In addition to practicing Pranayam and Meditation every morning and evening, try these simple techniques anytime when you feel stressed and tired.

Mental tension and stress up to some level is healthy in many ways as it motivates you to deliver the goods but when mental stress manifests physical symptoms it aggravates the problem. I have already provided you meditation and Pranayam techniques to ease mental stress. This article contains techniques to release physical and mental stress both. The emphasis is focussed on your eyes, legs, neck, back, shoulders, and waist, mood, and butterflies in stomach, drowsiness, lethargy and quality sleep.

Blinking: We normally blink our eyes when open at regular intervals effortlessly without being consciously aware of the process. However, the eyes with defective vision become fixed and strained such that blinking becomes spasmodic and needs conscious efforts. Blinking reduces strain and as such one must learn to blink effortlessly once or twice every ten seconds especially when reading.

Splashing: Take a generous mouthful of water, close your mouth and while bending forward splash your eyes with cold water rapidly, several times. Do this as many times as you go near a washbasin. Do not forget to hold water in your mouth while splashing the eyes, as this cools them down to their nerve ends causing relaxation.

Vertical Movement: Sit in an erect but comfortable position preferably on a high back chair. Keep the head and neck plumb and relaxed. Gently move your eyes up and down ten times. The motion should be very slow, uniform and effortless without moving the head or neck. Let the eyes see as far up and as far down as possible. As the eye muscles start getting more flexible you will be able to look lower down and higher up gradually. Repeat this exercise five to six times in a sitting. You can add to the relaxation by giving the eyes the rest in palms in between the repetitions for half a minute.

Sideways Movement: Sitting in the same posture as before move your eyes from side to side as far as possible ten times. The motion should be very slow, uniform and effortless without moving the head or neck. As in the earlier exercise you will be able to move them further and more easily with practice. Repeat this exercise five to six times resting your eyes in palms in between.

Rotation of Eyes: Sitting as above move your eyes gently and slowly around in a circle five times both in clockwise and anti clockwise motions alternately. Rest for a second and repeat the process five times. Remember that it should be done slowly and effortlessly.

Far and Near Gaze: Sit on a terrace or near a window where you can see far off objects on the horizon. Look at a distant object for some time without blinking and then look at the tip of your nose till they feel tired. Repeat ten times blinking every time you shift your gaze from nose tip to the distant object and back again. Close your eyes for a second and restart the ten glances exercise. Repeat five times and give your eyes rest in palms.

Rechak Seetkari Tantra: Rest the cups of the palms of your hands one over the other loosely facing upwards. Stand with feet placed slightly apart keeping your shoulders and arms relaxed. Bend slightly forwards in the waist such that your back is not curved and your back and neck remain in a straight line. Roll the tip of your tongue lightly onto your palate creating a tingling sensation at the palate. Keep your eyes open but defocus them completely. Release your tongue. Take a deep breath allowing your stomach to expand as far as comfortably possible and hold your breath. Part your lips while your upper and lower denture remains in contact with each other. Now very slowly exhale with a hissing sound through your closed denture. While exhaling be aware of your diaphragm, the partition between your stomach and chest. Repeat a few times and visualize those butterflies flying away through your nose, eyes and, ears. This will relieve you of nervousness, anxiety and elevate your mood.

Dhanurdharasan: Dhanurdhar means an Archer and this aasan implies assuming an archer’s posture. The technique: Put your right foot forward firmly on the ground and rest your left knee on the ground such that your left leg lies horizontal on the ground. Adjust your body such that your right leg is in a truly vertical position, right thigh parallel to the ground and your left thigh is in truly vertical position. Hold an imaginary bow in you right hand and stretch your right hand forward above your right knee and simultaneously pull your left hand behind your left ear as if you are pulling the cord of the imaginary bow. Obviously your right hand is stretching forward and the left hand backward as you are applying full strength on pulling the cord. Now arch backward as much as you can without disturbing your leg positions as if you are aiming to shoot an imaginary demon high up in the sky. Keep your eyes open looking at the tip of the imaginary arrow and be aware of the stretch in your arms, shoulders, waist and the entire back. Hold this position as long as you can but not more than three minutes. Repeat this exercise by reversing leg and arm position that is left foot forward, bow in the left hand and cord in the right. You will instantly feel enhanced blood circulation, surge of extra energy and mood elevation. You will loose all lethargy and drowsiness. Use your own discretion in practicing this aasan as you will not be able to sleep for at least two hours thereafter.

Open your eyes after thirty seconds and continue swinging for five minutes alternately closing and opening the eyes every thirty seconds. Blink your eyes often while swinging with open eyes. Repeat few times in a day if time permits. This exercise relaxes the entire nervous system, complete metabolism and also eyes.

Marjariasana : Cat Stretch Pose: Marjari means cat. You must have seen a cat stretching its spine upward and downward occasionally. This asana imitates this action. Technique: Kneel on the ground. You may keep your knees together and also the feet or you may keep them slightly separated, whatsoever the way it may suit you. Lean forward and place both hands flat on the floor in front of the knees. The hands should be positioned such that when your trunk is horizontal the arms are vertical. In other words the hands should be directly below the shoulders and the thighs should be vertical. Relax your whole body. Arch your back upward while exhaling so that it forms a hump. Contract your abdomen to remove as much air as possible from your lungs. At the end of exhalation your head should be between your arms facing towards the thighs. Then slowly depress your back and raise your head as you breathe in. At the end of inhalation, the head should be facing upwards and the spine should be arched as much as possible in a concave curve. Expand your abdomen fully to fill the lungs with the maximum amount of air. Then raise your back upward, while lowering the head and breathing out. Repeat the whole process again as many times as you wish. However, about ten cycles up and down are sufficient. Breathing should be as described in the technique, making sure that the abdomen is contracted as much as possible at the end of exhalation and expanded as much as possible at the end of inhalation. Perform the movement and breathing as slowly as possible, with full awareness. It relaxes your neck, shoulders, back and waist. It helps get rid of lethargy and drowsiness. Girls have added benefits of normalizing menstruation cycle and hormonal balance due to rejuvenation of ovaries and uterus.

Neck Push1: Stand erect and relaxed keeping your feet together or slightly apart as you prefer. Lock fingers of both palms at the back of your neck. While pushing your elbows back apply pressure on your neck in order to push the neck forward. Simultaneously apply pressure of your neck on the locked palms in order to push them backward. With full pressure applied both ways slowly count up to twelve. Release pressure for a few seconds and apply pressure again for twelve counts. Repeat ten to twelve cycles. Neck Push 2: It is similar as above except that the elbows are joined in front of you instead of pushing them back. Repeat ten to twelve cycles as explained above.

Shoulder & Chin: Stand as told above looking straight in front of you in a relaxed state. Very slowly and deliberately turn your neck towards your right shoulder. When the neck can’t move further, slowly lift your right shoulder to touch the chin. Stay in this position for a slow count of twelve and then release. Slowly turn your neck towards your left shoulder, lift left shoulder to touch the chin for a count of twelve and then release. Repeat ten to twelve cycles.

Marjariasan	Shoulder-chin	Neck push

Morning Alarm: The sound of alarm bell in the morning when you are comfortably asleep is the harshest of all sounds and it spoils the beautiful morning. It is great pleasure waking up naturally. Here is a technique, which will help you wake up on your own, at a desired time without fail.

Before proceeding to sleep, sit comfortably in the bed, take the pillow in your lap and roll the tip of your tongue onto your palate. Be aware of the tingling sensation on your palate. Close your eyes tilting them slightly upwards. Visualize with exaggeration a huge clock. Visualize the arms of the clock indicating the present time. Tell yourself it is say eleven in the night and you want to wake up naturally at four in the morning. Tell yourself how important it is for you to wakeup at that time. Slowly with deliberation mentally rotate the arms of the clock to show the time when you want to wake up. Tell yourself mentally with as much deliberation as you can that from eleven in the night to four in the morning five hours will be lapsed. I want to wakeup after five hours from now. I will be asleep for five hours before I wakeup. This deliberation is essential to calibrate the virtual clock with your biological clock. At four in the morning when the hour arm points four and the minute hand points twelve, I will be awake.

Now talk to your pillow addressing it by your own name. Visualize your own picture as you looked when you were ten years old. Tell yourself into the pillow that you are the only one whom you trust and depend upon. Tell the pillow firmly how important it is for you wakeup at the desired time and you depend upon it to do the needful. After this, proceed to sleep using Sukha Nidra technique. Suggestion: Faith works wonders but you must be faithful enough to exhibit your faith. When you try this technique for the first time, make sure the alarm on your clock is switched off. With this technique it is you who is going to wake you up. If you don’t trust yourself nobody can ever help you.

Sukha Nidra (Quality sleep): With this technique you can go to sleep without any medicinal aid bringing you total comfort, relaxation and rejuvenation. Lie down comfortably on your back, resting your arms loosely on the sides along the torso. Be aware of your head, relieve all tension and relax your head. Visualize two balloons, one white and one blue, circumambulating your head. Visualize the white balloon with beautiful white aura and sparkles and the blue balloon with blue aura and sparkles. Mentally pronounce AUM and visualize the balloons touching your head one after the other. Feel the vibrations of AUM in your entire body. If you are not a Hindu and have reservations of any kind in pronouncing AUM, simply say BLESS ME GOD very softly. Continue with this exercise with Forehead, Face, Neck and Throat, Shoulders and Arms, Chest and Back, Stomach and lower back, Waist and Thighs, Knees, legs and finally the ankles, feet and soles. If you really tired and free from unnecessary worries, you will be just ready to sleep by the time your visualization reaches your toes. If not, continue in the following manner.

Imagine that you are in the top floor lobby of a hundred storied building. Tell yourself that you are feeling sleepy and you want to go to the ground floor and sleep comfortably. Press the elevator button and watch the digital indicator showing that the elevator cab is approaching fast. Visualize the elevator door opening. Walk into the elevator, turn and stand facing the open door. Through the open elevator door observe a sign on the lobby wall indicating that it is the 100th floor. Tell yourself that you are sleepy and you want to go to the ground floor and sleep. Press the down button, see the elevator door closing and feel the downward motion. Observe the indicator panel and see number 99 appear on the panel. Tell yourself that you are on the 99^th floor and you want to go to the ground floor and sleep. Press the down button again telling yourself that you want to go further down, feel the downward motion and slowly observe the panel indicating number 98. Repeat that you are on the 98^th floor and you want to go to the ground floor and sleep. Continue in this manner and you will not know when you fell asleep. The feedback I receive from all age groups tells me that if you follow the instructions seriously, you will hardly reach 90^th floor before you fall asleep. Warning: The idea is to fall asleep and not to count and verify whether it is really a hundred storied building. I repeat again that the whole idea is to fall asleep and not to verify if the technique given here really works. It does work and you will know it does, only in the morning.