Body scanning involves taking a mental inventory of areas of tension in our bodies and mentally releasing this tension.
Want to try it? Close your eyes and ask yourself “Where am I tense?” Start with your toes and mentally move up your body. When you find a tension area, (e.g., your neck), tell yourself that neck tension creates tension in your shoulders, your jaw, your entire body. You are hurting yourself. Tell yourself to let go of the tension. Then do it.

There are some ways to make your visualization more effective. First, find a quiet place where you can be by yourself. Loosen your clothing, lie down, and close your eyes. Mentally scan your body to see if there is tension in any specific muscle. If you find tension, relax that muscle. Use an affirmation: Repeat short positive statements that affirm your ability to relax now in this moment. Use present tense and avoid negatives. Don’t tell yourself “I am not tense.” Rather, say “I am relaxing. I am relaxed.” Visualization practice is easiest in the morning and at nighttime while you are lying in bed.

Keep a stress awareness journal for 2 weeks. Make a note of the times of day that are most stressful to you and the activity or activities in which you are involved. Be very specific in your journal. For example: “9 a.m., Arrived at work, there is an emergency, and the office feels like a mad house. I’ve been here 3 minutes and already I’m tense.” By keeping a stress awareness journal, you will be able to see your own stress patterns. You’ll be able to plan your day better, thereby avoiding as much stress as possible. Next, develop a plan of action to deal with everyday stress.

I have found that using all kinds of aromatic scents, such as essential oils or incense, helps me relax. I often combine this with a music CD designed to help produce alpha waves. Alpha waves are rhythms that the brain produces when you are in a relaxed state. I combine the two into what I call scent and sound therapy.

Meditation is the practice of uncritically attempting to focus your attention on one thing at a time. It is relatively unimportant exactly what that thing is and varies with one tradition to the next. For example, you could use the computer, the tip of your nose, or even your mother’s maiden name as a focus point. The heart of meditation lies not simply in focusing on one object to the exclusion of all other thoughts, but rather in the attempt to achieve this type of focus.
The nature of the human mind is such that it does not want to stay focused. It may take some time for you to achieve a meditative state. You don’t have to feel like you’re relaxing in order to actually become relaxed while meditating. However, when you open your eyes at the end of your meditation, you should feel much more relaxed than you did before meditating.

You can significantly reduce your stress with something enormously powerful: your imagination. While it’s hard to will yourself into a relaxed state, you can imagine relaxation spreading through your body and can visualize yourself in a safe, beautiful space.

Emile Coue, a French pharmacist, believed that the power of imagination far exceeded that of the will. Coue asserted that all of our thoughts can become reality. How many times have you heard: You become what you think? If you think sad thoughts, you become sad. Therefore, if you think happy thoughts, soon you’ll be happy.

The best advice I can give you is to develop a passion for life. Nourish your spirit. When I say spirit, I do not mean spirituality as organized religion. In German, there are two words to represent the different kinds of spirituality. “Geistlich” means spiritual matters reflecting a religious orientation and “Geistig” refers to spiritual matters without ties to a specific religion. It is “Geistig” of which I write. Nourish your spirit by doing things that have personal meaning to you and enhance your life. Take time to hear the squawking of birds; recognize the thoughtfulness of colleagues.