The Art of Perfecting Muscle Relaxation: Alleviate Tension, Pain, Fatigue, Insomnia, and More

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Jennifer L. Abel, PhD Related seminars and products

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Jennifer L. Abel, PhD, international speaker, author and clinical psychologist, has specialized in the treatment of anxiety disorders for over 20 years. Before opening a private practice, she served as the associate director of the Stress and Anxiety Disorders Institute at Penn State under the direction of the leading expert in Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), T.D. Borkovec.

Her first book, Active Relaxation (Self-Published, 2010), has received outstanding reviews from mental health care professionals and anxious readers alike. Her second book, Resistant Anxiety, Worry, and Panic: 86 Practical Treatment Strategies for Clinicians (PESI, 2014), has received praise from top experts in anxiety management. Jennifer is also the author of The Anxiety, Worry & Depression Workbook: 65 Exercises, Worksheets & Tips to Improve Mood and Feel Better (PESI, 2018) and the Melt Worry and Relax Card Deck: 56 CBT & Mindfulness Strategies to Release Anxiety (PESI, 2016).

Dr. Abel has published many articles in professional journals and wrote a pamphlet about GAD for ABCT. She has been quoted by several popular magazines (e.g., Health, Prevention, Glamour) for her expertise in Worry. Dr. Abel presents to the public (e.g., Working Women’s Survival Show), as well as professionals (e.g., Australian Psychological Society; Anxiety Disorder Association of America).

 

Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Jennifer Abel is in private practice. She receives royalties as a published author. Jennifer Abel receives a speaking honorarium and recording royalties from PESI, Inc. She has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Jennifer Abel has no relevant non-financial relationships.

Additional Info

Program Information

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Objectives

• Individualize progressive relaxation to your client by using alternative tensing strategies, carefully debriefing, and applying this knowledge to subsequent phases.
• Create a more effective pattern by learning words and phrases to include and avoid.
• Reduce clients’ adaptation levels, proven to have a positive effect on headaches, blood pressure, insomnia, fatigue, sexual satisfaction, and chronic pain.
• Employ 5 stages of progressive relaxation, Socratic reminders, sponge imagery, and the Tin-Man to Scarecrow technique.

Outline

Background on PMR

• History of PMR
• Lowering adaptation level - the key mechanism
• Benefits of PMR

The First Session:

• Explaining history, benefits, and rationale of lowering adaptation level to the client
• Three reasons we tense despite the fact that the goal is relaxation. 
• How to teach the 16 muscle groups and other important pre-training info.
• 12 tips to maximize the effectiveness of relaxation patter.
• 10 tips on the importance of debriefing.

Beyond 16 muscle groups:

• Differential Relaxation - The key to PMR benefits.
• Tailor PMR to each client, maximizing effectiveness.
• 7 muscle group, then 4 muscle group
• Recall - deep relaxation without tensing

Beyond PMR:

• Tin-Man to scarecrow
• Sponge imagery
• Socratic reminders to reduce tension and maximize energy

Target Audience

Reviews