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Healthy Horizons

Laurie Lupold

Road Blocks

It’s a steamy afternoon, rush hour and you are sandwiched between traffic in front, behind and each side of you. You can’t inch forward and there is no way around. You sit and wait for the line to move even slightly ahead, but for how long? You still have dinner to cook, Junior to get to a soccer game and a briefing that’s to be on the boss's desk first thing in the morning.

Many of us have been forced into the above case scenario many times in our lives but have you thought for a moment how it identifies with the congestion our minds feel when we can’t seem to perform in our writing? Looking below at our blank sheet of paper, pen in hand. It never moves forward. It just sits midair with no direction, no guidance. Our minds fill with frustration because we begin to feel cramped, untidy. Several thoughts go through our mind but not a single idea.

A lot of different things are said to contribute to this but one I’d like to discuss here is STRESS. Stress changes the way we think and feel by controlling our minds. It filters out our energies and directs them toward worry and perhaps at times, fear. It stiffens our creative brains. If you were to tighten any other part of your body you would clearly see that when you tighten it, it does not function properly. It is only when we release it that it begins to relax and become properly useable once again. The same can be said about our minds.

So one might wonder how can we relax our minds, clear out the garbage so to speak? There are many ways. Many people find candlelight relaxing. Even more so, if you were to light candles around your tub and soak in a nice bath full of scented bubbles. Lie back, close your eyes, concentrate on your breathing; the scent you breathe in and the air you exhale. This releases all the tensions from your body.

Of course it might not always be an appropriate time for a bath but there are so many new products on the market that you may wish to try, such as scented candles or aromatherapy. You can do the same exercises that were suitable for the bath and still receive the same cleansing. There are also mood lights that are soothing and aid in setting the right composure. These are merely additives. Of course you can set the mood for relaxation without them. The exercises will be just as helpful.

Music is another way we find we can clear our minds. It soothes us and brings a calmness over our minds and bodies. I like to meditate with music. My favorite is classical or soft guitar music. If you close your eyes and concentrate on the music each stroke of the string becomes a pulsating caress on your mind. It massages your brain and releases any of the tensions stored there.

These are just a few examples of stress relievers. Of course, there are many more. If you have an idea and would like to share it please email it to me and as always I am looking for ideas. So, if you have a topic of interest you’d like to read about here send it on over. I’m up for the challenge. LOL!

Until next time keep reaching for those Healthy Horizons!