The psychologist called exercises for a mental reboot during the New Year holidays

New Year's holidays are a period of slowing down, but internal fatigue after a busy December is felt by many. On January 7, Svetlana Abakumova, an analytical psychologist at the Yasno service, shared with Izvestia exercises that will help those who are rested enter the new year.

"The first exercise, "Tighten and Release," is based on a physiological principle: a strongly contracted muscle relaxes deeper reflexively after exertion. The technique is performed sequentially from bottom to top: from straining the feet, calves and thighs to clenching the fists, lifting the shoulders and wrinkling the face, followed by a sharp relaxation of each muscle group. This helps to relieve chronic cramps in which the body retains unexpressed stress, and restore neuromuscular communication," she advised.

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The second exercise is autogenic training, borrowed from the practices of athletes and astronauts. Lying with your eyes closed, you need to slowly repeat to yourself phrases aimed at evoking specific bodily sensations: "my hand is heavy," "my hand is warm," "my heart is beating calmly." According to the psychologist, this technique uses the connection between the cerebral cortex and the autonomic nervous system, which allows you to literally control physiological processes such as vasodilation through words.

The third practice is walking meditation, suitable for those who find it difficult to sit still. It involves a slow walk in a quiet place without music or headphones, focusing on the sensations: how the foot touches the ground, how the body moves, how the air touches the skin. Thoughts that arise do not need to be suppressed — the task is to gently return attention to bodily sensations, which helps to get out of the mode of fixation on anxiety and reconfigure the internal state.

"The fourth exercise is tapping technique to quickly reduce anxiety. Lightly tapping with your fingertips on certain acupuncture points (the edge of the palm, points at the eyebrows, under the eyes, under the nose, on the collarbone, under the arm, the crown) for 5-7 times each activates the parasympathetic nervous system responsible for relaxation. 2-3 laps on all points are enough to feel the effect," Abakumova said.

The fifth exercise is the visualization of a safe place, or "inner shelter." Closing your eyes, you need to imagine in detail the space where you feel complete peace and security, and explore it through all your senses: what you see, hear, feel with your body, what smells and emotions arise. Regular practice teaches the psyche to quickly return to this resource state, causing physiological relaxation, and over time, only 30 seconds will be enough for the effect.

On December 3, Anastasia Cardiakos, a family psychologist and psychotherapist, told us how to regain control of attention and stop living in notification mode. She explained that the main principle of digital hygiene is to control your notifications on your devices.

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