ROCKFORD - Most everyone is under some kind of stress these days, including those whose occupations are to teach others how to relax or to set up environments to allow folks to do so.
Sure, they say they follow what they pitch and preach. But they also have their own ways of decompressing.
A few of them from the Rockford area - a yoga instructor, massage and breathing therapists, and a hot tub installer and repairman - share their strategies outside the techniques they employ in their day jobs.
Tony Gluff, owner of Hot Tub Tony'z in Loves Park, installs and repairs hot tubs.
"I get a cocktail - a glass of red wine - and sit in the hot tub on my deck in back," Gluff said.
He also finds watching sports relaxing, except when his favorite team, the Dallas Cowboys, isn't playing well. He also plays basketball to loosen up.
Jane Greenlee, nurse for Holistic Health Services at SwedishAmerican Hospital in Rockford, teaches patients preparing for surgery how to breathe easier by deeply inhaling through the nose, holding the breath and exhaling through the mouth. Think "candle-blowing."
Greenlee gets a monthly massage. And she listens to music, including harp, Celtic and classical tunes. More often though, she puts a few drops of a lavender essential oil on a cotton ball, places it under her pillow or on the nightstand, and smells. "My body relaxes," she said.
"And your nose continues to smell even while you're asleep."
Jennie Williford, owner of and instructor at Pranayama Yoga Studio in Rockford, teaches the healing system that focuses on physical postures, meditation and breathing exercises.
Williford, who practices meditation, unwinds by spending time walking her dogs. When doing so, she said she's not thinking about anything other than which of her three dogs - Balee, Baloo or
Buster - she's attending to. "My mind is focused ... on being present in the moment," she said.
Ramona Felse, owner of and massage therapist at Wellness Massage in Rockford, makes the soft tissue on a person's body more pliable by rubbing, kneading, stroking and applying pressure.
Felse relaxes by taking nature walks at Severson Dells, Anna Page Park and Reuben Aldeen Park at least once a week.
"It is de-stressing because there is a sense of belonging that I feel," she said. "Your five senses kick in: You hear that lone chickadee in the distance; you take in the cold. You become alive."
Photo: EDDY MONTVILLE | RRSTAR.COM -- Nurse Jane Greenlee soaks a cotton swab with a proper amount of essential oils, to place under her pillow and help her relax and sleep.
