Jakobson's Training — Your Guide to Anxiety Regulation
Anxiety isn't only a feeling — it lives in the body. Evidence-based tools can help you regulate your anxiety.
Physical symptoms of anxiety can be deeply debilitating — a racing heart, tight chest, nausea, trembling hands, or a persistent sense that something is wrong in the body. Psychotherapy works on the underlying issues that drive anxiety, but there are also things you can do on your own. Reducing anxiety is possible — though it requires that you take yourself seriously and take action.
The reason many people suffer from chronic anxiety is often self-neglect — they ignore their anxiety instead of trying to regulate it. Imagine consistently having a fever and never doing anything about it. There's a high chance you would get worse and worse. The same principle applies to anxiety.
Jacobson Progressive Muscle Relaxation
Jacobson progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) is one of the most well-researched, evidence-based tools for anxiety management — and one of the few that works across all three levels of the anxiety pathway. Most clients who practise it consistently for at least 21 days report a significant reduction in symptoms.
PMR was developed by physician Edmund Jacobson in the 1920s, based on a simple but powerful observation: muscle tension and anxiety are directly linked. Learning to recognise and release physical tension can interrupt the anxiety cycle itself. The method involves deliberately tensing a muscle group for a few seconds, then abruptly releasing it — working systematically through the body. This contrast between tension and release teaches your nervous system what "letting go" actually feels like, often for the first time.
How PMR Works at Every Level
Somatomotor
PMR directly targets the muscles where this level of anxiety lives — hands, jaw, shoulders, back, legs — by teaching the body a new default of release rather than bracing.
Autonomic
Releasing chronic muscle tension shifts the nervous system from sympathetic ("accelerator") dominance toward parasympathetic ("brake") activation — the vagus nerve pathway involved in slow exhalation. This can ease palpitations, sweating, and digestive symptoms.
Cognitive-Perceptual
By bringing overall arousal down, PMR can help restore groundedness and clarity that gets lost when anxiety reaches dissociation, brain fog, or racing thoughts.
What the Research Says
PMR is one of the most studied relaxation techniques in clinical psychology.
Reviews focused specifically on anxiety disorders have found abbreviated versions of Jacobson's original protocol to be effective for both generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) and panic disorder. One meta-analysis of psychotherapies for late-life anxiety found that PMR produced the largest reductions in anxiety symptoms compared with waitlist controls, supportive therapy, and even cognitive behavioural therapy.
More recent studies have found PMR effective for improving sleep quality and reducing fatigue — including in high-stress groups such as healthcare workers. Research on its neurochemical basis suggests that regular practice may influence GABA and serotonin pathways, which explains why a primarily physical technique can have such a noticeable effect on mood and worry.
Practising PMR: Online or In-Person
One of the practical advantages of PMR is that it doesn't require any special equipment, a clinical setting, or much space — which makes it equally suited to both online and in-person therapy.
🖥 Online
PMR can be guided over video call just as effectively as in person — the therapist's voice and pacing matter most, not physical proximity. It also works well as a self-guided daily practice between sessions.
🪑 In-Person
In the therapy room, PMR can be combined with real-time observation. A therapist can notice where you're holding tension that you might not be aware of — particularly useful within body-focused approaches like ISTDP.
Other Ways to Manage Symptoms
- Breathing exercises
Even 5 minutes of intentional breathing helps. Inhale slowly through your nose, exhale slowly through your mouth. A slower exhalation activates your parasympathetic nervous system via the vagus nerve — your built-in brake pedal.
- Exercise regularly
Regular movement reduces stress and anxiety. Exercise releases endorphins — natural mood-boosters that alleviate symptoms. If motivation is low, try short online classes; FitON is a free option worth exploring.
- Reduce stimulants and prioritise sleep
Consider what caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, and poor sleep do to an already overstimulated body. If these are well-established habits, think about gradual reduction — and make restorative sleep a priority.
- Seek professional help
If you're experiencing chronic or severe anxiety symptoms, it's important not to ignore them. Chronic anxiety is a serious condition — one that psychotherapy can address at its roots, not just at the surface.
Guided Practice · YouTube
Try This Guided Session on YouTube
A free, step-by-step audio guide through Progressive Muscle Relaxation — follow along at your own pace, at home or between sessions.References
- Jacobson, E. (1929). Progressive Relaxation. University of Chicago Press.
- Conrad, A., & Roth, W. T. (2007). Muscle relaxation therapy for anxiety disorders: It works but how? Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 21(3), 243–264.
- Thorp, S. R., et al. (2009). Meta-analysis comparing different behavioral treatments for late-life anxiety. American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 17(2), 105–115.
- Dolbier, C. L., & Rush, T. E. (2012). Efficacy of abbreviated progressive muscle relaxation in a high-stress college sample. International Journal of Stress Management, 19(1), 48–68.
- Manzoni, G. M., et al. (2008). Relaxation training for anxiety: A ten-years systematic review. BMC Psychiatry, 8, 41.
- Porges, S. W. (2011). The Polyvagal Theory. Norton.