Applied Relaxation and Tension

Description of the Strategy

Currently popularized in an array of specific versions, relaxation training has demonstrated its ease of adaptation and flexibility for teaching individuals an [Page 24]effective means to cope with and overcome anxiety, tension, and other stress-related conditions. Since its initial application toward patients by Edmund Jacobson in the 1920s, relaxation training has become one of the most widely prescribed therapeutic exercises employed by mental health professionals. In fact, this technique has been described as the “aspirin of therapy.” In its original incarnation, progressive muscle relaxation training (PMRT) sought to teach clients to identify subtle tension sites stored within their skeletal musculature, and by learning to elongate (relax) the specific muscles involved in storing emotional and physical tension, unwanted emotional and ...