Tanja Alexandra Kern 
We all know that as the holidays are approaching our lives seem to get more hectic and stress tends to creep in. We intend to make the season special and celebrate the love and connection with our family and friends. We travel to visit family, accept invitations to holiday parties, get gifts for our loved ones, make shopping lists, host holiday parties, and prepare special meals.
Knowing that we are so much more effective when we are relaxed and happy, I invite you to try out the following easy techniques to relieve any stress or tension that you may be feeling during this season or at any time. The most important step in this process is to become aware that we feel stressed, may that be physically, emotionally or mentally. Only then can we take action.
Allow yourself the time to balance your body, mind and spirit and let your happiness, health and wellbeing shine!
1. Breath
Take a few minutes to consciously deepen your breath. One technique would be to count to 4 on the inhale, hold the breath for one second and then exhale to the count of 4, hold for another second and continue with your next inhale. Relaxing your mind through your breath allows you to start noticing your thoughts. Once you become the observer of your thoughts you become aware of the difference in the way you may react to them. As thoughts effect our emotions and therefore the way we feel, we can begin to influence our state of mind. By breathing in fully you, in addition to bringing yourself into the present moment, are also replenishing your body with oxygen and calming your nervous system.
2. Yoga
Our first reaction might be that we don’t have the time, but even just a 5 minute yoga practice allows you to reap tremendous benefits and lowers your stress level dramatically. The Yoga Alliance’s list of yoga benefits is extensive and stress relief is the first one mentioned. You may like to rest in Childspose for a few minutes and allow your stress to melt away or do a few sun salutations to get your heart beating a little faster to shed your tension. No matter how short your practice is, reward yourself with a mini Savasana at the end or just sit in silence for a few breaths while closing your eyes.
3. Laughter
While we might feel too tense to even think about something funny, you will surely have experienced a time in your life where something or someone made you laugh out of the blue and you felt an amazing relief and lightness. Laughter promotes relaxation and at the same time releases endorphins which make us feel good. Contact your favorite person who always finds a way to cheer you up, think of a funny movie line, song or memory that makes you smile or play with a child or pet and you will start to giggle in no time.
Here a links to two funny videos that I hope will make you laugh today.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nyk1HXvCNks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PiblYasnzWE
