Derek Neary
Northern News Services

Fort Simpson (Mar 26/04) - Just relax. Sometimes it's easier said than done.

To help Fort Simpson residents learn the techniques, Gillian Enright and Elizabeth Hardisty led a relaxation workshop over the weekend.

In an interview with the Drum following her presentation on Sunday, Enright spoke of meridians, chi and chakras. Having earned her masters in therapeutic counselling, she is a believer in the integration of Eastern and Western philosophies.

For her, stress is an organic entity, as natural as the seasons. The pain and tension caused by stress is not something people can learn to avoid completely or "heal." Rather it's something they can learn to stretch like an elastic and relax in spite of it, she explained.

To that end, she taught participants how to engage in self-massage. A headache, for example, can be eased by rubbing the flesh between the thumb and forefinger, she said.

The Western way is equivalent to only looking only under the hood if a car's engine is faulty, Enright explained. In Eastern philosophy, engine trouble means examining other areas of the car, including the tires, she said, carrying on the analogy. Her belief is that our bodies contain energy that is blocked by stress.

Other techniques she related were breathing, visualization, journaling, drawing and painting.

As well, she had those involved in the workshop use Play-Doh to shape thoughts and concepts as an exercise in flexing the mind's belief systems and stretching social norms.

Workshop participant Lorayne Moses said she is now more conscious of her breathing and she used the new approach that very afternoon to keep a migraine from becoming too debilitating.

Later in the workshop, Elizabeth Hardisty offered a traditional crafting session. She has a different outlook on stress management, using beadwork and other crafting methods to keep her hands and her mind occupied.

"And then you come up with something beautiful," she said. "So when you come back to the problem it doesn't have the same hold on you."