From vacancies to companies, and even your own social network; you can find everything online these days. This makes the job search easily accessible. However, at the same time, all the possibilities can be overwhelming. You enter a world of job search websites, CV’s, job interviews and rejections. Applying can be a full-time job in itself and the process requires a lot of attention. During the process you may run into obstacles. Here are some practical tips to help you on your way:

• Apply Some Structure to Your Job Search: When you are not working, you can miss the structure and daily rhythm. By scheduling fixed activities, you can create some structure and also find time for the fun things in between applying for a job. It is important to find time to relax in addition to your job search, because applying for a job also costs energy. By setting yourself ‘work hours’, it can also help you to let go or ‘switch off’ from the job search.
• Set Goals for Yourself: For example, updating your resume, expanding your network via LinkedIn, writing a good letter or making a list of interesting vacancies or companies. The ultimate goal is to find a job. To keep you motivated, it is good to not only focus on the final goal, but also on interim goals. This will give you the feeling that you are busy, and making progress in the right direction. This sense of satisfaction will motivate you during the application process! In addition, you can link the achievement of interim goals to a reward, which can give you that little extra bit of motivation.
• Provide an Up-to-Date, Clear and Well-Arranged Curriculum Vitae (CV): On the internet you will find many example CVs and tips that can help you. Presenting yourself well is important, because you are often judged on your CV. It is also advisable to adapt your CV to the vacancy you are applying for. For example, are you applying for a vacancy where experience in management is an advantage and have you (ever) had experience in this? Make sure that this is clearly reflected in your CV so that it is immediately clear that you are suitable for the position.
• Build a Digital Network via LinkedIn: Make sure your LinkedIn is as complete as possible: let someone else write a recommendation about you, write down your skills and follow interesting companies.
• Stimulate Your (Offline) Network: Let your family and friends know what you are looking for. Word of mouth can be a very successful way to find a job because people already know you!
• Give Yourself Time to Explore: Just after becoming unemployed, it can be helpful to take some space and think about new opportunities. First look at vacancies; what opportunities are there for you in the labor market? What do you enjoy? Why? A strong direction will help you to find something that fits you! This intrinsic motivation can go a long way.
• Adjust Your Expectations: Look for something that gives you positive energy. That may very well be a lower position than the one you had before. Don’t focus on titles, look for something you enjoy. It’s not just about the work itself, but also everything around it, such as the work culture and colleagues. When you see a vacancy, ask yourself: who will my colleagues be? How old is the average employee? Do they do a lot of company outings? What is the company’s vision? Is there room to develop yourself in this company, for example through training? And does this align with your goals?
• Learn to Deal with Rejections: Applying for a job is (often) accompanied by being rejected. Especially after getting rejection after rejection, it can affect your self-confidence. Gera Noordzij indicates in her dissertation Motivating and Counseling the Unemployed that those who are applying for jobs constantly feel a sense of failure because they are constantly told that they are not good enough for a job. The focus is on what you can’t do, not on what you can do. Below you can find some tips to help you with this:
  • Rejection often feels personal, but it doesn’t have to be. You can also see them as informative. If you really want something, what skills do you need to get there?
  • After a rejection, you can also ask if they are able to help you further, for example if they have a tip or can provide feedback.
  • As mentioned before, it is good to do fun things in addition to applying for a job. Try to focus on things that give you positive energy such as volunteering or sports.

Source:
Gera Noordzij. Motivating and Counseling the Unemployed.

The experiences you’ve had in the past have a significant impact on how you perceive things and how you deal with them in the present moment.

Rules for living are formed at a young age during periods when they are useful. For example, as a child, you might learn to do everything perfectly because that’s when you receive recognition and approval from your parents. Rules for living are a kind of survival strategy. However, later in life, these rules can become hindrances. For instance, the rule “I must do everything perfectly, or I am worthless.” It’s not realistic to do everything perfectly, as we all make mistakes, and when something goes wrong, you tie your self-worth to that failure, leading to negative feelings.

In this overview, you can see various different rules for living. You may recognize several of them. There are also some positive rules to inspire you.

1. Only if you’re good-looking, rich, and smart, you can be happy.
2. Happiness is more related to my self-image than to others’ opinions of me.
3. If I make a mistake, I’ll be less valued.
4. If I don’t always do well, people will think less of me.
5. Even with small risks, you need to be cautious, as it can lead to a major disaster.
6. You can be valued without having to do anything special for it.
7. If I do something well, it’s just luck. But if I do something wrong, it’s usually my fault.
8. Asking for help from others is a sign of weakness.
9. I am inferior if others are better than me at something.
10. I am a failure if I don’t do well at home or work.
11. If you’re not good at something, you shouldn’t even try.
12. Making mistakes is good because you can learn from them.
13. If someone disagrees with me, they don’t like me.
14. When something happens to me, I should be in control of it.
15. If people see my true nature, they will think badly of me.
16. I am worthless if my admiration and love for someone are not reciprocated.
17. Even if you don’t know how something will turn out, you can still enjoy it.
18. Before starting something, you need to know if it will succeed.
19. It’s important to please everyone.
20. If I don’t set the bar as high as possible, I will end up badly.
21. Being valuable requires being outstanding at something.
22. People with good ideas are worth more.
23. If I make a blunder, I should be upset about it.
24. What I think of myself is more important than how others see me.
25. Only when I help everyone who needs me am I valuable.
26. I seem dumb and worthless if I keep asking for things.
27. Receiving disapproval from important people is terrible.
28. Without someone as support and refuge, it’s easier to become unhappy.
29. I don’t need to rush myself to achieve personal goals.
30. I don’t need to get upset immediately when humiliated.
31. I find it difficult to trust people because they can hurt me.
32. You can’t be happy if others don’t care about you.
33. You must sacrifice yourself as much as possible to please others.
34. If you often consider yourself, you’re selfish and bad.
35. I don’t need attention or approval from others to be happy and cheerful.
36. Problems will disappear on their own if you don’t pay too much attention to them.
37. Even if I miss certain things in life, I can still be happy.
38. What others think of me is very important.
39. If you’re always prepared for the worst, you won’t be disappointed.
40. Even if nobody really cares about me, I can still find happiness.

You can investigate how you typically react and cope in stressful situations. For instance, you can reflect on stressful situations from your past and examine how you responded. The following steps will guide you through this process:

1. Describe your usual reaction to a stressful situation. Be specific about your behavior. Do you often avoid things? Or do you do nothing at all? Are you a worrier or a problem solver? Do you handle things alone or with someone else? What stands out or is typical about your own responses? Do you notice similarities or differences between situations? Write down everything that comes to mind!
2. Examine the various emotion regulation strategies below. Which ones do you recognize in yourself? Connect a strategy to each of the behaviors you listed above.
3. What do you observe? Which strategies do you tend to use the most? Are you more emotion-oriented or problem-oriented? More active or more passive?
4. Which coping strategy you’ve read about would you like to apply more often? Why? What benefits could it bring if used more frequently? Is there someone you know who often uses this strategy? What do you notice about that?
5. Select a recent problematic situation and try to categorize your behavior in the table below. First, acknowledge what you are already doing well! Then consider what you would do differently if you were to encounter the same situation again. For instance, what passive strategies can you identify? And which active strategy would you substitute? What actions are necessary for this? And what should you avoid? Who or what do you need to make this plan succeed?
6. Describe all the specifics you need in a concrete plan with actionable behaviors. Now you’re prepared to try this experiment. Remember to reflect on how it went and what you learned from it afterwards!

A reliable method often used in treatment to investigate emotion regulation is the Utrecht Coping List (UCL). This is a validated questionnaire through which you can gain a comprehensive overview of your most frequently used coping strategies based on 47 questions. You could discuss with your professional whether it’s possible to complete and review this list.

Sources:

https://bsw.ugent.be/VVGP/UCL.pdf
https://mentaalbeter.nl/artikelen/copingstijlen-hoe-ga-jij-met-stress-om/

In the previous article, you have read about the various coping styles and strategies. Below, we will explore the coping strategies of Alina using an example situation. Afterward, you can work on applying these strategies to one of your own situations.

Situation: Alina is in the middle of her exam week, and she has an important exam in two days. She is worried about the remaining time to study. Failing the exam could result in her not passing the academic year. Due to the stress, Alina throws her phone in a corner and starts watching Netflix while eating a bar of chocolate and a big bag of chips, keeping them far out of sight from her study books.

Alina copes with her problems in the following way:

• Avoiding coping: Alina avoids studying by keeping her study materials out of sight and watching Netflix.
• Palliative reaction: Alina finds short-term relaxation through Netflix.
• Palliative reaction: Alina seeks comfort by eating chocolate and chips.
• Passive reaction pattern: Alina isolates herself by throwing her phone aside.

Alina’s approach to her problem likely won’t yield a positive outcome. She didn’t study for her exam, increasing the chance of failing the academic year. What else could Alina do in such a situation? We’ll provide you with an example!

Alternative situation: Alina is in the middle of her exam week with an important exam approaching in two days. She’s concerned about the time left to study. If she fails this exam, there’s a chance she won’t progress to the next academic year. Alina decides to go for a short walk and calls her best friend Hanna, who’s in the same program, to discuss her worries and seek study tips. Hanna advises Alina to create a study schedule. Despite remaining tense after the call, Alina is determined to follow the schedule. She accepts the need to study hard, reminding herself of the upcoming vacation after the exam. Alina treats herself with a bar of chocolate, rewarding herself with a piece every half an hour.

• Active approach: Alina calls a friend for advice on studying properly.
• Palliative reaction: Alina goes for a walk to relax.
• Palliative reaction: Alina enjoys chocolate as a reward.
• Looking for social support: Alina discusses her concerns with her friend.
• Expression of emotions: Alina shares her feelings with her friend.
• Active approach: Alina creates a study plan.
• Reassuring thoughts: Alina calms herself by remembering the upcoming vacation.

In the alternative situation, it’s more likely that Alina’s behavior will have positive consequences. She managed to study for the exam and actively coped with her stress by going for a walk. Unlike the passive approach, she tackled her stress head-on.

Sources

https://bsw.ugent.be/VVGP/UCL.pdf
https://encyclopedie.medicinfo.nl/coping/966cc4d99db44e84b4063a8eaa8e639f
https://mentaalbeter.nl/artikelen/copingstijlen-hoe-ga-jij-met-stress-om/

The psychological term for dealing with your problems or stressful situations is called coping. There are multiple coping strategies, but none of them is solely the right one, your reaction often depends on the situation. We can distinguish seven coping strategies which are discussed below:

• Active Approach: Take immediate action if there are any difficulties.
• Palliative Response: Trying to do other things such as walking, eating, smoking, or drinking.
• Avoiding Coping: Avoid the difficult situation.
• Looking for Social Support: Share your concerns with someone.
• Passive Reaction Pattern: You do nothing and isolate yourself from others.
• Expression of Emotions: Show your emotions in an active and clear way.
• Reassuring Thoughts: You realize that every cloud has a silver lining.

Coping Styles

Your coping style can be active or passive. So, do you take action to solve the problem or do you sit back and do nothing about it? In addition, coping can be emotion-oriented or problem-oriented. If you are emotion-oriented, you look at what the problem does to you emotionally and cope with that. If you are problem-oriented, you look at the actual problem itself and what you can do about it, without taking your emotions into account.

Behaviour

Below you will see a table that distinguishes between the active, passive, emotion-oriented, and problem-oriented coping styles. Each of the seven coping strategies described above is shown in the table. For each coping style, it is explained what kind of behavior suits it.
If you look at the different styles you will notice that you will probably use them all from time to time, but that there is one style that particularly has your preference. This is the coping style that fits your personality best.

Consequences of Coping Styles

Different coping styles lead to different consequences. Because everyone has a certain coping preference that suits them most, people with different coping styles also deal differently with problems and experience different consequences. When you notice that you often use a certain coping style that does not have the desired effects, you can start practicing adjusting your coping. Coping can be learned.
A coach or therapist can help you with this. Together you will see which style you use, what this style will bring you, and what you would like to change. You can then practice this together.An example of how Alina copes with a problem is given in the article ‘Example of a coping situation’. There are also a couple of assignments to challenge your own coping.

Sources

https://bsw.ugent.be/VVGP/UCL.pdf
https://encyclopedie.medicinfo.nl/coping/966cc4d99db44e84b4063a8eaa8e639f
https://mentaalbeter.nl/artikelen/copingstijlen-hoe-ga-jij-met-stress-om/

The reasons why some individuals develop mental health problems while others don’t are not always clear. We know that there is not a single cause that can explain it. Instead, it is a combination of various risk and protective factors on physical, psychological, and social levels. All these factors together form the Biopsychosocial model, which is depicted below.

Biological Factors

Biological factors are related to the body, for example, your genetic predisposition. You might have a predisposition to grow very tall, but you could also have a predisposition to develop depressive symptoms more easily. Other biological factors include stress during your mother’s pregnancy, physical illnesses, gender, overall health, alcohol and drug use, and nutrition. Some of these factors are beyond your control, but others can be influenced. For instance, you can consciously choose to eat healthier and reduce alcohol consumption.

Psychological Factors

Psychological factors pertain to your personality and thought patterns. These can be genetically determined (thus, a biological factor) or learned (psychological factor) throughout your life. For example, perfectionism, setting high standards, insecurity, or a strong need for validation from others are risk factors that increase the likelihood of developing mental health problems. On the other hand, factors like stress resilience, coping skills, and self-confidence are important protective factors that can help prevent mental health issues.

Social Factors

Social factors are related to your environment, such as the family you grew up in, your current living and working environment, or the friends you have. Risk factors might include emotional neglect during childhood, high work pressure or a stressful job, work-related difficulties, extreme loneliness, or conflicts. Protective factors include having a strong attachment with your parents and social support from friends.

Vulnerability

The combination of biological, psychological, and social risk and protective factors determines how vulnerable you are to developing mental health problems. However, being vulnerable does not necessarily mean that everyone will actually develop mental health problems! Often, a trigger is needed, such as a significant life event. This could be the death of a family member, a divorce, but also things like going to prison, getting married, pregnancy, or changing jobs or schools can be influencing factors.

Strengthening Protective Factors

To reduce the likelihood of developing mental health problems, it is important to identify your risk and protective factors. Where possible, you can minimize your risk factors and develop and strengthen your protective factors. For instance, ensure you have a healthy lifestyle, cultivate self-confidence, improve stress resilience, learn effective coping strategies, and maintain social connections. Working with your healthcare provider, you can work on enhancing and reinforcing these protective factors.

Sources

• https://mindblue.nl/depressie/oorzaken/bio-psycho-sociale-model
• https://www.acesconnection.com/fileSendAction/fcType/0/fcOid/466307103267301137/filePointer/466166364394606238/fodoid/466166364394606234/Engel%201980%20The%20clinical%20application%20of%20of%20the%20biopsychosocial%20model.pdf
• https://espace.curtin.edu.au/bitstream/handle/20.500.11937/38934/247608.pdf?sequence=2
• https://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/doi/full/10.1176/ajp.2006.163.5.857

Within mindfulness, much revolves around allowing, accepting, and letting go of emotions. When you encounter emotions while practicing mindfulness, kindly invite them in. This requires an open attitude. How does it actually feel to allow fear or experience stress instead of resisting or getting lost in them?

When you observe your emotions with gentleness, without getting caught up in their content or intensity, you won’t be carried away by them, and you can recognize them as events passing by. See your emotions as waves that rise and then subside once they reach their peak. Even negative emotions deserve to be acknowledged. Inviting them and allowing them often brings space and new insights. The following poem by Rumi beautifully illustrates this:

The Guest House – Rumi

This being human is a guesthouse.

Every morning, a new arrival.

A joy, a depression, a meanness,

a flash of insight comes

as an unexpected guest

Welcome them all and receive them hospitably!

Even if they are a crowd of worries

that violently sweep all the furniture in your house

Still, treat each guest with respect.

They might be clearing you out

for some new delight.

The dark thought, the shame, the malice

Meet them at the door laughing

And invite them in.

Be grateful for whoever comes

Because each has been sent

As a guide from beyond.

Allowing What Is, by Sitting in Attention

Below are described 4 steps of an exercise that helps you to allow what is. You can do this by sitting or lying down in a comfortable place, closing your eyes, and controlling your breathing. You can also play soft, soothing music. Choose what feels most pleasant to you.

Step 1: Pay attention to what predominates at the moment, such as a sound, feeling, or thought. What is drawing your attention the most right now?

Step 2: Notice how you deal with what you experience. Do you reject it or find it pleasant? Trying to hold onto what is pleasant or pushing away what is unpleasant are both opposite of acceptance. When you do this, notice it and then return to the present moment.

Step 3: Use each exhale to open yourself to what is happening, and say to yourself: it’s okay. Whatever it is, it’s okay. Acceptance is not resignation but a way to fully allow problems to penetrate you.

Step 4: By accepting what is, you create space for what is happening instead of trying to change it.

Quote

Grant me the serenity to accept what I cannot change,

the courage to change what I can,

and the wisdom to know the difference.

– Reinhold Niebuhr

Sources

• https://centrumvoormindfulness.nl
• https://www.happywithyoga.com/mindfulness/mindfulness-uitleg/
• https://www.radboudcentrumvoormindfulness.nl/media/1366/
• https://www.happywithyoga.com/mindfulness/wetenschappelijk-bewezen-voordelen-van-mindfulness/

Stress is a common occurrence in our lives. Often, it leads to unconscious reactions, such as pushing yourself harder, exceeding your limits, not recognizing your needs properly, or freezing when making choices. This can create a spiral, causing you to work harder and harder to achieve the same goals. There’s less and less room for relaxation, which can lead to exhaustion or even burnout.

Ways to Deal with Stress

• Your unconscious reaction is like autopilot, a reflex of sorts. This autopilot often seeks the fastest and easiest route. As a result, many people make choices that are unhelpful or even unhealthy in the long run. Examples include working harder, denial or avoidance, using stimulants, overeating, or filling time with social media.
• In contrast, the conscious reaction involves being mindful of what’s happening and assessing whether it’s within your power to change. If something isn’t within your control, it’s pointless to stress over it. Once you’ve determined whether you can change a situation, you can respond consciously (e.g., change or accept). Healthy responses might involve devising long-term solutions, asking for help, exercising/moving, talking about it, or creating breathing space.

Exercise

By becoming aware of your stress reactions, you learn to make better long-term choices. The feeling of stress won’t disappear, but you’ll learn to respond in a calmer way. It’s like practicing to use stress to your advantage by landing on the right side of the diagram more often.
You can think of stress as an antennae. The earlier you detect your stress, the easier it is to interrupt the reaction. Even if you’re well into your stress reaction, taking a step back can still help. It’s rarely too late.

Sources

https://centrumvoormindfulness.nl

https://www.happywithyoga.com/mindfulness/mindfulness-uitleg/

https://www.radboudcentrumvoormindfulness.nl/media/1366/

https://www.happywithyoga.com/mindfulness/wetenschappelijk-bewezen-voordelen-van-mindfulness/

https://youtu.be/WuyPuH9ojCE

https://www.deimel.nl/gebed-om-kalmte/

https://centrumvaktherapie.nl/stress-maastricht

Mindfulness and meditation are becoming increasingly popular. More and more people are discovering the benefits of mindfulness. Mindfulness involves exercises that bring your attention to the present moment and can make a significant difference in how you feel.

What exactly is mindfulness?

Mindfulness is about living in the present moment, with attention and focus. We often find ourselves lost in our thoughts, thinking about everything we have to do later or what we experienced yesterday. For example if you are stuck in a traffic you might have thoughts such as: what groceries should I get? What is the fastest route home? Will I be on time to make it to the gym class? Mindfulness means letting all these thoughts and bringing your attention to the present moment without judgment. You will observe the cars around you, the environment, listen to the sound of the engines, feel the bumps in the road, etc. Mindfulness helps you to live in the moment.

Where does mindfulness come from?

Mindfulness is a Western concept that has only been around for a few decades. It started with research on meditation in the West. Initially they were not taken seriously by their colleagues. They thought meditation was too vague. To gain credibility, these scientists combined the essential components of Eastern meditations and philosophies, such as Buddhism, under the name Mindfulness.

Effects of Mindfulness

Below you can find some scientifically validated benefits of mindfulness:

• Reduces Stress: Mindfulness activates the part of your brain that regulates stress, allowing you to effectively regulate stress, relax, and recover. Exposure to a lot of stress throughout your life can lead to accelerated brain aging.
• Effective Against Depression: Various studies consistently show a positive effect of mindfulness on depression and its prevention.
• Enhances Attention, Focus, and Working Memory: Research has shown that people who practice mindfulness can work on tasks for longer periods without distraction and give less negative feedback on these tasks.
• Increases Empathy and Compassion: Even a short meditation can influence the parts of your brain linked to empathy and compassion.
• Aids in Emotion Regulation: You react less emotionally to stressful events or images. You are less driven by your emotions, although the emotions are still present.
• Helps with Anxiety and Rumination: Regular mindfulness practice can help you cope better with anxiety, uncertainty, and rumination. However, this effect is not found in all studies.
• Boosts Creativity: It enhances your problem-solving abilities, allowing you to solve everyday problems creatively.
• Aids in Relationships: Mindfulness contributes to more empathy, better impulse control, and improved emotion regulation, potentially enhancing relationships. More scientific research is needed to confirm this.
• Helps with Pain Management: People who practice mindfulness have a higher pain threshold than those who do not.

What can you watch out for?

In addition to highlighting positive effects and benefits, it’s crucial to remain critical and to point out a couple of things to bear in mind while  practicing mindfulness:

Be mindful not to practice mindfulness for the wrong reasons and manage your expectations about the healing effects of meditation. If you have unrealistic expectations for how you might feel after the meditation this can lead to disappointment afterwards.

Mindfulness cannot alter unpleasant situations, exhausting jobs, or unhealthy relationships. Therefore when you are observing negative thoughts during your meditation it is possible that you get caught up in the content of your thoughts  which could potentially lead to an increase in negative emotions. Be careful of this. 

Not everything works for everyone. While mindfulness has positive effects for some, it may not be helpful for others. Determine what works for you, and do what feels right. Mindfulness is very broad so decide for yourself what helps and what doesn’t. 

Do you want to know exactly how mindfulness works in your body? Then read this article.

Sources

https://www.happywithyoga.com/mindfulness/mindfulness-uitleg/

https://www.happywithyoga.com/mindfulness/wetenschappelijk-bewezen-voordelen-van-mindfulness/

https://ftp.science.ru.nl/CSI/CompMath.Found/BrittaHolzel_LWS.pdf

https://www.trainingsbureauvoormindfulness.nl/mindfulness-op-je-brein-positief-effect/

https://www.vmbn.nl/wat-is-mindfulness/onderzoek/

Karremans, J. C., Schellekens, M. P., & Kappen, G. (2017). Bridging the sciences of mindfulness and romantic relationships: a theoretical model and research agenda.

Creswell, J. D. (2017). Mindfulness interventions. Annual Review of Psychology.

Larouche, E., Hudon, C., & Goulet, S. (2015). Potential benefits of mindfulness-based interventions in mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease: An interdisciplinary perspective.

Hempel, S., Taylor, S. L., Marshall, N. J., Miake-Lye, I. M., Beroes, J. M., Shanman, R., et al. (2014). Evidence Map of Mindfulness. Dept. of Veteran Affairs, Washington (DC).

https://www.mindfulme.be/veerkracht.html

https://niceday.app/hoe-werkt-mindfulness/

https://growingmindfulness.nl/pas-op-voor-de-5-gevaren-van-meditatie/

Relaxing means incorporating moments into your daily life where you’re not engaged in the routine of your daily tasks. You have a moment for yourself in which you can recharge, unwind, slow down, and regain new energy.

Relaxation is necessary to allow your body and mind to recover from exertion. If your body and mind don’t get the time to recuperate, stress and fatigue accumulate until it becomes too much. You can handle much more when you take breaks to relax in between. This way, you’ll cope better with stress, work, and the demands placed on you.

When you’re too tense, you often aren’t (anymore) aware that you’re constantly tense. You’re accustomed to your body feeling a bit stiff, experiencing stomach or back pain, or waking up tired.

How can you relax?

For one person, relaxation might involve going out with friends, while for another, it’s sitting with a good book on the couch. Yet another person might find it hard to do without exercising. Relaxation can be sought mentally or physically. It’s important to determine what is relaxing for you, what brings you joy. This ensures that your mind clears and your body relaxes.

You can create a relaxed moment for yourself anytime, anywhere. It could be when you’re alone, enjoying a beautiful view, or even on a busy train. Observe what’s happening and how you feel. Sense that you don’t need to do anything and try to enjoy that state.

Ways to relax

Everyone has their own ways of relaxing. Ask around in your surroundings about what others do to relax. We’ve also prepared some inspiration for you:

• Listen to music
• Read a book
• Engage in a hobby
• Take a walk in nature
• Exercise
• Take a bath or warm shower
• Get a massage
• Intimacy
• Take time to eat slowly or have a cup of tea, for example
• Practice yoga
• Engage in mindfulness
• Meditate
• Consciously use your senses to perceive your environment
• Give yourself a facial massage
• Do a relaxation exercise

Relaxation exercises

Relaxation exercises are often based on yoga, mindfulness, or meditation. You learn to be consciously engaged with your breath, your body, your surroundings, and your thoughts. Not sure which form of relaxation or meditation suits you? Then read this article.

We have several relaxation exercises available, such as the progressive relaxation.  Additionally, you can find various free relaxation exercises online or through an app:

• Headspace (app)
• Insight Timer (app)
• VGZ Mindfulness coach (app)
• Rob Brandsma (Spotify)
• Ger Schrurink (website)

Exercise

You can schedule moments where you will be taking time to relax.
Reflect on what the moment of relaxation has done for you and how you feel afterward.

Sources

https://www.thuisarts.nl/stress/ik-wil-ontspanningsoefeningen-doen

https://wijzijnmind.nl/psychische-klachten/psychipedia/stress/zelf-iets-doen-bij-stress/ontspanning-en-herstel

https://wijzijnmind.nl/psychische-klachten/psychipedia/ontspanningsoefeningen/tips-voor-ontspanning

https://wijzijnmind.nl/psychische-klachten/psychipedia/stress/zelf-iets-doen-bij-stress/ontspanning-en-herstel