Jacobson’s Progressive Relaxation: use, phases and effects

This is one of the most widely used relaxation techniques, and focuses on muscle tension.

In the last decade, the boom in the prescription of relaxation techniques in the field of clinical and health psychology is attributed to the palpable evidence of an acceleration in the pace of life that human beings have been incorporating as a habitual way of daily functioning.

This type of practice is intended to act not only as a type of intervention in the reduction of personal stress, but also as an effective alternative in the prevention of the appearance of stress. Jacobson's Progressive Relaxation is one of the most widely used.We will now see its characteristics, its phases and how it is performed.

Fundamentals of relaxation techniques

Relaxation is considered as a response contrary to the response of tension or stress.

In the stress response, activation of the sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) occurs. The ANS is the part of the organism that controls involuntary actions, such as heart and respiratory ratessuch as heart and respiratory rate, contraction and dilation of blood vessels, digestion, salivation, sweating, etc.

The autonomic nervous system is divided into the sympathetic nervous system (which prepares the individual for action) and the parasympathetic nervous system (which performs functions opposite to the former, such as maintaining a state of rest after an effort, reducing the stress level of the organism).

Relaxation produces an activation of the parasympathetic branch of the ANS. of the ANS. Therefore, relaxation can be considered as a state of hypoactivation.

What is relaxation?

The definition given by the psychology of emotions proposes to conceptualize relaxation as the physiological, subjective and behavioral state of a person. physiological, subjective and behavioral state experienced during the experienced during the occurrence of an intense but opposite emotion (especially with respect to unpleasant emotions such as anger, stress or aggression). Therefore, relaxation allows to counteract the effects of physiological activation derived from this type of emotions, as well as it also becomes a very useful resource to reduce anxiety, fears or symptoms of depression.

Other benefits of relaxation consist of: improvement of blood flow, Blood Pressure and heart rate, optimization of brain wave function, regulation of breathing rhythm, favoring muscle relaxation, increasing the feeling of calm and general vitality, enabling a higher level of attention. In short, relaxation has the capacity to provide the organism with a state of general well-being by facilitating an adequate synchrony between the physiological and psychological functioning of the individual.

More specifically, relaxation has the following fundamental objectives: reducing or eliminating daily tensions, increasing general well-being, promoting self-knowledge, increasing self-esteem, enhancing the performance of the subject's activity, improving the coping of disturbing situations or certain personal conflicts, and, as a result, opting for more satisfactory interpersonal relationships.

General considerations of the procedures

First of all, one aspect that should be taken into account when putting this type of technique into practice is the fact of thinking that that it is a set of learning processes that will be perfected as they are applied. as they are applied. The process requires a training phase to achieve increasingly better results after the exercises, so practice is an essential requirement to assess their effectiveness.

The time devoted to the relaxation exercises ranges between 30-40 minutes a day for the first two weeks and then reducing the duration of the activity to about 10 minutes or spacing it every two days, for example.

When putting the training into practice, it should be taken into account that the relaxation should be carried out primarily in a calm and quiet room, away from interruptionsfar from interruptions, and with pleasant temperature and moderate light (although it is not exclusive). In addition, it is recommended that the person wears comfortable and loose clothing.

Effects of these techniques

When the aim of relaxation is to calm the high physiological activation in an intense anxiogenic situation, shorter relaxation procedures adapted to the type of situation are used. When the purpose is to lower the level of general activation, it is recommended to perform the most extensive exercise in terms of time in a calm context free of environmental stimulation.

As the training phase is completed, the individual's perception of self-efficacy increases. increases his or her perception of self-efficacy in controlling stressful situations and in maintaining a relaxed and in maintaining a relaxed general state of high well-being, decreasing the likelihood that new episodes of increased anxiety level may occur.

The training also allows a greater self-control of disturbing thoughts, since, as previously indicatedThe physiological and psychological states are closely related to each other, as mentioned above. Usually, relaxation techniques are applied as a component of a more complete psychological intervention where the emotional, cognitive and behavioral areas are worked more deeply.

On the other hand, it should be noted that depending on the individual, the practice of relaxation may cause him/her to experience new sensations unfamiliar to him/her. Since this is a totally habitual aspect, it is only recommended that the person be aware of the type of reactions that may occur beforehand and the reason for their occurrence. Some of these sensations may consist of: heaviness of a part of the body or the opposite, a feeling of lightness; a sensation of tightness in the extremities; as well as tingling, a feeling of immobility or abandonment of the body, etc.

Jacobson's Progressive Relaxation

This technique was developed in 1929 and today is one of the most widely used. It consists of learning to tense and relax the different muscle groups of the body..

Jacobson's Progressive Relaxation is based on the fact that the stress response generates a series of thoughts and behaviors that provoke muscular tension in the person. that provoke muscular tension in the person. This tension increases the subjective perception of anxiety. Progressive relaxation reduces this muscular tension, and with it the feeling of anxiety.

At the procedural level, the training is carried out over a minimum of seven weeks. During this period, the user will have to learn to tense and relax 16 muscle groups throughout the body: hands, forearms, biceps, shoulders, forehead, eyes, jaw, throat, lips, neck, nape of neck, back, chest, abdomen, legs (thighs and calves).

The tension phase is performed so that the user learn to perceive the sensations associated with the onset of anxiety. or tension, and it is these sensations that will signal the person to relax. This muscular tension allows the muscles to relax even more than if they had previously relaxed under tension. At the end of the training, one will learn to relax the muscles directly without previously tensing them.

Phases

In Jacobson's Progressive Relaxation usually follows the following phases:

Performing

More specifically, in each tension-distension exercise the user must tense a group of muscles for about five to eight seconds. for about five to eight seconds. Subsequently, he/she will focus attention on the sensation he/she is experiencing with this muscular tension. After these seconds, the person will relax this group of muscles for ten to fifteen seconds, and then concentrate on the sensations experienced in the relaxed area.

As for the posture to be maintained during the activity, this can be done in three different positions.This can be done in three different positions:

Application of Jacobson Progressive Relaxation

Jacobson's Progressive Relaxation focuses on teaching the person who practices it to distinguish between the sensation of tension and distension in the different parts of the body in which the training is distributed, in total 16 muscle groups.

From that moment on, the subject will be able to optimally control which daily situations provoke each of the sensations of tension-distension and how to proceed to loosen the muscle groups in case of noticing an excess of tension. Tense situations are usually related to less pleasant emotions, decrease with training, so that the individual'sThe emotional and psychological state of well-being of the individual tends to increase progressively.

Example

As an exemplification of the application instructions the following formulas can be used:

In a comfortable, quiet place with little distracting stimulation, some calm-inducing phrases are introduced, such as "You are comfortable and relaxed, you can hear your breathing, no noises are heard, only silence...". Subsequently, starting to work the first muscle group, the following instructions are followed:

1. Direct attention to the right armClose it, squeeze it tightly, and observe the tension produced in the hand and in the forearm (for about 5 or 8 seconds).

2. Stop straining, relax the hand and let it relax.relax the hand and let it rest where it is resting. Observe the difference between tension and relaxation (10-15 seconds).

3. Clench your right fist again and feel the tension in your hand and forearm. and feel the tension in your hand and forearm, observe it carefully (10-15 seconds).

4. And now loosen the muscles and let go of the force, allowing the fingers to spread allowing the fingers to spread out in a relaxed manner. Note once again the difference between muscle tension and relaxation (10-15 seconds).

And so on with the rest of the muscle groups: hands, forearms, biceps, shoulders, forehead, eyes, jaw, throat, lips, neck, back of the neck, back, chest, abdomen, legs (thighs and calves).

In short, training in Jacobson's Progressive Relaxation requires, as has been observed, the systematic, structured and well sequenced application of the set of procedures that have been exposed in order to achieve an adequate level of effectiveness. It is understood, therefore, that it is the practice maintained over time that will allow for greater perfection in their performance, so that these types of exercises become internalized as a new daily habit.

• In the third week, the time to relax is reduced.
• During the fourth week, you learn to relax directly without putting the muscles under tension beforehand.
• In the fifth and sixth week, you learn to be relaxed while doing various seated activities as well as while standing and walking.
• In the last week, quick relaxation is practiced many times a day in non-stressful situations.
• Finally, you begin to apply relaxation in anxiety-provoking situations starting with those situations that provoke less anxiety. Once you manage to decrease anxiety in this situation, you move on to the next one.

  • Sitting in an armchair, with the head supported, as well as the back and feet resting on the floor. The arms are relaxed on the thighs.

  • Lying on a hard surface, so that the whole body is supported and the head is slightly elevated.

  • Coachman's posture, sitting on a chair, with the body leaning forward, the head resting on the chest and the arms on the legs.