The following techniques open the door for you to make use of another very
important aid to healing from burnout: relaxation.
Relaxation: The Relaxation Response: Learning to relax is another way to adapt yourself
to difficult situations with less stress and debilitation. People tend to think
of leisure activities as relaxation. However, physiological relaxation is a set
of specific internal changes that occur when your mind and body are calm. It is
not the same as sleep, rest or having fun. Physiological relaxation is the one
internal state that can protect your body from the harmful effects of too much
stress. Without a doubt it is extremely important to your health. Although it
can occur in a wide variety of circumstances (ranging from athletic competitions
to meditation), it rarely occurs spontaneously in modern life.
In the late 1960’s a Harvard cardiologist named Herbert Benson, MD began a
series of studies investigating the physiological changes that take place in
meditators while they are meditating. He called these changes collectively the
relaxation response. From these studies he discovered that no matter how the
relaxation response is elicited, the resultant internal changes are quite
consistent. The body shifts from sympathetic to parasympathetic nervous system
dominance; breathing, heart rate, and oxygen consumption slow down; muscles
relax; the brain predominantly generates the slower alpha waves; and blood
pressure may drop. These changes occur within a few minutes of beginning an
activity that produces the relaxation response, whereas they happen very
gradually over hours while sleeping and often not at all while engaging in a
leisure activity.
Of particular relevance to recovering from burnout, or adrenal fatigue, is that during the
relaxation response, stimulation of your adrenal glands diminishes so they can
rest and, in addition, all the tissues in your body become less sensitive to
stress hormones secreted by your adrenal glands. This means that every part of
your body has a chance to return to normal and recuperate instead of being
constantly on red alert.
Methods for producing the relaxation response are described in detail in many
widely available books and courses. Effective techniques include most forms of
meditation, yoga, ta’i chi, qi gong, guided imagery, biofeedback and deep
breathing, among others. Find a class nearby, if possible, because nothing can
replace a good teacher. However the following simple exercises are known to
reliably elicit the relaxation response with practice and will get you started.
All of them are centered on your own breathing for two reasons: you always have
your breathing available to focus on, and slow, deep breathing turns off the
alarm signal that drives your adrenal glands to overwork. The more you practice
these exercises, the quicker and easier it will be to experience physiological
relaxation with all its mental and physical benefits. If you are suffering from
adrenal fatigue it is essential that you learn at least one of these methods and
incorporate it into your life.
Click here for the
Relaxation Response Exercises
Unstructured Time: In addition to learning to produce the relaxation
response, it is important to schedule some unstructured time into every week
(every day if you can). The idea of resting one day a week has long been part of
our Western culture, but in modern life it seldom happens. What I mean by
unstructured time is a period of a few hours or more during which you do not
have any planned activities or goals to accomplish.
You can spend this time doing whatever you feel like without worrying about
being productive or about what other people think. You can putter around the
house, take a leisurely stroll or do anything that you enjoy, although it is
best not to spend it watching TV or sleeping. This unstructured time gives you
an emotional and mental break from the constant striving and measuring of
productivity that is driving your adrenals to exhaustion.
Laughter: You have heard it said "Laughter is the best medicine."
Nothing could be truer for the adrenal glands. When you laugh, stress decreases
and all the mechanisms in your body relax. When the body is relatively free of
stress, even during those brief moments of levity, the adrenals are much freer
to recover and rebuild.
The stress induced hormone cortisol (a catabolic hormone) is significantly
reduced when we feel very happy and laugh. Cortisol is released when we are in
the catabolic or "burning energy" state and it has an immune-suppressing effect.
Research revealed that laughter results in an increase of S-IgA (salivary
immunoglobulin A), which helps fight infection. It also shows that there is an
increase in our physiological and immune system's natural killer cells that seek
out and destroy abnormal cells and that these increases persist for a period of
time after a hardy laugh.
The level of plasma cytokine gamma interferon, another anabolic substance
that strengthens our immune system, doubles when we laugh long and hard, and the
increase lasts well into the next day. If a single pill were discovered that
could accomplish all these miraculous effects, it would be headline news.
Vacations: Taking some time off every year to rest, renew and enjoy
yourself pays big dividends to your health and well-being, if not to your
finances. Vacationing one to two weeks twice a year and traveling to somewhere
new at least once a year can refresh your body as well as your mind and spirit.
Take Short Horizontal Rests During the Day: During the day, you will
probably notice that you have particular times when you feel more lethargic,
cloudy headed, tired or have other symptoms of adrenal fatigue. Try to schedule
your breaks so that, when these occur, you can physically lie down for 15-30
minutes. Lying down is much more restorative than sitting, for the person with
adrenal fatigue.
Physical Exercise: Exercise is probably the last thing you feel like
doing if you are hypoadrenic. But, so long as you don’t also have ME (CFS –
chronic fatigue syndrome) the benefits are enormous. And remember that dancing
and making love are exercise too! And exercise that is beneficial for adrenal
fatigue must be enjoyable. It must not be highly competitive, grueling or
debilitating. What you need is something that increases lung capacity, muscle
tone and flexibility while having fun.
People with adrenal fatigue often feel too tired to exercise. However, if you
set a routine time to exercise, no matter how you feel, you will soon experience
the rewards of your self-discipline including a reduction in anxiety and/or
depression (if this is something you suffer from).
