Top Ten Relaxation Tips for Reducing Holiday Stress Available from Self-Guided.com

The editors at Self-Guided.com have compiled the top ten ways of reducing holiday stress based on relaxation techniques from leading authors and meditation experts Joel Levey and Michelle Levey. Each tip is supplemented with content -- such as relaxation exercises to relieve stress, suggestions for finding balance in life, mindfulness techniques, and relaxation guided imagery audio clips -- on the Self-Guided.com Web site. Also included are links to other useful articles with holiday stress tips for parents, singles, divorced families, and others.

(PRWEB) November 19 2003--Most holiday stress tips offer the same cliché advice. Now the editors at Self-Guided.com have compiled the top ten ways of reducing holiday stress based on relaxation techniques from leading authors and meditation experts Joel Levey and Michelle Levey.

The Top Ten Relaxation Tips for Reducing Holiday Stress are now available on www.self-guided.com (http://www.self-guided.com/), which also publishes the Relaxation Tips Newsletter delivered free via e-mail every week. The Web site also offers online resources for relieving stress and achieving balance during the holidays, including links to other useful articles with holiday stress tips for parents, singles, divorced families, and others.

"We want to help people have a fuller and more enjoyable experience this holiday, especially during this time of increased tension due to a prolonged war, threat of terrorism, and economic uncertainty," said Joel Levey. "We want to guide people to tap their natural inner resources for resilience during the holidays."

For example, a common holiday stress tip suggests that you create a hand-made gift. The Leveys take it a step further and provide insights on how to tap into your natural creativity and offer a link to an online guided imagery audio clip designed to enhance creativity.

They also provide tips that include relaxation exercises to relieve stress, suggestions for finding balance in life, mindfulness techniques, and links to relaxation guided imagery audio clips.

The Top Ten Relaxation Tips for Reducing Holiday Stress -- enhanced with additional content on the Self-Guided.com Web site (http://www.self-guided.com/articles/holidaystresstips.htm) -- include:

1. Create realistic expectations -- don't try to make this the perfect holiday.

2. Learn to say "no" to extra obligations that might stress you out.

3. Take short relaxation breaks to let go of tension.

4. Get involved in a volunteer activity where you help others.

5. Tap into your natural creativity and create a hand-made gift.

6. Eat and drink sensibly, and get plenty of exercise and sleep.

7. Practice being a peacemaker if family squabbles erupt.

8. Balance your spending of time and money to improve your quality of life.

9. Create a new holiday tradition that builds connections among your family and friends.

10. Reflect on the deeper meaning and spirit of the holidays for you personally, for your family, and for humanity and the world.

Joel Levey and Michelle Levey are the authors of The Fine Arts of Relaxation, Concentration, and Meditation (Wisdom Publications, 2003) and Living in Balance (Conari Press, 1999).

In his Foreword to Living in Balance, the Dalai Lama of Tibet writes the following about the Leveys work: "As more people achieve some degree of mental calm, insight, or the ability to transform negative emotions into positive ones, there will be a natural reinforcement of basic human values and consequently a greater chance for peace and happiness for all."

Self-Guided.com is the producer of Joel Leveys "Self-Guided Relaxation" CD and other guided imagery audio products for stress relief and well-being. See www.self-guided.com (http://www.self-guided.com/)/

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