Reducing Stress Is Good For Your Brain And Memory

Online, March 30, 2011 (Newswire.com) - Top neurologists and geriatricians agree on one thing - if your want to do your brain some good, reduce the stress in your life.

Experts' recommendations for improving memory!

But how specifically can you reduce stress? Physical touch has been shown to be a very effective relaxation technique.

In today's fast paced society you may find yourself looking for an inexpensive, easy to implement way to help you relax and relieve stress. Massage therapy and meditation are two great methods that will benefit you mentally, as well as physically and will help improve the quality of your life.

Physical touch is a very effective way to feel relaxed and reduce stress. If you are experiencing tension in your muscles a quick way to gain some relief is through massage therapy. In cases of extreme stress you may want to consider visiting a professional massage therapist.

For medium to mild cases of stress or if you simply don't have the money available, you can simply ask your partner for help. By gently massaging your muscles you release the knots and tension that builds up when you are under stress. There are also many tools on the market to help you with self massage. Below I have listed several kinds of relaxation techniques. Depending on your specific needs you should consider the following:

• Swedish massage: Characterized by kneading, deep circular movements, vibration and tapping and long gentle strokes.

• Deep-tissue massage: Characterized by using more forceful, deep slow strokes concentrating on deeper layers of muscle and connective tissue. Usually recommended if you have muscle damage from an injury.

• Sports massage: Similar characteristics to a Swedish massage, but is recommended as a way to prevent injury for people who are actively participating in sports. It can also be used to treat an existing sports related condition.

• Trigger point massage: Concentrates on trigger points, or sensitive areas of tight muscle fibers that can appear in injured muscles or repetitive stress disorders.

• Reflexology: This massage focus solely on pressure points in the feet that have a direct relation to all areas of the human body.

Not everyone enjoys being touched. If you are one of those people you may want to consider meditation. You benefit physically and mentally at the same time. You will learn techniques that focus on controlling your breathing.

You will also learn to chant a unique mantra or phrase over and over again in your head, while you focus on your breathing. By consciously focusing on these two things your mind and body become one. You relax allowing the stress to leave. You come back to a state of consciousness feeling calm, refreshed and ready to face any challenges with a positive perspective.

At the beginning stages, you may like to find a quiet place to meditate, but once you've got the hang of it you can do it anywhere. It's best to be able to dedicate approximately 20 minutes for your meditation to receive the maximum benefit of this stress management technique.

As a great side effect, stress reduction and more sleep has been show to get rid of those extra pounds.

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