It's January 2010 and you know what that means? Yup, New Year's Resolutions. You've made them before, and I'm sure you have made them again this year: Lose those pesky 5 pounds, exercise more, clean the garage, paint the upstairs bedroom, take an art class, and the list goes on and on. Do you notice anything similar about those resolutions? If you look closely you will see that they have one thing in common. They are all some kind of activity.

I think you would agree that we all have too much stress in our lives and that stress usually revolves around our activities. So why do we want to add even more activities to our lives?

I suggest to you that a great New Year's Resolution would be to relax more. Why don't we resolve to lower our blood pressure in 2010? How about improving your concentration, getting better quality sleep, or reducing anger and frustration? Now these are resolutions I can get excited about. And you know how easy they can be? All you have to do is resolve to relax more. Just look at this list of benefits of relaxation:

• Slowing your heart rate

• Lowering blood pressure

• Slowing your breathing rate

• Increasing blood flow to major muscles

• Reducing muscle tension and chronic pain

• Improving concentration

• Reducing anger and frustration

Now, by relaxation, I don't mean going out to take a walk, patting a cat, or drinking a hot cup of tea. Again, those are all activities. I'm talking about relaxation techniques that use our minds in a way that results in the benefits in the list above. Research has shown that thoughts and emotions trigger certain hormones or other chemicals that send messages throughout the body. These messages affect how our body functions; for example, thoughts and emotions can change our heart rate, blood pressure, breathing, blood sugar levels, muscle responses, concentration, and the ability to fight off illnesses (our immune system). The goal of relaxation is to turn off the outside world so the mind and body are at rest. With training and practice we can learn to use our minds to relax the body, to reduce stress and anxiety, and reduce any discomfort or unpleasantness we may be feeling due to physical or emotional issues.

Relaxation isn't just about peace of mind or enjoying a hobby. Relaxation is a process that decreases the wear and tear on your mind and body from the challenges and hassles of daily life.

Let's talk about several methods of relaxation:

1. Muscle Relaxation — the tensing and relaxing of muscle groups from feet to head.

2. The Body Scan — focuses on your breathing and clears your mind of any worries or distracting thoughts.

3. Guided Imagery — a guided daydream allowing you to refocus your mind from distractions and transporting yourself to another time and place.

4. Visualization — Use your imagination to help you feel calmer, and better able to deal with whatever has you feeling stressed in the first place.

5. Distraction — focusing our minds on something other than our bodies and their sensations.

6. Positive and healthy thinking — self talk, changing negative thoughts to positive.

7. Prayer — research suggests that maintaining religious or spiritual beliefs may improve health.

8. Meditation — the quieting of mind and body.

One of the main keys to all of these techniques is deep breathing or “belly breathing.” This type of breathing involves inhaling through your nose allowing the stomach to expand outward, and then exhaling through pursed lips. Done slowly and deliberately, belly breathing can cause you to slow down and concentrate as you practice whatever relaxation method you choose.

Be sure to pick a quiet place and time during the day, practice the relaxation technique daily, and give the technique time to work.
By the time February rolls around, you'll be on track with your resolution of relaxing more while others will have abandoned theirs by the end of January.
Happy Relaxed New Year!

Joanne Ahern is director of North Mecklenburg Senior Center. You can reach her at 704-892-4041.