Relax, there's an app for that!

For the last few months, I've really needed to relax more.  Intense new project, business travel for 5 of the last 6 weeks.  I feel as if I've had no choice but to relax more often and more deeply than normal, many times a day.  Fortunately, there's an app for that.

Actually, there are hundreds of apps for that.  I'm always tethered to my Apple hardware--my iPhone and my iPad.  Steve Jobs--may he rest in peace--has given me tools that help me stay loose in the midst of this intensity.  For the last few months, I've replaced my normal practice of meditating to music with a new habit of  closing my eyes while listening to guided relaxation meditations on my iPhone or iPad.

Shhh.  Don't tell anyone, but I do this at work, too.  I'll go off to a "huddle room" with my iPad and with my back to the door and window.  I'm sure people assume I'm on a conference call.  I'll slip in ear-buds and listen to a 10 minute relaxation app and come out refreshed, more creative, and better able to concentrate.  Not exactly a crime, but something that I don't want to draw attention to.

Here are a few of my favorite relaxation/meditation related apps (prices ranging from free to $4):

• "Take a Break", "Relax & Rest", and "Simply Being" by Meditation Oasis.  These are the apps I most like to listen to at work.  They make me feel like it's OK to take this break at work, OK to let go of my obligations for a little while, and OK to relax.  They make me believe that I don't need to be "worked up" to work well.  On the contrary.  If I'm totally relaxed, I'll always be much more effective than if I'm hurrying and wired.
• "Relax Free", "Stress Free", "Energy Boost", and "Success" moderated by Andrew Johnson.  These are too long for work breaks (20-30 minutes), but I could listen that that soothing Scottish accent for hours.  They all start with a guided, total body relaxation.  And then, once I feel that my body is so heavy it's going to sink right through the mattress, Andrew starts planting positive suggestions in my mind about future success, confidence, energy level, fitness, or whatever the theme of that app happens to be. These apps rely on hypnosis, and I think they work for me.  I notice positive effects that last long after each meditation.
• "Relax Completely" with Darren Marks; "Relax and Sleep Well" with Glenn Harrold; "Relax Now" with David Ridgeway.  All hypnosis apps.
• "My Meditation".  Unique app I use when I don't want guided meditation, when I simply want to be reminded--without words--to focus on my breathing.  The app can be configured for a breathing rhythm that feels comfortable for the individual.  I like a 5 second inhale, 1 second hold, and 8 second exhale, 1 second hold.  Just figured this out by trial and error.  A sound like a wave leaving the beach represents inhalation.  A sound like the wind represents exhalation.  Normally, when I don't use an app and just meditate on my breath, my mind wanders.  But I find that the wordless cues from this app reminds me keep my attention on my breath.