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BELOW IS a simple way to relax your mind.
The technique was adapted from The Silva Method.
Begin by sitting down in a comfortable
chair or on a couch, and close your eyes. Don’t lie down
or you might fall asleep. Take a deep breath and exhale slowly.
While you’re exhaling, visualize the number 3 in your mind’s
eye while you say to yourself, “three.”
Take another deep breath, exhale slowly
and visualize the number 2 while you say “two.” Do
the same for number one.
At this point, say something to yourself
like this: “I am now more relaxed than before. I will count
backwards from ten to one, and at the count of one, I will be
even more relaxed.”
Then start counting backwards slowly, stopping
occasionally to say, “deeper and deeper” or to repeat
the suggestion that when you reach “one” you will be
relaxed.
At the count of “one” say to
yourself, “I am now relaxed.”
That’s it. That’s the whole technique.
If you want to get even more relaxed you can count backwards
from twenty to one, or fifty to one, or a hundred to one.
Another way to deepen your relaxation is
to relax your muscles while you’re counting backwards. Start
with the muscles around your eyes, your forehead, and the muscles
in your face. Work your way down your body trying to notice where
muscles are tense and letting them go loose.
Another good way to deepen your relaxation
— after the 3,2,1 count — is to imagine a very relaxing
scene. It could be a place you’ve been or it could be an
imaginary place. The only requirement is that it makes you feel
relaxed to think about it. Lying on a sunny beach, for example,
listening to the waves, feeling the sun’s warmth on your
skin, feeling a gentle breeze.
To deepen your sense of relaxation, just
imagine your relaxing scene for a few minutes. Imagine being
there.
Once you’ve relaxed your mind, then
what? A state of deep relaxation is useful for many tasks. For
example:
1. Envision a goal. This has more positive consequences than you might
think, including increased motivation, enhanced problem-solving,
and the stimulation of creative ideas. Read more about it here.
2. Improve your self-image. Sometimes you may feel blocked from achieving your
goal. You may feel perfectly capable of accomplishing the goal,
and you may be motivated, and yet your goal remains frustratingly
out of reach. It is possible you have a belief in a limitation
without knowing it. The belief is part of your self-image and
until it is changed, all your attempts to reach your goal will
fail. Discover
what self-image is and how it can be changed.
3. Use one of the techniques of the
Silva Method — the laboratory,
dream programming, the mirror of the mind, the three fingers
technique, simple suggestion, or “cancel cancel.” Learn more about
those techniques here.
When you’re done, count yourself back
up to a wakeful alert state by saying to yourself, “I will
count from one to five. At the count of five my eyes will open,
I will feel wide awake and healthy.”
Begin counting. After you say “three”
say again to yourself, “At the count of five my eyes will
open, I will feel wide awake and healthy.” When you reach
five, open your eyes and sit still for a minute. You’re
done. You will feel relaxed and refreshed.
It’s a good idea to use a formal technique
like this — to count yourself in and out of your level the
same way every time — because your mind will get used to
it. You’ll get familiar with it, and you’ll respond
better and better the more you do it.
How often should you go to your level?
I like the way Jose Silva puts it: "Five minutes a day is
good. Ten minutes is very good. Fifteen minutes is excellent.
Once a day is good. Twice a day is very good. Three times a day
is excellent."
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