your feet about 50 cm apart. Your head and your neck should be aligned with your back. Close your eyes and practise diaphragmatic breathing with your hand gently resting on your abdomen. Ensure your chest isn't doing all the work. Concentrate on the rhythm of your breathing, until it becomes smooth and regular.

LIFE IS A JOURNEY

  Life is a journey. An ongoing adventure of fresh insights, big challenges and daily discoveries. All of us     

seek   balance and harmony as we navigate our path. I will be posting about how to learn simple ways to relax, revive, restore and refresh your mind, body and soul.

MINDFULNESS MEDITATION

Mindfulness meditation is not about achieving bliss or tranquility. Rather, its aim is to see things as they really are more clearly. This meditation is a form of "mind training". It will help you to bring awareness to the thing or a moment. To really notice what's happening right now. For example: often when you are drinking coffee or tea... How much attention you bring to the beverage that you have in your cup? Most of the time you are busy doing other things and the cup is "just there", like my green tea cup right now next to my computer. I am drinking tea while typing but my mind is in the words and not in the aroma and the warmth of the tea... So next time you making for yourself a cup of tea or coffee, smell the aroma of your tea or coffee, hold the cup between your two hands and feel the warmth of it. Feel how you drink taste, enjoy it, enjoy the moment. Forget everything else. Just have a "relationship" with you cup. Your will get more out of your short coffee or tea brake. This next meditation will help you to find a way to be more in the moment and you will learn to observe with awareness and perceive more accurately what your experience really is.
Start with 5 minutes daily. Gradually add a few minutes to your session each day until you can sit for 20 minutes.

1. Sit in a comfortable position on a pillow, chair, couch or floor.
2. Listen to the sounds around you while you relax. Practice letting the sounds come and go without holding on to them or pushing them way.
3. As you inhale think "in" and as you exhale, think "out". Let this action be a kind of home base.
4. When your mind drifts and thoughts starts to wander, pay attention what comes up. You may be aware of a pain in your shoulder for intense, or think about the argument from the night before. Acknowledges this thought and feeling, spend a moment with it and then bring your awareness gently back in to your home base. Rather than rushing past the new sensations you experience, bring your full awareness to them.
5. If you find yourself getting stuck in an emotion or sensation, it may help to put a mental label on it, to identify it as "anger" or "pain". Then bring your awareness back to your breath.
6. The traditional way to end this meditation is to acknowledge the positive energy you have created and to dedicate it to yourself and others. Try to practice this meditation everyday.