R is for Relaxation

the proverbial coiled springI won’t go into details, but this week has been a bit stressful for me. Thankfully, ABC’s of Beauty, written by the lovely Babs Lee, helped me get organized and stress-free. On the book’s flap copy, Babs writes: “I started collecting these beauty rules some ten years ago and alphabetizing them for my own convenience and use. Loveliness is as simple to achieve and maintain as A B C for most women ~ once they know the formula, and apply it.” Right on, sister.

1950: R is for Relaxation

Get the most out of life, relax! How can your body function at its best when it’s tied up in knots? Relaxation helps to keep out and iron out those wrinkles, and it restores and renews you mentally. If relaxation does all these wonderful things for us, why in the name of heaven don’t we relax? That is the catch. Many of us do not recognize the need for relaxation in ourselves, others of us do not know how to relax.

Good, honest, fatigue from any sort of physical exertion is one thing, but fatigue from tension brought on by worry or the inability to take things in stride, is a dangerous fatigue. These tensions must relieve themselves one way or another. All too often they vent themselves on our bodies with results which range from a mild headache or mild indigestion to really serious disorders.

The reason is obvious.

When we become tense our bodies tighten up all over like the proverbial coiled spring. If we could release that tension in some constructive or physical activity the strain on our system would be gone. Once the strain is removed we can deal quietly with our worries or emotional conflicts. In fact, once you’ve really learned to relax, your worries may not seem so terribly important to you.

A few minutes of clear, organized thinking often straightens out all our problems.

Source: Lee, Babs. ABC’s of Beauty. New York: Lantern Press, 1950.
~ pp. 184-85 ~