Assuming you do not have a fever, take a long, relaxing soak in a hot tub bath. If only a shower is available, let the water run as warm as you can stand with comfort, and allow it to flow over the back of your neck and shoulders and on down the back. Do not bathe or shower if you have a fever.
Prepare a cup of green or black tea, or a herb tea, and add a teaspoon of lemon juice. Sip it as you relax in bed. Then settle down comfortably and read the remainder of this book. Or read something else you enjoy.
Don't get up until you are certain you do not have the flu or a fever. Rest in bed for as long as your temperature remains above normal.
Step nine. Numerous experiments have demonstrated that immunocompetence soars when the body is deeply relaxed and the mind is calm and serene. In controlled studies, a measurable rise in immunocompetence has occurred in as short a time as one hour.
Ideally, this step should follow Step Eight and you should be lying in bed sipping a cup of hot tea with lemon and perusing the pages of this book. If not, remove your shoes and tight clothing and lie down flat on your back. Keep the arms and legs flat and support the head with a pillow.
Take six long, slow deep breaths. Take care to fill the bottom of the lungs first, before expanding into the top. Gradually slow the rate of breathing to four breaths per minute. Complete twelve or more long, slow, deep breaths.
Then, limb by limb, mentally relax your entire body. Relax each arm and each leg, the shoulders and torso. Then relax the forehead, eyes, cheeks, mouth, tongue, jaw and neck. Picture yourself as relaxed as a rag doll or a string puppet.
Now, imagine yourself in an elevator at the top floor of a 100-story building. Look up at the floor indicator above the door. It now displays the digital number 100. The elevator then begins to descend at a rate of approximately one floor every two seconds. Keep watching the indicator as it counts down the floor numbers from 100 to 1. Silently count along with the indicator as you look up at it. By the time you reach the ground floor, you should be in a delicious state of detachment from worry and pressure, with every muscle free of tension and with the mind calm and unruffled.
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