How Relaxation Can Improve Your Health

Vermonters tend to be pretty relaxed. Our state’s low crime rate, clean air, and easy access to outdoor recreation helps keep Vermonters’ stress levels low. Vermont is ranked as the 5th most relaxed state, according to WalletHub’s national stress index, which looks at factors like average hours worked per week, average hours of sleep per night, and the percentage of adults in fair to poor health. Only residents of New Hampshire, Minnesota, Utah, and South Dakota have less stress than we do.

However, that low stress rating is for Vermont’s population as a whole. As individuals, we all still deal with stress from time to time, coping with issues such as financial concerns, deadlines at work, relationship conflicts, the death of a loved one, and chronic illness or injury. Stress can be a serious physical and mental health issue, no matter where you live.

Learning how to relax and spending time doing relaxing things can relieve stress and make you feel better. Pour a cup of your favorite relaxing beverage, put your feet up, and read on as we explore ways to relax and how relaxation can improve your health.

Why Relaxation is Important

• When we are stressed, our bodies react in several different ways, including:
• Increased heart rate and blood pressure, which can strain and damage arteries
• Rapid, shallow breathing, which can cause hyperventilation or shortness of breath
• Muscle tension, leading to headaches, neck and shoulder pain, and body aches
• Digestive disruption, such as nausea, stomach cramps, diarrhea, or constipation
• Immune system suppression, which can result in more infections
• Elevated blood sugar, increasing the risk of diabetes

Stress can also severely affect our mental health, including development of:

• Anxiety
• Depression
• Chronic fatigue
• Irritability
• Sleep disruption and insomnia

With all the potential impacts of stress on your physical and mental health, it’s important to learn how to relax and practice those techniques and activities on a regular basis. Relaxation can improve your health in a variety of ways, including:

• Reduced strain on the heart
• More balanced metabolism
• Enhanced digestive function
• Reduced muscle tension and less pain
• Better sleep quality
• Stronger immune system
• Improved mood and greater mental clarity

Finding new ways to relax does require some effort, but the long-term rewards will be well worth it.

Suggested Ways to Relax

Everyone has their own favorite way to relax, but here are some common relaxation activities that you may want to try:

• Breathing exercises. Slow and deep breaths help lower the heart rate and blood pressure. One exercise to start with is “box breathing,” which is inhaling for four seconds, holding your breath for four seconds, exhaling for four seconds, and holding for four seconds before taking another breath.
• Meditation. When you meditate it turns off the sympathetic nervous system that triggers stress. There are several different meditation techniques, such as body scans and guided visualizations. Read more about meditation.
• Journaling. Keeping a journal to write down your thoughts or concerns can clear your mind and help you calm down. Check out our blog article on journaling to improve your well-being.
• Progressive muscle relaxation. Tensing and relaxing different muscle groups interrupts the mind-body stress cycle and activates the parasympathetic system—our rest and digest mode. Learn more about progressive muscle relaxation.
• Low-impact movement. Physical movement like yoga, tai chi, or stretching uncoils tight muscle fibers, boosts blood flow and brings more oxygen to body tissues, and helps reduce stress hormone levels. 
• Spending time in nature. Going outside for a walk, spending time on or near a body of water (a blue space), or sitting in a forest or park is relaxing because it triggers sensory changes that suppress the body’s stress response. Check out our blog article on blue spaces.
• Creative hobbies. Taking up a creative hobby like drawing, painting, knitting, or woodworking can help you relax because it takes your mind off stressful things and focuses your attention on what you are creating.
• Gardening. Tending to a garden combines gentle exercise with changes in brain activity, such as reduction in stress hormones and increases in dopamine, the neurotransmitter that makes us feel good.
• Listen to music. Hearing soothing music, about 60 to 80 beats per minute, causes the heart rate, breathing, and blood pressure to slow to match the tempo. It also blocks production of cortisol and other stress hormones, and triggers the release of dopamine.

Find Your Happy Place

Even though Vermont is one of the most laid-back places in the country, there is still room for improvement. We encourage you to try some of the relaxation techniques mentioned in this article, and find one or more activities that make you calm and happy. Learning how to relax is one of the best things you can do to improve your health!