This sounds strange, but researchers at the University of Cincinnati found that so-called relaxation activities, such as deep breathing or yoga, which has gained popularity as a means of dealing with stress, on the contrary increase anxiety and tension in some people.
Psychologists have previously known that some people begin to feel stressed even at the very thought of relaxation.
“At first, we really observe a decrease in heart rate, a decrease in respiratory rate, that is, everything that indicates a relaxation of mental stress,” study author Cristina Lamberto shares her observations. - "But after at least some relaxation is achieved, suddenly everything abruptly returns to its previous state."
Researchers took advantage of the help of 300 undergraduate students, who first answered the questionnaire questions regarding how they feel when thinking about relaxation.
Thanks to the questionnaire, the researchers identified the reasons that prevented some young people from fully relaxing, the so-called social, cognitive and physical problems, which in turn allowed them to create a tool called the “relaxation sensitivity index”.
Some people do not like to relax, because they are afraid of changes in physical sensations in the body, for example, during muscle relaxation. Others say they don’t want to relax, because they are really worried about whether they are doing it right.
Let's hope that the index will help psychologists determine the best treatment for those who, instead of calm down and relax, are even more stressed.
