Fighting fatigue

• For an instant brainpower boost, try peppermint or menthol for a simulated injection of fresh air. Either inhale some essential oil of peppermint or chew on strong sweets, breathing deeply so that the strong flavour will shock your brain into action.

• If you feel sluggish in the morning, treat your face -often the last part of you body to wake up - to a reviving splash of scented water. Add a couple of drops of geranium or lavender oil to a basin of warm water and soak a wash cloth. Wring out the cloth and apply to your face for a minute before dunking and repeating.

• If you feel down as a result of being tired, try listening to music, which will have a direct affect on your mood. Research shows that listening to an upbeat tempo will raise your spirits; if you feel unhappy, play something that holds fond memories.

• Revive your body and mind with some gentle exercise. Not only does physical activity release a lot of feel-good hormones but it increases the flow of oxygen to the brain, boosts adrenaline levels and leaves you feeling more energetic.

• Have trouble dragging yourself out of bed in the morning? Contrary as it sounds, you should actually set your alarm clock an hour earlier to give yourself time to prepare yourself for the day. Within weeks your body clock will adjust and feel better for it.

• Use visualisation techniques to focus your flagging mind on the day ahead. Visualise yourself getting through your day successfully, working through each encounter in your mind so that everything runs seamlessly. By doing this, you will feel you can easily achieve what is ahead.

• To avoid the build-up of tension which can deplete your energy levels, vent your spleen after work. Boxercise classes, running or aerobics are a marvellous way to release pent-up stress. But just singing or yelling will get stress out, too.

• Try popping bubble wrap. American psychologists have shown in research that this dispels pent up nervous energy and muscle tension.

• Lost your creative urge? Then take up power walking. Any rhythmic form of exercise, such as running, swimming or even pounding away on the stairclimber, can elevate creativity if you do it regularly, according to research at the Cornell University Medical College.This is partly linked to the fact that repetitive and continuous activities release endorphins, the so-called feel-good brain chemicals.

• If you still feel tired each morning, aromatherapy can help. Each evening, run a bath and add three drops of lavender and three drops of camomile essential oils with some carrier oil. Then light an oil burner and add two drops of clary sage and lavender. This will calm down your system.

• A gentle stretch will help you breathe more efficiently and nourish every cell in your body.Try this move whenever you have a moment to yourself: Sit on the floor with your knees bent and soles of your feet together. Breathe in and lengthen up through the spine - as you breathe out, press your naval towards your spine and relax forward. Rest your arms in front of you with your neck unstretched. Take ten breaths. Slowly uncurl, straightening the spine vertebra by vertebra. Repeat if necessary.

• Spending more time with someone you love will boost your energy. During tender moments neural pathways become intoxicated with raised levels of dopamine, norepinephrine and penylethylamine (PEA), the natural chemicals of love. As the brain gears itself up for lovemaking, the production of stress hormones such as cortisol falls dramatically. The result is a natural high.

• Spending ten to 15 minutes a day in complete silence can help you gather your thoughts and refocus your mind. Researchers at the University of British Columbia showed that the noises with which we are bombarded on an average day - such as traffic, telephones and television - cause our immune systems to suffer and energy levels to drop. Silence and solitude, on the other hand, are therapeutic.

• To revive yourself instantly at work, move away from your desk or situation for a few minutes. Have a long, tall stretch and then bend towards the floor.Tense every muscle and then relax each one. Finally, shake yourself all over and return with a fresher spirit.

• If you find yourself slumping in the middle of the afternoon, think about your posture and sit up straight.Your internal organs need room to spread, otherwise they operate below par, leaving you tired and listless. Breathe deeply.

• Clear your bedroom of everything that does not belong there - work papers, for instance. A calm and inviting atmosphere will add to the quality of your sleep.

• Try not to fall asleep in front of the television on the settee, or leave the TV on in your bedroom all night. The light and sound will continue to enter your brain and the quality of your sleep will be seriously diminished.

• Look at how you are eating. If you are eating dinner too late, try to eat earlier. If you are eating heavy food, try to lighten the menu - it will help you sleep.

• Do not exercise too close to bedtime. It may make you fall asleep quickly, but you are likely to wake up frequently during the night. Try, instead, to exercise earlier in the day. ( dailymail.co.uk )