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Just relax: use these simple exercises to manage your stress—anytime, anywhereNatural Health , Nov, 2004 by Linda SheltonTHERE`S A BIG DIFFERENCE between knowing you need to chill out and actually doing it--and short of taking a two-week vacation to the tropics, it`s difficult to come up with a strategy that relaxes both body and mind on command. But if you`re short on cash for a plane ticket to paradise, you can still relax completely with these four simple body-based techniques. No special equipment is required, since they`re centered on the most natural tool of all: your own breath. Yogis have used breathing techniques to stay calm and centered for thousands of years. "Your breath is the most direct route to complete and immediate relaxation," explains Laura Sachs, a San Francisco-based certified Pilates and fitness trainer who developed this program. She points out that learning to relax enables you to respond calmly and thoughtfully to stressful situations, rather than react emotionally and reflexively, which can weaken your immune system over time. Follow the illustrated techniques as close as possible to get the most benefit. Try just one move or all them, and you`ll soon find that you can achieve a truly laidback state of body and mind. one-arm-at-a-time raises 1a. Stand with your feet hip-width apart, knees slightly bent and arms at your sides. Draw your tailbone down toward the floor, keeping your chest lifted and shoulders relaxed 1b. Inhale for 4 counts as you raise your left arm up and out in front of you to shoulder height, palm down. Exhale for 4 counts as you lower your arm to your side. Breathe slowly and consciously through your nose as you move. Perform the sequence on alternating arms twice, then close your eyes and repeat 2 more times. full-belly breathing 2a. Sit tall with your legs crossed. Let your knees fall open (you can sit in a chair or against a wall if that`s more comfortable). Keep your back straight and your head and neck aligned with your spine. Place both hands on your lower abdomen and close your eyes. Inhale through your nose for 4 slow counts, pushing your belly outward and expanding your ribs. Let your collarbone and chest lift as you breathe in. 2b. Exhale in 4 even counts, pulling your belly in as you relax your chest, collarbone, and ribs. Repeat the sequence 2 or 3 times following a breathing count of 4. Once you`re comfortable with the exercise, lengthen your breathing count by 1 with each rep--first to 5, then 6, and so forth up to 10 counts. You`ll have completed n total of 8 to 9 reps when done. seated cat stretch 3a. Sit on the floor with your arms straight, hands behind your hips, and fingers pointing away from you. Bend your knees and place the soles of your feet together, letting your knees fall open. As you inhale for 4 counts, lift your breastbone toward the ceiling, extending your spine. 3b. As you exhale for 4 counts, draw your navel in, bringing your chin to your chest and rounding your shoulders forward. Repeat 6 to 8 times, keeping your breath fluid and even. overhead stretch 4a. Lie on your back on the floor, legs straight, arms relaxed at your sides. Inhale for 4 counts as you flex your toes and lift your arms overhead, reaching your arms back as far as you can and extending your fingers. Your lower back will come off the floor as you move. 4b. Exhale for 4 counts as you slowly release, bringing your arms back to your sides. Repeat 2 to 3 times. progressive relaxation Starting with your feet, tense your muscles by flexing them as much as possible. Hold for 5 to 8 seconds, then slowly release. Use imagery to visualize tension flowing out from your body as you let go and continue to breathe evenly. Rest for 15 to 30 seconds, then move your attention to your calves. Sequentially tense and relax each part of your body--from your legs to your facial muscles--resting briefly between each muscle group. COPYRIGHT 2004 Weider Publications COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group Manufacture and use of home made ophthalmoscopes: a 150th anniversary tribute to HelmholtzBritish Medical Journal , Dec 23, 2000 by Roger H ArmourAbstract Objective To produce a simple, effective, and inexpensive training ophthalmoscope. Design Case study. Setting A coffee table in a sitting room and an eye clinic. Participants 10 friends and relatives, several patients, and a cooperative Persian cat. Interventions Direct ophthalmoscopy with instrument made with easily available material and tools from art and office equipment shops. Main outcome measures Efficiency, clarity of view, and price of ophthalmoscope. Results The instrument was readily made; of the 50 manufactured two thirds gave a good view; and each cost less than 1 to make. Conclusion The ophthalmoscope is fun to make, works well, and anyone can make one. Introduction As a medical student in Lahore, I wished I had my own ophthalmoscope but could not afford one. Now retired after 40 years in the NHS, I decided to try to make one. The ophthalmoscope was invented in December 1850 by Helmholtz (fig 1). He had neither the Leclanche dry cell battery (1867) nor Edison`s electric light bulb (1881), yet he succeeded. In his original invention he looked through one side of a glass plate while light was reflected into the subject`s eye from the other. The modern ophthalmoscope is a highly sophisticated but expensive instrument. I reasoned that with modern materials it should be possible to make a simple, efficient, and inexpensive ophthalmoscope that medical students and doctors might make for themselves. A mirror made from reflecting card in one of my grandson`s books showed me how I could avoid working with glass. Materials and methods Materials--Black card of gauge 300 g/, mirror card such as Mirriboard (white card with a reflecting surface on one side), adhesive tape such Sellotape, and a pen torch. Tools--Scissors, pointed scalpel, ruler, protractor, pencil, and stencil to draw circles. Manufacture--One end of a 14x6 cm length of black card is shaped as shown in figure 2. The card is rolled lengthways into a tube round the barrel of a pen torch and secured with adhesive tape. Its bevelled upper end is covered with an oval piece of mirror card with a 2.5 mm viewing hole just below its centre, reflecting side down. The edge of the hole, especially anteriorly, is covered by overlapping it with the edge of a 2 mm hole in a disc of black card to prevent glare. The ophthalmoscope is now ready (fig 3). The pen torch is inserted, and light intensity is adjusted by advancing or withdrawing the torch. The instrument weights 2.6 g without the torch and 32 g with the one I used. Six pen torches (code FFE980, NHS Logistic Authority, April 2000) can be purchased for 4.35 (72.5p each). The other materials used to make one ophthalmoscope cost 2,5p. Outside the NHS pen torches cost 1.91 - 3.49 . Results I made 50 ophthalmoscopes. Two thirds of these gave a good view. I tried the ophthalmoscope on 10 relatives and friends aged 72 years and obtained a good view in all but one (small pupils). A consultant ophthalmologist colleague tested it in his clinic and was surprised by the clarity of the view. With him, I saw macular degeneration, retinal haemorrhage, glaucomatous cupping, etc. I then taught two non-medical people how to use it. One, a nurse, described the optic disc as "like a sunset." Finally I saw the optic fundi of my Persian cat, Tabley. I could see the vessels and dark discs clearly against the brilliant tapetal glow of the upper fundi, and I also saw the black pigmented and rather mysterious non-tapetal lower fundi. Tabley showed only curiosity. Discussion All countries are struggling to keep up with the soaring costs of their health services and of training medical students and doctors. This includes teaching direct ophthalmoscopy. My ophthalmoscope costs 75p ($1.13). Charles Babbage, the British mathematician, actually invented the first ophthalmoscope in 1847, but the surgeon friend he gave it to failed to use it, and it was not reported until 1854. Helmholtz is therefore rightly credited with the invention. Modern manufactured ophthalmoscopes are exquisitely intricate instruments: even the less expensive ones cost 80 - 130 , and their range of lenses and lights are rarely used by the non-specialist. Common problems for the novice learning to operate one include breath holding, difficulty keeping both eyes open to relax the accommodation and avoid strain, blocking the subject`s gaze with the head, and difficulty aligning the view with the light beam and the subject`s pupils. These difficulties can be largely ironed out by practising with my ophthalmoscope at home. My instrument would allow the beginner to study the normal fundus and appreciate its beauty before moving on to diseased fundi. I could find no reference to a similar instrument. Of course, the instrument does have flaws. The light beam gives light and dark patches and is not polarised. The field of view is small. The absence of lenses may cause problems in some cases of ametropia, but these may be partially resolved by allowing myopic subjects to keep their glasses on and by asking hypermetropic subjects to try to focus on a near object. However, this simple device should enable the user to achieve considerable skill at direct ophthalmoscopy and to prepare for advanced training. It should be taken everywhere--I carry mine in my top pocket--and it is fun at parties (fig 4). Eyes relaxation index
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