{"id":24396,"date":"2023-12-11T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-12-11T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.appreciationatwork.com\/?p=24396"},"modified":"2023-12-11T07:29:47","modified_gmt":"2023-12-11T13:29:47","slug":"3-tools-to-help-you-take-a-break-and-relax-right-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.appreciationatwork.com\/blog\/3-tools-to-help-you-take-a-break-and-relax-right-now\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Tools to Help You Take a Break and Relax (Right Now)"},"content":{"rendered":"
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<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you are like me, you probably get tired of all the advice we are given \u2013 from social media, blogs, the news, our family. And one of the most common topics is \u201chow to avoid getting overly stressed during the holidays\u201d (which is<\/em><\/strong> helpful). But, to be honest, I don\u2019t need more information. I just need to do<\/u> <\/strong>some of what I already know I should.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, I thought I\u2019d take a different approach this week. I\u2019m going to give you some tools to take a break and relax right now<\/em><\/strong> (while you are reading this).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tool #1: Humor<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Humor, especially laughter, breaks us out of the \u201cI\u2019ve got so much to do\u201d mindset, and actually resets<\/strong> some of our body chemistry.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"\"<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some Christmas pranks and fails.<\/a> (2:24 is a favorite).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Christmas puns and jokes. <\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tool #2: Music<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Music (especially instrumental music) is an amazing gift that engages totally different areas of our brain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Choose one or more of your favorite styles and listen for a few minutes (and consider playing it in the background while you do some work).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

              Smooth Jazz Christmas Music<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

              Traditional Christmas Carols (instrumental)<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

              Classical (orchestral) Christmas music<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

              Nature sounds<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tool #3: Breathing and Visualization<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our minds and our bodies are intertwined, sending messages to one another. One way to impact how we are thinking and feeling (especially feeling stressed and uptight) is to do some things with our body that will change our thinking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Action 1: Take some deep breaths. Inhale deeply, hold the breath for a few seconds, and then slowly exhale through your mouth. Do that 3-4 times. Then stretch your neck and move your head around. Take another deep breath.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Action 2: Close your eyes, change your position in your chair, move your feet a little to get the blood flowing. Then think of a positive holiday memory (it can be with family, or someplace you have fond memories of) and \u201csee it\u201d again in your mind. Enjoy and be grateful for that memory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hope you enjoyed the break and find these tools useful whenever you start to feel overwhelmed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"\"<\/a><\/figure><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If you are like me, you probably get tired of all the advice we are given \u2013 from social media, blogs, the news, our family. And one of the most common topics is \u201chow to avoid getting overly stressed during the holidays\u201d (which is helpful). But, to be honest, I don\u2019t need more information. I… Continue reading…<\/a>","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[63,2243,701,27],"tags":[2306,2360],"aioseo_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\n3 Tools to Help You Take a Break and Relax (Right Now) - Appreciation at Work<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The end of the year can be overwhelming for a variety of reasons. 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