Imagine a Stress Free Life

There is a Chinese proverb that says, “A stressed man walks a stressed mile. A relaxed man walks a relaxed mile.” How we choose to react to situations determines our experience of them and the effect they have on us that day and the next. How we feel in response to a situation is determined by a decision, conscious or unconscious, we have taken as to how that situation will make us feel.

Running a mile in under 4 minutes was considered impossible. Experts said it was physically impossible and psychologically dangerous. That was until 1957 when Roger Bannister ran a mile in 3 minutes 59.4 seconds. Within forty-six days, John Landy ran a mile in 3 minutes 57.9 seconds. By the end of that year, another sixteen runners ran a mile in under four minutes. How did Bannister achieve the impossible? Why were sixteen other runners able to accomplish the same impossible feat?

Bannister ran a mile in under four minutes because he chose to and believed he could? He managed his state of mind, his physiology, and directed his outcome. By choosing the impossible he proved to the rest of the world that the impossible is possible.

Many people feel that not reacting to their stress-filled environment with anything other than charged emotions, feeling helpless and hopeless and that happiness, health, and a productive, successful life are completely impossible. Are you one of these? Right now you have a choice. How you consciously or unconsciously choose to react to your frenetic, demanding, fast-paced life is completely up to you. You can completely change how you think and feel if you want to.

To help you learn how to respond differently to your present situation I present a technique called, “Imagine a Stress Free Life.” You will use the fundamentals of this very simple yet powerful tool to completely change how you respond to your environment. You may not be able to change your circumstances, but you have the power to change how you react to it. Scientific research and anecdotal evidence prove that the subconscious mind doesn’t know the difference between a real event and one that is vividly imagined.

Before we start this exercise I want you to think about a stressful event in your life. How does it make you feel? Does your body get tense? Does your mind race with all the potential disastrous outcomes or pain that you experience. On a piece of paper, diary, or notebook write down as much information about the event as possible. You will use this information to help you change your reaction to it through the visualization process which appears below. Please read completely through all directions before attempting the entire routine.

· Find a time when you will be uninterrupted for at least fifteen to thirty minutes.
· Either sit in a chair - back straight, chin in, neck elongated,
hands on legs, feet flat on the floor or lie flat on your back in bed or on a sofa, legs stretched
out and your arms lying at your sides.
· Close your eyes.
· Now imagine the event that you just wrote down. Allow yourself to be completely
overwhelmed by the situation, just as you normally experience while stressed out. Feel the
same feelings. Think the same thoughts.
· Once you are completely reliving the experience take 2-3 Breaths of Life or more until you
once again are calm.
· Now, imagine that you are breathing in a white mist, as much as is comfortable.
· Visualize the mist circling in and around your head. The mist symbolizes the mental stress
you experience.
· Breathe slowly and deeply.
· As you release the breath slowly through your mouth, allow all the tension to flow out of
your body with that breath.
· Let your shoulders droop and feel your body go limp.
· Take in a deep breath and this time as you exhale see the mist expelled through your
mouth along with all the things that caused you to stress out in the first place.
· Breathe in deeply again, and then expel more of the mist and stress with your next
exhalation.
· Continue deep breathing the mist and stress out until all the stress has left your body.
· Smile. Your body is calm and relaxed. Your mind is refreshed. You can face any situation
with strength and resolve. You are the master of your life.
· Rehearse this exercise daily for a month and then weekly to maintain your skill.

You can use this exercise to confront any situation. Once you can do it through the visualization exercise you will be able to do it on command during even the most stress-filled encounter. Once you have conquered one situation, use this exercise to conquer all hopeless, helpless, stressed-filled situations that confront you.