Relaxing May Be Hazardous to Your Health

Relaxing Leaves You Feeling Ill

All week long, I fantasized about how good it would feel when my wife and I arrived in Hawaii. I worked extralong days that week so I could leave for vacation knowing that every important task was completed and that I could fully enjoy our getaway. On the night before our departure, I left my office with a sense of closure, but I still felt tense knowing there was much to do when I got home. The next day, we awakened early and dashed to the airport. The traffic was horrendous, and after barely arriving on time, we checked our bags and ran to board our plane. Once on the plane, I began to slow down. But I knew there were still 7 hours standing between me and fully letting go. By the time we checked in at our hotel, I could hear the ocean calling my name. We dropped everything, put on our bathing suits, and hurried to the beach. I assumed the slight fatigue, heaviness in my limbs, and lightheadedness I felt were just a result of being tired from the long haul of getting there. Before I knew it, I had fallen into a deep sleep.

I awakened a few hours later to find that while I was sleeping, I had become sick. Somehow I had managed to develop a sore throat and earache. How could this be? Wasn't relaxing, sleeping, and being on vacation one of the best things I could do for my health? How was it that I had managed to remain healthy all year long, despite putting in long hours, and now, when I was doing all the right things, I got sick?[pagebreak]

Shifting Gears

What I experienced is called the Let-Down Effect. Most people believe that illness only occurs during the throes of stress. In actuality, one of our most vulnerable times for illness is immediately following a period of high mental and physical activity, when we're finally able to let go and relax. Ironically, at the same time we let down our guard physically and mentally, the body's immune system is also letting down its guard. Relaxation itself, however, is not the problem. It's when we suddenly shift from a state of High Activation (when we feel high energy, great joy, anger, tension, or anxiety) to Low Activation (when we feel relaxed, quiet, calm, or tired). Here's why. When the body is under stress, the adrenal glands react by releasing hormones called corticosteroids, which help mobilize the body's defenses. The immune system then releases natural killer cells throughout the body to beef up its defenses against infection. Once the short-term stress is over, however, the body is no longer on high alert, and the troops are called back. As a result, our immune defenses are thinned, leaving us more vulnerable to the very illnesses that they have so effectively been able to defend against. To make matters worse, high levels of prostaglandins, which began accumulating while the body was under stress, suppress the immune system even further.That's when feelings of fatigue and exhaustion begin to unfold, and the Let-Down Effect sets in. Mentally, we perceive ourselves as letting go or relaxing. But from your body's point of reference, the shift from a state of High Activation to a state of Low Activation means a shift from immune system alert to immune system collapse. This explains why many of my headache patients developed headaches not in the throes of stress, but rather once the stress was over, such as at the end of their day or on weekends. The pattern was most glaring in patients of mine who frequently developed colds and sore throats. I noticed too, that symptoms of patients with chronic pain caused by arthritis, back problems, stomach disorders, or fibromyalgia tended to worsen during the Let-Down phase. The key to avoiding the Let-Down Effect is to gradually shift from a level of High Activation to Low Activation so that you relax and keep your immune defenses on alert. I'll show you how in just minutes a day. [pagebreak]

Stop Making Yourself Sick

Here are four easy-to-learn tools you can use in just minutes a day to stop the Let-Down Effect. They work by slightly energizing or activating your body, which prevents you from making the transition to relaxation too rapidly, causing the suppression of your immune system. Do them two or three times a day for the first and second day after a period of High Activation or stress has ended or at the earliest signs of the Let-Down Effect, which is preceded by tiredness, difficulties in concentration, or a heaviness. #1: Mental Problem-Solving Rapid problem-solving conducted under time constraints has been found to boost activation of the immune response. Do the following tasks as quickly as possible.

Solve a couple of entries in a challenging crossword puzzle, or write down a number of random letters, and form as many different words from them as you can.

Calculate a series of math questions in your head. Make sure they're challenging enough for you to create vigorous mental activity. For example, what is 12 times 36? How many heartbeats would you have over 75 years? It's not necessary that you solve the problems correctly, rather that you create enough energy in your body and mind to elevate your activation level. For most people, this would require about 5 to 10 minutes of problem solving while pushing yourself rapidly.#2: Physical Activity Studies have found that even mild exercise can lead to immune enhancement.

Take a brisk walk or easy jog outside for 5 minutes. Exaggerate your arm and hand movements as you walk.

If you are at work, go up and down several flights of stairs. Or walk a brief distance from your desk to another location, and repeat several times.[pagebreak]#3: Lightness and Floating Technique This exercise and the one that follows are unique to my work. These new and powerful healing techniques, called Somafocus, can speed healing, reduce inflammation, and affect your immune response. They allow you to modify physical sensations in your body and use these sensations to manipulate your activation states. Remember that we are most vulnerable to the Let-Down Effect when we abruptly shift from a state of High Activation to a state of Low Activation. By modifying your physical sensations, you can slow this transition by moderately elevating activation levels. Somafocus not only blocks the Let-Down Effect, it also has the ability to enhance our immune response. In a study I conducted at UCLA, participants who used a Somafocus technique were able to stop inflammation and speed the healing time in their forearms after receiving a tetanus injection just under their skin. Creating sensations of lightness, vibration, or warmth in particular can result in an enhancement of the healing response

Sit comfortably on a chair with armrests, with your feet on the ground and your hands and arms on the armrests, with palms facing down.

With your elbows remaining on the armrests, very slowly begin to move both of your forearms upward to a 45-degree angle, while letting your wrists hang loosely down. (Imagine that your wrists are being pulled by helium-inflated balloons.)

With your forearms still elevated, close your eyes, and direct your attention to the middle of your forehead. While inhaling slowly through your nose and exhaling through your mouth, imagine a light or floating feeling developing in your forehead. The key is to create the physical feeling of floating. (Imagine yourself being lifted up by a cloud or floating on a raft.) #4: The Vibration Technique This technique can rapidly infuse the body with warmth and vibration in your shoulders, neck, and/or head.

Stand with your arms straight in front of you, parallel to the floor, elbows slightly bent.

Close your eyes, and allow your mouth and jaw to drop open.

With your palms facing forward, move your arms as if you are opening and closing a drawer repeatedly. Begin to move your arms more rapidly for 15 seconds. Pick up the pace for another 15 seconds. Allow your arms to move even faster for a final, additional 15 seconds. You will feel your upper body beginning to gently vibrate and shake. Imagine that your entire body is becoming synchronized to the rhythm of your arms and hands.

Stop, and place your arms and hands at your side. Let your entire body become still, and close your eyes. Close your mouth, and inhale slowly through your nose, while at the same time focusing on your forehead. Then, gradually exhale through your mouth. See if you begin to feel a lightness or floating sensation. Inhale and exhale in a similar manner several more times. It is not important to be successful in all of these techniques. Rather, learn which of the above techniques are best at creating moderately higher activation levels within you. You'll know this by the sensations of alertness, tingling, lightness, vibration, floating, or energy during the exercises.[pagebreak]

Know Your "Speed"

Think of your activation levels in terms of miles per hour. Going from a speed of 80 mph to a speed of 30 mph in a matter of hours or even a day can send you right into the Let-Down Effect. To avoid it, you have to learn to reduce your speed gradually by slowing to 60 mph the first day and then to 30 mph the next. Become aware of situations that are High Activation for you and the sensations they can trigger. 100 mph Situation: Intense anger, trauma Physical Sensation: Rapid heartbeat, dizzy, shallow breath 90 mph Situation: Project deadline approaching; participating in a competitive sport Physical Sensation: Anxiety, pressure 80 mph Situation: Late to work, stuck in traffic Physical Sensation: Tension, tightness, nervous 70 mph Situation: Giving an important presentation Physical Sensation: Feeling "on," focused, scared, or nervous 60 mph Situation: Running errands Physical Sensation: Alert, active mind50 mph Situation: Pleasurable evening with friends Physical Sensation: Warmth, relaxed 40 mph Situation: No pressing demands Physical Sensation: Calm, quiet 30 mph Situation: Vacation Physical Sensation: Peaceful, still 10 mph Illness[pagebreak]

Do You Have the Let-Down Effect?

Do you find yourself becoming ill

after finishing a stressful project at work?

after resolving a major conflict or crisis?

after a stressful meeting?

during or just after vacation?

on the weekends?

after a frustrating experience?

after completing a project or goal that has taken months to complete? If you answered "Yes" to any of these questions, you probably have the Let-Down Effect. To find out when you're most vulnerable to the Let-Down Effect and other stress-related illnesses, take our quiz.