Are you experiencing a high level of stress? Do you have a hard time relaxing? Are you having difficulty falling asleep because you can’t stop your thoughts? Are you waking up during the night thinking of things that you need to do? Are you feeling more irritable than usual?

If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, the relaxation training workshops offered by the Cook Counseling Center may help you. In these workshops, we teach three types of relaxation techniques: progressive relaxation, autogenic techniques and self-hypnosis or visualization. Because every person is different, we encourage you to attend all three sessions and then practice the ones that work best for you.

These techniques are quite varied. Progressive relaxation is very structured. Self-hypnosis or visualization is less structured and requires more imagination. When practicing either of these techniques, you will probably want to be in the comfort of your room. Autogenic techniques, such as deep breathing, can be done in a brief amount of time and are useful in a variety of situations. Students who have mastered deep breathing, for instance, report being able to use this technique successfully in a test situation by taking 30 seconds to a minute for closing their eyes and taking a couple deep breaths. They have found that they are more relaxed after doing this and are then able to refocus on responding to test questions.