Relax Your Muscles to Relieve Acid Reflux

Posted: Jan 15 in Lifestyle & Behavior by Staff

Preventing acid reflux and indigestion in Albany and Macon often amounts to watching what you eat, but a healthy diet isn’t all that helps. Stress is also a big contributor to the symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and finding ways to manage it effectively can be an asset as you work to ease the discomfort of this condition.
Of course, this doesn’t mean you have to rush out and join a yoga class, or even start meditating. There are many ways to ease stress that require nothing more than your own body and a few simple steps. Deep breathing is one such activity, but another valuable stress management technique to add to your repertoire is progressive muscle relaxation.
Ready to give progressive muscle relaxation a try? To begin, find a relaxing place, then sit or lie down in a comfortable position. You’ll want to move through each of your body’s muscles in succession. Flex each muscle and hold the tension for 20 seconds, then release and focus on the relaxing sensation of the tension fading for 30 seconds. Progress through your body’s muscles from top to bottom in this order:

• Flex your forehead by raising your eyebrows.
• Hold your eyes shut tightly.
• Flare your nostrils and wrinkle your nose.
• Keep your tongue pressed against the roof of your mouth.
• Grit your teeth to clench your jaw.
• Lower your chin to your chest to flex your neck.
• Arch your back.
• Hold a deep breath to tense your chest.
• Flex your stomach muscles.
• Flex your biceps to tense your arms.
• Ball your hands tightly into fists.
• Flex your thighs and buttocks.
• Press down on the ground to flex your calves.
• Turn up your toes to flex your feet.

Remember: don’t rush through these steps. The whole process should take about 15 minutes to complete and taking your time will be much more relaxing. Move through your muscles slowly, paying close attention to the sensation of tension ebbing away as you release each flex.
You can do progressive muscle relaxation as often as you like, but doing it twice a day can help you truly master the technique and control stress-related acid reflux issues. For even better stress management, complement progressive muscle relaxation with other techniques like deep breathing.
Stress is a natural part of life, but too much can take a toll on your health, especially if you suffer from acid reflux and indigestion in Albany or Macon. What other stress management techniques have helped you? Share your favorites in the comments below.