Don't Forget To Relax Recharge And Rest

In our busy life, it is often easy to stay busy, but forgot to stop. 

Don't forget to take time out to relax, recharge, and rest.  

Your mind and body will thank you!

Stop to Rest and Recharge and Relax

I love the simple things in life from the butterflies that flutter around our backyard, to one of my cats meowing as they bring a toy to me.  Moments where politics and the screaming or protesting of the day make no difference.  Moments where everything seems to stand still and all is at peace.

At one time in my life, I was a stranger to the simple moments of peace and tranquility.  I knew they existed and while I thought I met them on occasion, it took a major health crisis to wake me up.  It took something so big that brought me down to my last breaths for me to realize, there was more to life then staying busy and distracted 100% of the time.

All too often, I have seen people come in for a once a year massage thinking that in that moment, they would take care of a year's worth of stress.  Sometimes it was a once in a lifetime massage, but the goal was the same - to take care of an overwhelming amount of stress.  It was a luxury, not a necessity - much like it was for me before the major health crisis hit.

We push our bodies and our minds...

We all do this to our bodies.  We push them and we push them until there is no tomorrow.  We act as if our energy is limitless and our bodies never need any more rest than what we allow them to get at night while we sleep.  We act as if our mind will keep going at optimal performance while not realizing that our brain and nervous system needs a rest.  The more we rest it, the better our mind and body will perform.

We exhaust our bodies.  We exhaust our minds.  We exhaust our nervous systems.  Yet, we are surprised when we get sick with illness or major disease.  We are surprised when major episodes of pain and tension arise.  We are surprised when our memory constantly fails us in the pursuit of our daily activities.

It seems so simple...

Yes, it seems so simple to take time out and rest and recharge and refresh our bodies and our minds.  It seems like it should be a normal part of our every day life.  In fact, many preach that we should practice it, but often these are the same ones that need this more than ever.  We tend to pontificate on the things that we so badly need in our own lives. 

Am I perfect at this?  No!  After all, it took a major health crisis to bring me down and face the essence of my life.  I can say that I am better at it than I was earlier in my life, but I still struggle to do this as well.

We can keep putting it off thinking that we are invincible and we will go on forever.  However, after we have exhausted our bodies, our minds and our nervous system, we may be past the point of no return.  It may be too late to start thinking about taking care of ourselves and learning how to stop and rest and relax.  We may end up at that point, dealing with how to live with a major health crisis.

The choice is yours and yours alone to make.  No one can make this choice for you.  There is absolutely nothing in this world that is more important than your health.  I thought my job and my friends and my family were more important, but those things almost cost me my life.

I learned the hard way.  May you learn from my own journey and start to find little ways each day and week that you can stop and rest.  Find the little ways where you take a moment to find the simple things in life, that allow your body and mind to refresh and recharge.  Don't put it off another day for tomorrow could be too late.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2016 by Don Shetterly

• Permission required before any part of this blog post is reprinted, reworded or used in any form. 
• You are welcomed to share the LINK to this blog post.  

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What Happened Before You Noticed The Pain

We don't ask ourselves this question enough and so we go through life not connecting outside forces with internal body pain.  The question that is the most helpful when you notice body pain or a an emotional state that is taking you down is, "what happened before you noticed the pain?"

It sounds too simple, right?  It sounds too much like new age thinking, right?

Unfortunately, it is more grounded and connected in reality and in your body than anything remotely connected with simplicity or new age thoughts.

I through I knew how to relax...

I know, I know - I was one that talked the talk, but I didn't truly understand the concept I'm writing about here.  I thought I knew how to relax and let go of stress.  I thought I was connected to my body and knew myself well.  I thought I had life all together.

Unfortunately I was anything but that.  My own ego led me to believe that when I thought this way, I was strong.  I was anything but strong.  Yes, I played the role well and I convinced and fooled many people.  Most importantly, I was just fooling myself.

So now that we have the basic foundation down, please know that most of us do exactly what it is that we don't think we do.  Hey, its part of the human experience.  It is part of being human and living in a human body.  Its part of the process of becoming more than we are today in this moment.

What happened before you noticed the pain?

If you really want to understand pain that you're feeling, ask the question, "what happened before you noticed the pain?"  What was going on right before it.  What emotional things were you dealing with and what stresses were there.

If you can't think of anything, start to list events that were taking place right before you began to notice the pain.  Make a time line of what transpired and when.  It will help you see it because all too often, we just don't want to see it.  We struggle to see it.  We have difficulty in making that connection.  Even if the event seems too insignificant, jot it down in your timeline.  It may be the combinations of little events that show the greater picture.

Becoming aware of what was happening right before the pain or emotional state kicked up will shed light on the mind-body connection.  It will show you what up close and person what events and experiences have connected with something you feel in your body or mind.

It's important to make that connection...

While we may discount events and experiences and question why or how they could impact us, the important part is to make that connection.  Sometimes these things connect with other neural pathways and bring out the pain or body issue that we've been hiding and disconnecting from in our life.

You might not magically change the pain or emotional state of mind at that instant, but it gives you the opportunity to start rewiring the brain and taking back the control.  It is a process that the more you do this, the more in touch you become with your internal body.  The more in touch you become, the more power you possess to change things from what they are to what they can be.

Asking and questioning what happened before you noticed the pain is the way to connect the body and mind together.  It is the way to see things more clearly and help lead you on a path of self-discovery bringing you to the answers and possibilities before you.

Yes, it does sound too simple to be true.  Yes, you may question if this idea is true or not and the only thing I can say, is begin to test it out within yourself.  See how it works for you.  Leave the doubt behind and focus on what you allow your mind to see and your body to feel.  If at first you don't succeed with it, keep trying because I promise you that there is a connection there.

We are taught to fear the pain coming up...

Recently I had another situation prove this to me once again.  I had to make a decision and take some actions that were very difficult.  In the process I ended up with severe back pain.  When I began to finally make the connection between the difficulty of what was going on in my life at that moment and when the pain started, it was then that things started the process of improving.  It didn't happen in two seconds, but the process of moving out of the pain started.

We all are taught to fear the pains that come up.  Again, this is a biological mechanism of being human in a human body.  We are not taught from birth onward that we have much more control over our physical body and mind then we realize.

Our body and our mind can take us down.  I know that from experience.  I also know now that our body and mind can bring us back and lift us to greater heights.  It doesn't mean it is easy, but it does mean it is possible.

This blog post on "Observing Stress In My Body" may also shed some additional information on this subject.

(click image to read)

Allow yourself to connect with what is going on with the outside world while seeing where it connects to your internal world.  The connection is there.  It may not be easy to find in the beginning, but keep practicing it and I guarantee you that your outlook will change and so will your life.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2016 by Don Shetterly

• Permission required before any part of this blog post is reprinted, reworded or used in any form. 
• You are welcomed to share the LINK to this blog post.  

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Orange Cat Therapy

Every cat owner has those special moments with their cat.  In our case, Corey The Orange Cat knows how to chill and relax.  So, I'm posting this just as a moment to stop in our busy life and allow Corey to teach us a little something.

YouTube Video:  Orange Cat Therapy with Corey 

Relax To Massage Music Video on YouTube

Has it been a stressful week?  

Well then if it has, take a moment and relax to this massage music video.  

I put my beautiful and relaxing music to some pictures from the South Florida and Miami area.  

It isn't a long video, but it gives you a brief moment to just stop and relax.  In fact, it is one of my all time most popular videos I have put up on YouTube with nearly 100,000 views.  

So, go ahead and take a moment to just relax.  

You deserve it.

Video:  Massage Music Single (YouTube)

Just Relax A Little

I finally took my own advice and just took some time off to relax.  It was so much fun getting away from the computer, writing, and all the stresses in life.  Sure, I love writing and doing the things I do, but with other worries that sneak upon me, it is just fun to let loose, kick the heels up, and relax a little.

We took a short trip to Savannah, Georgia.  After coming through there on the way home from another vacation a year ago, we wanted to go back and spend more time in the city.  It is such a beautiful city with trees that line the streets as if the streets were carved into the trees.  The landscape varies greatly and the history of the city was evident at every turn.

Spending time down on the river front, I saw all kinds of people that were just enjoying a nice fall day in the sun, to those performing their given skill and talent for others to observe.  The many shops showcased various artwork from local artists that came in all sizes, shapes and flavors.  It was mix of the old historic area in with the new and all of if felt so peaceful.

Release And Then Relax

Glass Of Water
Release And Then Relax

Imagine a glass full of water sitting on a table.  If you try to add more water to it, it will over flow.  If you try to add the water all at once, most likely you will splash some of the original water leaving you with less water in the glass then before.  However, if you want to add additional water to the glass, you need to drink some first.

Now imagine your body as the glass and you are trying to relax.  Relaxation is the water and so if you're nervous system is revved up too much, (or the glass is too full), it will be difficult to add much relaxation to your body or to feel relaxed.  Yes, you might do some relaxing things or enjoy some body work that is relaxing but the capacity for you to take it all in, is limited.  In order for you to replace the tension or stress in the body with relaxation, you will need to remove some of it first.  Once you remove it or release the tension and stress from the body, you have the opportunity for greater relaxation and peace.

Unfortunately, too many body workers, healers, and massage therapists, focus on putting more relaxation into a body that has no capacity to take it in.  In fact, many people out there going for treatment are looking for the quick and easy fix to relaxation, rather than creating greater capacity within their body for this.  While limited results may occur, the person being treated only gets so much benefit from the treatment.  Many modalities and healers claim that they just allow whatever to happen that needs to happen.  There is much truth to this, but there is also a blind spot in the mirror.

White Noise and Ocean Waves

Recently, I released a CD called "Relaxing Ocean Wave Sounds". This is a CD of ocean waves that I captured. While a friend of mine immediately said "white noise" when they heard this CD, after some research, it might not be strictly defined as white noise.

However, I have been playing this CD at night and it really helps me relax and sleep while it cancels out the background noises. I have often used various white noise CD's when I was traveling to help me sleep to mask the noises of people talking in a hallway or doors slamming.

I was playing the ocean waves CD yesterday while working in my office, and my orange cat was so relaxed. At first he wasn't sure of the sounds but it didn't take him long to come over and lay down next to me. Yes, I do realize that cats can really zone out but my cat was beyond what he normally is when he is relaxed. It had a strong effect on him.

The term white noise comes from a reference to white light. In either white noise or white light, white refers to the full spectrum of sound or visible wave lengths. The key point here being that it is the full spectrum.


It is the equal distribution of light or sound waves or a noise that is produced by combining all possible tones or frequencies together. White noise generally is a soothing and relaxing sound that blocks out unwanted sounds or background noises.

In addition to white noise, there is pink noise. Pink noise is defined as pleasant sounds that are relaxing and fill the mind with unstimulating distractions much like white noise. However, with pink noise, it does not cover the full spectrum of sound frequencies and so it does not mask background noise as well as white noise.

There are many purposes and uses for white noise. White noise is great for sleep (insomnia), concentration, reading a book or just relaxing. It is often a help to those that suffer from tinnitus (ringing in the ears). White noise is also being used in offices to help cancel out background conversations from people working in adjacent cubicles or offices.

When I recorded the Relaxing Ocean Wave Sounds CD, I wanted to get the full dynamics of the sounds I heard on the beach. I did notice that while I relaxed on the beach, it seemed as if time stood still. Although there are many CD’s out there with the sound of ocean waves, many of them do not really capture the true experience and present an environment that connects the mind and body together.


Sources Of Information:
1) Wikipedia - White Noise
2) Hubpages.com - Do White Noise Machines Help You Sleep?


To Purchase "Relaxing Ocean Wave Sounds" CD
-- iTunes
-- Amazon
-- Napster
-- Rhapsody

For More Information on Don Shetterly's Music
http://www.donshetterly.com






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Blog Post & Images (c) 7/16/11 Don Shetterly - use by permission only
http://www.donshetterly.com

If any part of this post is used or shared, a link back to this site is required.
http://mindbodythoughts.blogspot.com/
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Relaxing Ocean Waves

Here's a short little video of some relaxing ocean waves that I captured on video at Canaveral National Seashore in New Smyrna Beach, Florida.

One of my favorite places to visit is the Atlantic Ocean. Just sitting on the beach, next to the water lulls me into a very relaxed state. Just to hear the sounds of the ocean, the waves, the birds and gaze into the deep blue sea is very relaxing and soothing to me.

Often when I visit the ocean and hear the ocean waves, time flies by quickly. Before long, an hour or two has passed and it feels like mere minutes.

I love just walking up and down the beach next to where the waves and surf come in. Just feeling the water on my feet and watching the sea life run about, gives me a sense of awe and a feel of completeness.

When I can find areas of the beach that have very few people around, I really enjoy just being out in nature and being alone with my thoughts. There is no better way to spend a day when you just want to relax, think about things or enjoy a quiet moment of rest.

If you are not able to visit the ocean, than I hope my short little video will give you a taste of what I experience.


Further Reading:
1) Ocean Waves Poem (Blog Post 5/11/11)
2) An Ocean Meditation (Blog Post 8/13/10)



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Blog Post & Images (c) 7/3/11 Don Shetterly - use by permission only
http://www.donshetterly.com

If any part of this post is used or shared, a link back to this site is required.
http://mindbodythoughts.blogspot.com/
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Ocean Waves

Ocean Waves
(c) Don Shetterly, 2011











Sitting there on the sand,
Watching the waves.
As they go out.
They come back in.

Feeling their power,
Seeing their strength.
Knowing for a moment,
That all is well.

The roar of the crash,
Soft do they leave.
As my eyes gaze,
For all to see.

Rhythm of the flow,
Power of infinity.
Releasing and relaxing
For all to know.

The ocean wave,
sitting there on the sand.
Just what is needed,
For all so well.


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Blog Post & Images (c) 4/26/11 Don Shetterly - use by permission only
http://www.donshetterly.com

If any part of this post is used or shared, a link back to this site is required.
http://mindbodythoughts.blogspot.com/
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Nervous System Resiliency

One of the things that I am learning firsthand is how resilient our nervous system in the course of our day. Many of the things that I write about here are ones that I have been introduced to and then I learn about them by living through experiences that become my teacher.

It is not just concepts that are told to me and I continue the story. They are very real lessons that I experience firsthand within my body. When you can experience something within the body and feel the connection within, then there is no doubt that it is a real, truth altering experience.

For a long time I felt overwhelmed in life where I could not seem to get my balance as the winds of various events would come along and knock me off balance. It never seemed like I would get past many things in my life because I always felt overwhelmed. Then one experience in particular that I had on the table with Dr. Paul Canali brought this home in a very real and vivid way.

In this particular session, I came up against some of the root energy where very real and intense anger perpetuates and grows within me. As I pushed through this, my body felt physically awful for several hours but then as the energy of the release began to balance itself, I noticed a major change within my body. For the first time, I noticed a peacefulness and calmness that I had never felt before. It is more than difficult to describe here but it was real and I knew it wasn't just a temporary peace or calmness. It was a life changing moment.

As events of the following week transpired, I noticed that most of these were just rolling off my back. Yes, some of them were pretty intense and I was not ignoring the feeling of them but they were just coming in and almost like bouncing through me. It is then that I came to understand just how resilient our nervous system is meant to be and if treated properly, it can perform in ways that we may not be able to imagine.

For months, I did not think about this entire scenario until I recently went through a very stressful week. In that week, I noticed something about myself and how I was dealing with the stress. While the stress was intense and difficult to be part of, I noticed that much of it was just bouncing right through me. I'm not going to tell you that it was an easy week but without this happening within myself, it would have been much more difficult.

Please don't misunderstand me here because I'm not talking about "thinking happy thoughts" here either as many tend to do. This is about going deep within and connecting to the grounded part of your cells, your body and your mind. It is about having the nervous system at a healthy point that it can absorb these things and let them go. It isn't about avoiding any of the feelings or affects of the stress but feeling all of it and just swimming through it as if you were swimming in a pool.

Of course, most humans go through life in a hurried fashion barely ever taking time to take care of the body, oblivious to the fact that this is taking place. We like to self medicate ourselves with things that keep us from living in reality and keep us from getting to truly know ourselves in an intimate way.

All too often, I've heard many people tell me that they don't have time to get a massage or relax or to take a vacation. In this day of electronics, people cannot even get away from their jobs for a minute. We keep ourselves and our nervous systems in a heightened state of arousal and stress but yet we expect our bodies to hit peak performance.

We go through life dabbling in this or that new age therapy or we turn to religion, doctors and our families to help us exist in our day. However, none of these things will help you deal with the stress in your life unless you go in and stand up to the fear and the ego within your body and your mind. You can fool yourself all day long into thinking that various things are helping you and they may be temporarily, but if you really want to leap upon the mountains, you need to journey within yourself.

The nervous system is meant to act like a rubber band where if you pull it and stretch it, when let go, it should go back to its original shape. However if you stretch it beyond those limits time and time again, you may alter the shape of it. If you stretch it beyond what it is capable of, then there will be a break. The body acts in much the same way.

If we as a society really wanted to improve the overall health of our world, we would be focusing upon learning how the nervous system works and how we impact it every day of our life. We would focus upon learning how to reclaim it and harness the power that we hold within our bodies and our minds. The nervous system should be our friend but much of the time in our world, we barely even notice its existence.




Blog Post & Images (c) 2/20/11 Don Shetterly - use by permission only
http://www.donshetterly.com




Photo by NASA/courtesy of nasaimages.org

Stress Can Make Us Sick

All of us know that stress can make us sick but there is a disconnect in our society when it comes to actually realizing the impact of stress upon our life. If you don't believe me, just monitor how much time you spend relaxing and releasing stress in your life and how much others around you do the same thing. I have seen many people come in for a massage that is more like a treat than something healthy that they should do as often as they go through their week at a job.

Yet, we as humans and maybe more in our society push ourselves past our limits every day. Maybe it is this way in the whole world, I do not know because I am not able to travel and check it out. In our days, we have our jobs, our family functions and our organizational functions which we must attend. We are running here and there for everything, everyone and anything it seems. There is never a dull moment in our lives except when we are maybe watching the TV as we doze off to sleep. Our blackberry and iphone are filled with our schedule of many tasks we need to complete and we live to check those off one at a time.

Where is the sanity in staying so busy and treating our bodies as if they are a robot that is destined to be our servant in life? Where is the enjoyment of life when we can barely stop and smell the roses or notice the sounds of the birds waffling by our ears? Where is the the warmth of touch on our lives when we fail to connect with anyone around us in a meaningful way?

We all know that we push ourselves harder than we should and yet, many of us do very little about that. Maybe it is because we are not comfortable being alone in our body and in our mind for there are parts we just don't want to think about. Maybe you have been raised to believe that an idol mind is the devils playground. Some of us may feel that our self worth is defined by how much we accomplish and how successful we appear that we have become. Others may feel that it is our sense of duty or responsibility to never stop for fear of letting someone down in our life or letting ourselves down. There are many reasons and most of them need to be challenged to the core in our life.

Regardless of the reason, it is undeniable that what goes on in our mind and in our life is what is reflected in our body. They are one and the same. You cannot separate the two as hard as you might like to separate them. We can make ourselves sick because we do not stop and take care of ourselves. We can also make ourselves whole by stopping to really focus on our body, mind and spirit. It really is that easy and it is that difficult.

Consider the quote from the book, "Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers" by Robert M. Sapolsky on pages 2 and 3.

We have come to recognize the vastly complex intertwining of our biology and our emotions, the endless ways in which our personalities, feelings, and thoughts both reflect and influence the events in our bodies.

Extreme emotional disturbances can adversely affect us. Stress can make us sick, and a critical shift in medicine had been the recognition that many of the damaging diseases of slow accumulation can either be caused or made far worse by stress.

Further Reading:
Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers by Robert M. Sapolsky


Blog Post & Images (c) 12/6/10 Don Shetterly - use by permission only

Fun, It Does A Body Good

When you have fun, you relax. When you laugh, you relax. If you don't believe me, try it for a day or two or even a week. We all need this in life. Children are best at this. For some reason as we grow older, playfulness is replaced by seriousness, activity and responsibility. Yes, our responsibilities and priorities change as we grow older, but we should never cease to laugh, play and enjoy life.

I know that sometimes we get so busy that we think there is absolutely no time to stop and have some fun. Most likely though, that is the exact moment we need to do this. We need to heed those inner prompts and go outside to play.

Just a few moments or a day of doing stuff that takes our mind off of the worries and stresses in life, will pay dividends. it allows the tense muscles in the body to relax. It allows the heart to beat out of enjoyment rather than out of frantic moments. The head, neck and shoulders have a chance to relax and let the tension from stress flow out of them. Our mood goes from one of feeling overwhelmed to allowing ourselves to feel joy. Our movement changes from labored steps to skipping down the sidewalk.

It is true that we do have the power to change our body and mind in physical ways. We just need to allow it. What better way to allow ourselves freedom from stress than to give our self moments of fun and laughter in our life.


*For more articles, check out the Mind Body Thoughts Blog

Confusion - Symptoms Of Stress, Part 9

This is Part 9 of 9 Part Series - Confusion

In the health.yahoo.com article, 9 Surprising Symptoms Of Stress, confusion can be caused by stress. Stress causes distraction and lack of focus according to Debbie Mandel, MA, author of “Addicted To Stress”, “stress hormones lodge longest in the brain,” she says.

How many times do we see people or maybe it is ourselves, struggle with focus during our work day? Maybe we’re sitting in a meeting and just cannot seem to follow what is going on or maybe were a student in school and concentrating on our homework or listening to a teacher is difficult. Many people turn towards caffeine or energy drinks to help pump them up and make them more alert. In reality, these things only prolong the inevitable. Your body is stressed out and needs some down time. Taking stimulants may help for the moment but continuing to use these substances may be taking you down a path you don’t want to go.

What if you went outside during the day and took in the sunshine for a few minutes or just breathed some of the fresh air? What if you went out and listened to the birds, hearing their sounds or even listening to the wind blowing through the trees? You might even sit in your chair at your desk for 30 seconds and just focusing on feeling your breath in your body and just being there with yourself, pushing all other thoughts out of your mind. Even 30 seconds of doing one of these activities can help bring clarity to your mind in a day.

All too often, we push ourselves day in and day out but we stop to give ourselves the much needed time to rest and repair. While it may feel like we do not have the time to stop and rest, often we will find that if we do this, we will accomplish much more than if we just try to keep pushing onward.


Symptoms Of Stress: (9 Part Series)
Part 1. Tweaked and Tense Muscles
Part 2. Eye Twitching
Part 3. Ragged Cuticles
Part 4. Cavities
Part 5. Rashes & Itching
Part 6. Nausea
Part 7. Sleep
Part 8. Forgetfulness
Part 9. Confusion



*For more articles, check out the Mind Body Thoughts Blog

Releasing Accumulated Stuff

I'm one of those people who pick a lot up when I'm around other people. Ever since I was a small child, I was always known as a very sensitive person. I can cry at just about any thing or any event that takes place. For a long time, I took on the label of being a cry baby put there by my father and as I learned as a child, being sensitive was not a good thing. That was until a few years back when I finally discovered, being sensitive is a good thing.

Since that discovery though, I have had to come to terms with being sensitive and not letting it completely rule and ruin my daily life. That's been a challenge for me to understand and while I have heard many people share many different ways to deal with this, most of them usually fell in to woo woo dust and landed on the floor. I can not say that I have completely figured it out but I have learned so many things that help me personally and I believe that this is what each person has to find out for themselves. What may work for one person, may not work for all and while there may be underlying themes to each solution, one must find their own solution.

In the spirit of me sharing what works for me, here are some of those solutions I've found.

1. I take time to be outdoors in the sun, among the trees and the birds feeling the wind against my face as I become one with all of these things in that moment. My focus is on connecting with each of these things seeing the shades and deep colors of the tree, the sky and the clouds while hearing as many individual sounds coming from the birds and the wind that I am able to pick up. As I do these things, I lose track of all that I am currently dragging around with me. It is a moment of refreshing time and a reorientation into what really matters in the day.

2. At times I just sit or stand picturing myself connecting to mother earth and it is as if my feet are growing roots that connect deep into mother earth knowing that no matter what hits me during the day or what I experience, that I am connected and grounded to the source that keeps me planted firmly on my path in life.

3. I have various music and meditations that I use at different times. Some of the music and meditations that I use are (including my own relaxing piano music that I create) :

• Don Shetterly - Relaxing Spa Music (Amazon)
• Don Shetterly - Focusing (Amazon)
• Don Shetterly - Dancing With Life (Amazon)
• Don Shetterly - Meditation Music: Healing Angels (Amazon)
• Doreen Virtue - Chakra Clearing (HayHouse.com)
• Jonathan Goldman - Holy Harmony (Amazon)
• Dik Darnell - Following The Circle (Amazon)
• Hemisync - Chakra Journey with the music of Thunderbolt (Hemisync.com)
• Epic Meditations - Guided Meditations (itunes)

4. Another thing I am using is a program called "Holosync" from the Centerpointe Institute. Holosync not only helps you achieve deep meditation but it also helps to balance the many aspects to your life. I've seen many positive results in my own life and feel it is well worth the money you pay for it. You can order a free demo CD at http://www.centerpointe.com/

5. Sometimes screaming can help me greatly but doing so in a very connected way to my body. Screaming alone may or may not help but when you connect it to your body in that deep awareness state, much can be released. One of the ways I do this is by going to my pool and working the water up in a swirl with my arms while I'm connecting my mind and body together. Than I scream as loud as I can as I'm putting my face in the water so no one basically hears me. And I just let it all out. I've done this in my vehicle as well and if you connect everything together, it will move some energy.

6. Getting body work of any kind done on me especially from those who know how to connect body work with the mind is powerful and very effective. We as a society do not do this enough and if we would, our physical, emotional, spiritual and mental health would greatly improve. While the various types of bodywork are numerous, find one that speaks to you and explore it. A couple that I enjoy are:

• Trager - Gentle, rocking movements that while feel very light to a person, the effects of this work go very deep into the subconscious and are much deeper than any massage can usually reach.
• Unified Therapy - Work created by Dr. Canali of the Evolutionary Healing Institute. It is life changing work and greatly helps to rid the body of stored energy thereby freeing your life up to be all that it can be and bringing about deep awareness to your every day life.

Of course there are so many other ways that one can relax, ground themselves and release accumulated stuff. I have just briefly touched on a few possibilities. If something works for you, please feel free to leave it and a link to more information in the comments.

Whatever you do, don't stop discovering yourself or becoming aware of all that you can be. For the more we know about ourselves the great our life's possibilities can be. The more we release all that we have stored within us, the more free we become which leads to greater health, greater awareness and a deeper peace.