EasyBreezyMind
1 peer-reviewed source, DOI-verifiedUpdated Oct 1, 2026How we verify
Three of the most common relaxation techniques were tested head to head in one randomized study. All three worked — but the body’s response wasn’t identical.
| Study type | Randomized controlled trial (four arms) |
|---|---|
| Who took part | 60 healthy undergraduate students |
| What was compared | 20 minutes of recorded progressive muscle relaxation, deep breathing or guided imagery vs. a control condition |
| Published | Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2021 |
| Free to read | Full text on PubMed Central |
| Licence | Open access, Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) |
What the researchers did
Participants were randomly assigned to one technique or to a control condition, delivered as recorded audio. The researchers measured how relaxed people felt and tracked heart rate and skin conductance throughout.
What they found
- All three techniques increased feelings of relaxation compared with the control group.
- Progressive muscle relaxation and guided imagery showed an immediate, steady trend towards physiological relaxation.
- Deep breathing caused a brief rise in physiological arousal at first, followed quickly by a return to starting levels.
What this doesn’t prove
- Participants were healthy students, so results may differ in other groups.
- It measured a single 20-minute session.
- The sample was modest, with 60 people across four groups.
How to use this
Try our guided Muscle Relaxation session — about five minutes of tense-and-release, with a visual timer.
Twenty minutes of recorded progressive muscle relaxation, deep breathing or guided imagery all increased feelings of relaxation compared with a control group.
Summary written by EasyBreezyMind in our own words. Original article: Toussaint L, et al. (2021). Effectiveness of Progressive Muscle Relaxation, Deep Breathing, and Guided Imagery in Promoting Psychological and Physiological States of Relaxation. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. doi:10.1155/2021/5924040. © The authors. Published open access under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) licence. This summary is educational and is not endorsed by the authors.