Contents
This independent method of psychotherapy has been known for popularity for more than a decade. And not by chance. Without side effects, it allows you to restore some functions of the central and peripheral nervous system, stabilizes the reserve capacity of the cerebral cortex, restores vascular patency, relieves muscle and emotional stress. The latter is especially important for hyperactive children, who are often tense and internally withdrawn.
What is autogenic training? It is a method by which a person consciously controls the physical and mental functions of the body. It is based on maximum muscle relaxation, combined with self-hypnosis.
A person learns the techniques of autogenic training in the course of classes conducted by a psychotherapist. After that, you can apply them yourself at any convenient time. If a child learns to relax properly, he can do it at school, at home, in any place where he feels the need for it. This does not require any special conditions — just a few minutes of rest. By the way, autogenic training techniques very often allow excited children to relax, focus on classes or fall asleep in the evening.
Note that this useful method should in no case be a substitute for other forms of treatment. But to combine them is quite real and useful.
There are several models of autogenic training. Here are two: for children 4-9 years old, developed by Schultz, the founder of the method, and for children 8-12 years old, proposed by A. V. Alekseev.
Schultz model (conducted on behalf of a psychotherapist)
(for children 4-9 years old)
Entry
Today we are going to do some exercises which are called relaxation exercises. They will help you learn to relax when you feel tight and will help you get rid of many unpleasant sensations in your body. These exercises are quite short and simple — you can do them inconspicuously, for example, in a classroom.
But there are some rules that you must follow in order for these exercises to be beneficial. First, you must do exactly what I say, even if it seems wrong to you. Secondly, you must do it very diligently, applying all your strength. Thirdly, you must listen to the sensations of your body. During the whole time that we will do the exercises, pay attention to how your muscles feel when they are tense and when they are relaxed. And finally, fourthly, you must practice. The more you repeat these exercises, the better you will learn to relax. Does anyone have any questions?
Are you ready to start? Good. First, make yourself as comfortable as possible in your seat. Lean back in your chair, place your feet on the floor, and let both of your arms hang freely. Perfectly. Now close your eyes and don’t open them until I ask you to. Remember that you must follow my instructions very precisely, apply all your strength, listen to your body. So, let’s begin.
Arms
Imagine that you have a whole lemon in your left hand. Squeeze it as hard as you can. Try to squeeze all the juice out of it. Do you feel how tense your hand and palm are when you squeeze it? Now drop it. Pay attention to how you feel when your hand is relaxed. Now take another lemon and squeeze it. Try to squeeze it even harder than the first one. Perfectly. You are doing your best. Now drop that lemon and relax. Isn’t it true how much better your hand and palm feel when they are relaxed? And again, take the lemon with your left hand and try to squeeze all the juice out of it to the drop. Don’t leave a single drop. Squeeze harder. Perfectly. Now relax, let the lemon fall out of your hand. (Repeat the whole process for the right hand.)
Arms and Shoulders
Imagine that you are lazy fluffy cats and kittens. Imagine that you want to stretch. Stretch your arms forward. Raise them high above your head. Now lean back. Feel your shoulders tighten. Stretch as hard as you can. Now drop your arms at your sides. Well done, kittens, let’s stretch some more. Stretch your arms in front of you, lift them up, above your head, fold back as far as possible. Stretch harder. Now quickly drop your hands. Good. Notice how much more relaxed your arms and shoulders feel. Now let’s stretch like real cats. Let’s try to reach the ceiling. Stretch your arms straight out in front of you. Pull them as high as possible, lifting them over your head. Now throw them back, pull back. Do you feel how your arms and shoulders tense up? Stretch, stretch. Muscle tension rises. Perfectly! Now quickly lower your hands, let them fall on their own. Isn’t it nice to feel relaxed! You feel good, cozy, warm and lazy, like kittens.
Shoulders and neck
Now imagine that you are little turtles. You sit on a pebble, on the bank of a pretty peaceful pond and bask, relaxing, in the sun. You feel so good, so warm, so calm. But what is it? You sensed danger. Turtles quickly hide their heads under their shells. Try to lift your shoulders up to your ears, and pull your head into your shoulders. Pull in harder. It’s not easy being a turtle and putting your head under your shell. But at last the danger was over. You can pull your head out, relax again and bliss in the warm sun. But beware, an even greater danger is approaching. Hurry up, hide faster in your house, pull your head in more. Try to draw it in as much as possible, otherwise you may be eaten … But now the danger has passed, and you can relax again. Stretch your neck, lower your shoulders, relax. Feel how much better this wonderful feeling of relaxation is than when you are all clenched. But again, danger. Pull your head in, lift your shoulders straight up to your ears and hold them firmly. Not a single millimeter of your head should show out from under the shell. Pull your head in more. Feel the tension in your shoulders and neck. Good. The danger has passed again, and you can stick your head out again. Relax, you are now completely safe. No one else will appear, there is nothing to worry about and there is nothing to be afraid of now. You feel good and calm.
Jaws
Now imagine that you are trying to chew a very gooey large chewing gum. It is very difficult for you to chew it, the jaws move with difficulty, but you are trying to bite through it. Push harder. You try so hard to squeeze it with your teeth that even your neck tenses up. Now stop, relax. Feel how freely your lower jaw hangs, how pleasant it is to relax. But let’s get back to this chewing gum. Move your jaws, try to chew it. Squeeze it harder so that it squeezes out through your teeth. Well! You managed to push it through your teeth. Now relax, open your mouth, let your jaw rest. How nice to relax like this and not fight with this chewing gum. But it’s time to end it. This time we will chew it. Move your jaws, squeeze it as hard as possible. You are trying your best. Well, you finally got it right! You can rest. Relax, let your whole body rest. Feel how all your muscles relax.
Face
Here comes the pesky fly. It falls right on your nose. Try to drive it away without the help of hands. That’s right, wrinkle your nose, make as many wrinkles on your nose as you can. Twist your nose — up, to the sides. Well! You drove the fly away! Now you can relax your face. Notice that when you twisted your nose, your cheeks, your mouth, and even your eyes helped you, and they also tightened up. And now, when you have relaxed your nose, your whole face has relaxed — it is such a pleasant feeling. Oh, there’s that annoying fly back again, but now it’s landing on the forehead. Wrinkle it well, just try to squeeze this fly between the wrinkles. Wrinkle your forehead even more. Finally! The fly flew out of the room completely. Now you can calm down and relax. The face relaxes, becomes smooth, all wrinkles disappear to one. You feel how smooth, calm, relaxed your face is. What a pleasant feeling!
Stomach
Wow! A cute little baby elephant is approaching us. But he does not look at his feet and does not see that you are lying in his path in the tall grass. It’s about to step on your stomach, don’t move, there’s no time to crawl to the side. Just get ready: make your stomach very hard, tense all the muscles as they should. Stay like this. But he seems to be turning aside… now you can relax. Let your stomach become soft like dough, relax it properly. How much better, right? .. But the baby elephant again turned in your direction. Beware! Tighten your stomach. Stronger. If a baby elephant steps on a hard belly, you will not feel pain. Turn your stomach to stone. Phew, he turned again, you can relax. Calm down, get comfortable, relax. Notice the difference between a tense and relaxed stomach? How good it is when your stomach is relaxed. But the baby elephant stopped spinning and headed straight for you! Now it’s definitely coming! Tighten your stomach as much as possible. Here he is already putting his foot over you, now he will come! .. Phew, he stepped over you and is already leaving here. You can relax. Everything is fine, you are relaxed and feel good and calm.
Now imagine that you need to squeeze through a very narrow gap in the fence, between two boards with so many splinters on them. You have to become very thin in order to squeeze through and not get a splinter. Pull in the stomach, try to stick it to the spine. Get thinner, even thinner, because you really need to get through the fence. Now take a break, you don’t have to thin anymore. Relax and feel how the stomach «dissolves», becomes warm. But now it’s time to get over the fence again. Pull in your belly. Pull it up to your spine. Become very thin, tense up. You really need to squeeze through, and the gap is so narrow … Well, that’s it, you made your way through, and not a single splinter! You can completely relax. Lie back, relax your stomach, let it become soft and warm. How do you feel good. You all did great.
Legs
Now imagine that you are standing barefoot in a large puddle with a muddy bottom. Try to press your toes deep into the mud. Try to get to the very bottom, where the silt ends. Brace your legs to better press your feet into the mud. Spread your toes, feel the mud pushing up between them. Now get out of the puddle. Let your feet rest and warm up in the sun. Let your toes relax… Isn’t it a pleasant feeling?.. Step into the puddle again. Press your toes into the mud. Tighten your leg muscles to increase this movement. Press your feet into the mud more and more, try to squeeze all the mud out. Well! Now get out of the puddle. Relax your legs, feet and toes. It’s nice to feel dry and warm in the sun. Everything, the tension is gone. You feel a slight pleasant tingling in your legs. You feel the heat spread over them.
Conclusion
Stay relaxed. Let the whole body become weak and limp, feel how every muscle «dissolves». In a few minutes I will ask you to open your eyes and that will be the end of the session. Throughout the day, remember how pleasant this feeling of relaxation is. Sometimes, of course, you need to strain yourself a little before relaxing — we just did this in the exercises. By the way, try to repeat these exercises on your own, while learning to relax more and more. It is best, of course, to do this in the evening, when you have already gone to bed, the light has already been extinguished and no one is going to disturb you anymore. This will help you fall asleep faster. And then, when you learn how to relax properly, you can practice it elsewhere, even at school. Think, for example, a baby elephant, or chewing gum, or a mud puddle — these exercises can be performed without anyone noticing.
…Today was a good day, and now, rested and relaxed, you can return to your normal activities. You have worked very hard here, you are great. Now slowly, very slowly, open your eyes, tense your muscles slightly. Perfectly. You did a very good job today. Now you can perfectly master these exercises.
Model A.V. Alekseeva
(for children 8-12 years old)
It is based on four components.
- The ability to relax muscles.
- The ability to present the content of self-hypnosis formulas as clearly as possible, but without tension.
- The ability to keep attention on a chosen object.
- The ability to influence oneself with the necessary verbal formulas.
For the convenience of teaching psychomuscular training, all the muscles of the body are divided into five groups: muscles of the arms, legs, torso, neck, face.
We must imagine that you are in a room where five large lamps are hanging, and a small night lamp is lit in the corner. Lamps are muscle groups, and a night light is the control of a calm, focused mind.
You relaxed one of the groups, turned off the muscles of the hands from the tension (as if putting out one of the lamps) — it became a little darker. Then the muscles of the legs were turned off — the second lamp went out, it became even darker. Slowly, successively relaxing the muscles of the torso, neck, face, we kind of put out lamp after lamp and plunge into pleasant darkness — drowsiness, which is controlled by a calm mind — a small, never-extinguishing night light.
From the very first session, training in muscle relaxation should be combined with exercises aimed at inducing heat. In the latter case, it is recommended to use figurative representations of warm water flowing through the hands.
After mastering the exercises for the hands, you should move on to the muscles of the legs, neck, face, torso.
The exercises are built on a similar principle. Subsequently, training is carried out in achieving general relaxation: «I relax and calm down.» At the same time, when “I” is pronounced, you need to take a breath with the tension of all muscles and hold your breath for 2-3 seconds, after which, with an exhalation, say “weak-la-I am”, on the next short breath — “and”, on exhalation — «must-on-ka-and-va-yus.»
All psychomuscular training consists of 12 formulas.
- I relax and calm down…
- My hands are relaxed and warm…
- My hands are completely relaxed… warm… motionless…
- My feet are relaxed and warm…
- My legs are completely relaxed…warm…immobile…
- My torso relaxes and warms up…
- My torso is completely relaxed… warm… immobile…
- My neck is completely relaxed and warm…
- My neck is completely relaxed… warm… immobile…
- My face relaxes and warms…
- My face is completely relaxed…warm…immovable…
- A state of pleasant (complete, deep) rest …
Of all the psychotherapeutic techniques, autogenic training is the most accessible and can be used independently. It has no contraindications in children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.
play therapy
«Game» and «therapy» — it would seem, what connects these two words? The game is: entertainment, recreation; therapy — on the contrary, treatment, load. And yet they are united, firmly united by many years of practice, which in many cases gives very good results. According to psychologists, specially selected games are the most effective, and sometimes the only method of corrective work with young children. For the first time, Z. Freud began to use play therapy. Developing his method, M. Klein began to use a special material for the treatment of children: small toys that the child could identify with family members. She argued that «in free play, the child symbolically expresses his unconscious hopes, fears, pleasures, worries and conflicts.» See →