{"id":881,"date":"2013-02-02T07:00:41","date_gmt":"2013-02-02T05:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tasapisi.ee\/2013\/02\/02\/meelerahu-loogastusharjutustest\/"},"modified":"2025-05-29T15:01:35","modified_gmt":"2025-05-29T12:01:35","slug":"relaxation-exercises-for-peace-of-mind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tasapisi.ee\/en\/2013\/02\/02\/relaxation-exercises-for-peace-of-mind\/","title":{"rendered":"Relaxation Exercises for Peace of Mind"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Piret Annus<\/strong>, psychologist at Studio Tasapisitasakaal, shares advice in\u00a0<em>Mari<\/em>\u00a0magazine on how to let go of tension and stressful thoughts.<\/p>\n<p>Stress from work and other responsibilities accumulates if we never take time out. Sleep isn\u2019t truly restful if we go to bed stressed \u2014 we often wake up still tired or tense.<br \/>\n<strong>Ideally, rest should come in three forms<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Relationship time<\/strong>\u00a0(with another person)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Energy-replenishing activities<\/strong>\u00a0(like hobbies)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Relaxation time<\/strong>\u00a0\u2014 simply being, with no activity (often undervalued in our productivity-obsessed culture).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Breathing exercises are the\u00a0<strong>simplest way<\/strong>\u00a0to create a moment of calm. Even 2\u20133 minutes of deep breathing daily can produce a calming effect and improve concentration, energy, productivity, and resilience to stress.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Belly Breathing<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Inhale slowly and deeply (your hand on your belly under the rib cage should rise).<br \/>\nPause briefly, then exhale slowly through your nose or mouth while consciously relaxing.<br \/>\nCount to 4\u20135 on both the inhale and exhale.<br \/>\nDo this for 2\u20133 minutes or 10 breaths to calm your system.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Calming Breathing Exercise<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>From ancient yoga traditions:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Inhale deeply through your nose while counting to 5.<\/li>\n<li>Hold your breath while counting to 5.<\/li>\n<li>Exhale slowly through your nose or mouth while counting to 5.<\/li>\n<li>Take two normal breaths, then repeat the cycle.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Practice for 3\u20135 minutes or 10 cycles.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Progressive Muscle Relaxation<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This technique involves tensing and relaxing different muscle groups.<br \/>\nIt\u2019s especially helpful for people with chronic muscle tension \u2014 often unnoticed due to long-term stress.<\/p>\n<p>Tension relief can ease back and headaches, lower blood pressure, and improve sleep quality.<\/p>\n<p>It may seem complicated to start, but it only takes\u00a0<strong>15\u201320 minutes<\/strong>, and can be done:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>In the morning before getting out of bed,<\/li>\n<li>At night before sleep.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Even in a fast-paced life, there\u2019s always time for a few minutes of breathwork \u2014 no excuses. You can do it anytime, anywhere: in the car, in line, while waiting, at work, or during movement.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Mindfulness (Present-Moment Awareness)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Modern psychotherapy increasingly supports\u00a0<strong>mindfulness<\/strong>: the ability to be present without judgment.<br \/>\nBe fully present in your current experience \u2014 use all your senses.<\/p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re eating, instead of rushing through lunch, notice the smell, taste, and the moment you&#8217;ve taken for yourself.<br \/>\nInstead of being upset about the weather (which you can&#8217;t change), enjoy the snowfall, crisp air, and colors.<\/p>\n<p>Being present \u2014 without judgment or comparison \u2014 reduces chronic dissatisfaction and stress.<\/p>\n<p>Read more here:<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.ajakirimari.ee\/Meelerahu_loogastusharjutustest_233.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Relaxation Techniques for Peace of Mind \u2013 Ajakiri Mari<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Piret Annus<\/strong><br \/>\nPsychologist, Studio Tasapisitasakaal<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Piret Annus, psychologist at Studio Tasapisitasakaal, shares advice in\u00a0Mari\u00a0magazine on  [&#8230;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":727,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-881","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-psychology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tasapisi.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/881","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tasapisi.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tasapisi.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tasapisi.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tasapisi.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=881"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/tasapisi.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/881\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":882,"href":"https:\/\/tasapisi.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/881\/revisions\/882"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tasapisi.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/727"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tasapisi.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=881"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tasapisi.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=881"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tasapisi.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=881"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}