Walking whether it's taking the dog out or at the mall, walking helps my brain rest.

Journaling, I have kept a journal for a long time, writing things out helps too.

Watching a lot of movies.

Doing Reiki on either myself or another person.

Hanging out in the Garagemahal doing picayune things that matter possibly only to myself.

Teaching Sadie a new trick, and watching her eyes light up with excitement as she gets it. :doghead:

A good orgasm. :winky:

Walking on the beach or along the banks of a slow moving river.

Helping others.

Did I mention a good cup of coffee? :coffee:

This thread is needed, badly. I found some gifs that a few may find calming and or relaxing.

http://cdn.ebaumsworld.com/mediaFile...1/84125588.gif

https://media.tenor.co/images/99b2b6...9f9c407882/raw

http://33.media.tumblr.com/2c497b127...5jd6o1_500.gif

http://i.imgur.com/NTUFl.gif

Great topic!!

I find meditation therapeutic before yoga class.... it doesnt have to be long, i usually take 5 to 10 min.. I find it relaxing.

Oh, and hugging helps too!

It used to be a walk on the beach or sitting on the rocks looking out at the ocean, but the ocean isn't accessible to me on a daily basis anymore so I needed to find something else. This works for me every single time. A walk in the woods with a pocket full of nuts, seeds, etc, stopping to feed chickadees, nuthatches, woodpeckers, and tufted titmouse along the way, (titmice is the accepted plural however it is not really etymologically consistent since tit is an old English word meaning little and mase meant small bird. The name titmase morphed eventually into titmouse.) I think this need to explain about the plural of titmouse makes it pretty clear why I need to find ways to relax. Here is a pic of me feeding a male downy woodpecker.

https://s28.postimg.org/pmig1cpsd/PB010162_PS_2.jpg

You must love WaterFire. I was dating someone at Brown around 1999 and she was one of the volunteers feeding the braziers so I had a front row seat. It was right around the time WaterFire was beginning to grow and I really enjoyed it. A few years later I was amazed at how big it had gotten. I took my wife one year, maybe 2007, and it was humongous. I think it was more fun when it was smaller.

Anyway to stay true to the thread, I also find fire, especially on water, very peace inducing. Barring burial at sea, which I doubt I will get, I would love it if someone would just stick me in a canoe, tow it out to sea a bit and set it on fire...after I'm dead of course.

Therapy at Home
 

When I'm at home I find the following super therapeutic:

audiobooks or my fave music playing on the Bose
something yummy simmering on the stove
cleaning or purging items I don't need
Facetime
face masks or spa treatments
fuzzy socks

yelling at the TV!

Brisa
 

the sound and smell of the ocean.............

Rainfall....... it's very soothing to hear. I'm actually lying on top of my bed, watching it come down in sheet after sheet....then it stops for a bit....then, it begins to rain again. The trees, in the neighborhood west of me, are simply beautiful. Bright pinks, pale yellows and deep pined blooms are everywhere...so very pretty.

Sometimes a good cry helps but haven't done that in awhile!

Agreement Maximus

sleeping naked in fresh sheets

picking out flowers in the nursery

listening to the snore of my old old dog

softly petting my cat when watching television