Before you can begin to relax your body and remove the tension and tightness from your muscles, you need to mentally prepare yourself. As your day begins to wind down you may want to consider a number of techniques that have helped others. For some, meditation or yoga works well. Others find sitting with their feet elevated, eyes closed, soft music or other types of relaxation tapes playing in the background offer a relaxing environment for unwinding.

Try This...
With your eyes closed, picture the tension, fatigue and stress you are feeling at that moment as small swirling objects in your mind. Mentally draw them together, one by one, slowing down their speed over time. As they begin to come together, push them down from your head to your neck, to your shoulders, down your arms, through your hands and out your finger tips. Concentrate on your breathing throughout this process - slow, deep relaxing breaths. Exhale with each downward movement of the tension until you have pushed it out the tips of your fingers. If doing this correctly, you should also sense a slower heart rate and perhaps heaviness of your head and arms.

Continue this process of ridding your body of tension by moving to other areas such as your chest, abdomen, down your legs, feet and out your toes. Repeat the process until you feel you have reached a mental state of calm and serenity. Take your time. Don’t watch the clock.