Progressive Muscular Relaxation
Progressive Muscular Relaxation (PMR) Technique
Progressive muscle relaxation helps relax the muscles through a 12-step process. The
technique responds to the physiological start. PMR for instance helps decrease blood
pressure, slows breathing and lowers the heart rate. The first step of progressive relaxation is
the tension which entails applying tensions to the muscles attached to a specific body that
needs relaxation (
Seaward, 2018). The tension is first put on that specific body muscle, then
take deep and slow breathing, squeezing these muscles as hard as possible for close to five
seconds.
The second step of PMR is to quickly relax the tensed muscles letting all the
accumulated tension flow out as you breathe out. One should feel the muscles loosening and
limping as the tension is released during the process. The focus should be on tension
accumulation and relaxation since these are the most important aspect of the entire exercise.
According to Torales et al. (2020), PMR aids in stimulating calm feelings and relaxation and
can be used alongside other relaxation techniques such as deep breathing and imagery. PMR
is a more physical technique than psychological hence crucial to avoid overstraining or
overworking their muscles during the process (Torales et al., 2020). Moreover, it is highly
important to ensure the breathing is done slowly and deeply throughout each step.
Description of the Experience after the Step-by-Step PMR
An example of a progressive muscle relaxation technique that I practiced was first
systematically tensing the shoulder and neck muscles and then releasing the tension to feel
the relaxation. I felt relaxed and less stressed than I was initially during this exercise. The
exercise is specifically helpful when feeling anxious and experiencing physical problems,
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including headaches and stomach aches. The more I engaged in this relaxation technique, the
more composed I felt, even when under tense situations or fatigued.
Based on the information gathered through this course and my experience engaging in
the progressive muscle relaxation process, it is evident that the technique helps reduce stress
symptoms. I learned that my focus was strongly attached to the tensed muscle during the step
by stem muscle tensing and relaxation, allowing me to breathe slowly while remaining
focused on the present moment. This technique was especially fruitful in reducing stress and
anxiety hence a strategy I intend to use in the future when I feel stressed, tired, or anxious.
Moreover, the experience of practicing progressive muscle relaxation brought me to
the relaxation that the activities require full concentration and are hence more effective when
practiced in a quiet space with minimal interruptions. Accordingly, the technique is especially
fruitful when used during meditation. It allows for a full focus on the current thought
processes enabling the body muscles to relax and the entire body to slow the stress.
Lastly, when engaging in the step-by-step relaxation process, I realized that it is
challenging to relax two body parts or a group of body muscles simultaneously. As a result, I
resolved to focus on a specific muscle ago, which proved to be significantly more useful and
effective than when the focus was not given ion a single muscle at a time. I also realized that
one might not get it in the first attempt hence the need to progressively relax the muscles to
learn and perfect hanging on it and feeling the results