Tag: relaxation

Päntsdrunk (Kalsarikänni): The Finnish Path to Relaxation (Drinking at Home, Alone, in Your Underwear) by Miska Rantanen

Päntsdrunk (Kalsarikänni): The Finnish Path to Relaxation (Drinking at Home, Alone, in Your Underwear) by Miska Rantanen

Päntsdrunk, a satirical self help read, seemed fairly straight-forward to me. To keep your cool, occasionally you should take a page out of the Finnish playbook and put on your most comfy underwear, grab your favorite alcoholic beverage and chill out. But then Miska Rantanen had to write something to fill up the rest of the pages. There was quite a lot of filler material.

Päntsdrunk doesn’t demand over-the-top arrangements. Affordability and democracy are its hallmarks. It’s quick acting and suitable for all who have reached the age of majority.” pg 16

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Rantanen talks about how Finland developed this coping mechanism from a couple of different factors: freezing weather, long distances between cities and towns, and very little sunlight near the winter solstice.

“The Finnish term kalsarikanni is a simple compound word: kalsari (underwear) + kanni (state of inebriation). This pithy idiom crystallizes the essential: at its simplest, pantsdrunk means imbibing alcohol in one’s underwear at home without any intention of going out. The term’s ingenuity lies in everything it doesn’t imply.” pg 21

But pantsdrunk practitioners don’t have to stay in or solitary. You can drink as a couple, with friends, with a couple of friends. As the night wears on, you can go from pantsdrunk to plus pants at the club or bar, if the mood lends itself that way. The trick is to go with the flow of the evening and enter a state of total relaxation.

“As a philosophy, pantsdrunk is not in conflict with lagom and hygge. Au contraire. They all spring from the same Nordic origins and share the same ultimate goals: optimal peace of mind, joie de vivre, comfort, equilibrium, and recuperation as embodied in a snug coziness.” pg 22

Pantsdrunk is not about getting blasted as fast as possible. It’s a slow slide into mellow.

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“At its most minimal, pantsdrunk is a device for balancing life and work. It can, however, be expanded into a lifestyle and worldview. The beauty of pantsdrunk lies in its possibilities.” pg 27

I’m not sure about some of the statistics Rantanen cites in his book, but he claims Finland is one of the stablest, safest, most educated countries in the world. And he credits the practice of pantsdrunk with part of this fantastic result.

Heidi, you may say, what could your problem be with pantsdrunk? Anyone who has dealt with an alcoholic can easily point out the potential roadblocks to happiness with this. Also, there’s addiction issues to consider. None of which can be dealt with if you’re indulging in this behavior by yourself and aren’t aware there’s a problem.

Rantanen does say that if pantsdrunk becomes a conscious choice every day to deal with stresses, that a reshuffling of your life may be in order. He also suggests counting bottles or cans to keep tabs on how much you’re consuming. Or gauging how well you’ve managed to balance drunk and relaxed by your hangover the next day.

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I’m not entirely convinced this is possible. Rantanen also talks about how pantsdrunk has gotten a bad rap with some films depicting people drinking in their underwear alone as sad and pathetic rather than empowered and relaxed.

One of the most uplifting performances (of pantsdrunk) can be seen during the credits of Bridget Jones Diary (Maguire 2001), when Bridget Jones (Renee Zellweger) belts out the quintessential pajama playback solo while sloshed on red wine. pg 76.

But wasn’t that one of her lowest points?

Recommended for brave readers over 21 who mostly have their lives together, but need to allow themselves to chill out now and then.

For other satirical self-help reads, please see the following reviews:

Get Your Sh*t Together by Sarah Knight

Check out Sarah Knight’s latest self help: You Do You

How to Be Dull by Basil Morley, Esq.

And thanks for reading!

How to Relax by Thich Nhat Hanh

How to Relax by Thich Nhat Hanh

There are very few spiritual leaders who can communicate with the simplicity and succinctness of Thich Nhat Hanh.

As wise as the Dalai Lama is, I’ve only been able to really understand one of the books he’s written and I think that was because he had a co-author. It seems like he contemplates this stuff so much, you know, like it’s his job, that when he’s just trying to talk to a regular person about it, there’s a gap that can’t be crossed.

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That isn’t a problem in Thich’s Mindfulness Series.

Thich encourages the reader to find the quiet within. He says: “We already have calmness in us; we just need to know how to make it manifest.” pg 14, ebook.

How do we do this? Through focus, breathing, mindfulness, and relaxation.

One of Thich’s methods for connecting with inner peace that really resonated with me was that we should take “lazy days”: “A lazy day is a day for us to be without any scheduled activities. We just let the day unfold naturally, timelessly. … When we have unscheduled time, we tend to get bored, seek entertainment, or cast about for something to do. A lazy day is a chance to train ourselves not to be afraid of doing nothing. You might think that not doing anything is a waste of time. But that’s not true.” pg 32, ebook.

Not to brag, but I rather excel at “lazy days”.

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Anyone out there have a partner who snores? I do. Thich invites us to incorporate the snores into our relaxation practice.

“Sometimes you have to share a room with someone who snores. You may get irritated. But with mindfulness you can bring about compassion. You can lean on the sound of snoring in order to go to sleep. Listen and say that this brings you home to the here and now.” pg 42, ebook.

I think this could be a difficult exercise, but I’m willing to give it a try. 🙂

Ever tell yourself that relaxation/meditation is too hard? Thich addresses that concern too: “When you sit and watch television, you don’t make any effort. That’s why you can sit there for a long time. When you sit in meditation, if you struggle, you won’t be able to sit for very long. Please imitate the way you sit in your living room. Effortlessness is the key to success. pg 76 ebook.

If you can watch tv, you can meditate. It’s silly but it reminds me of that line from Dodgeball: “if you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball”.

Highly recommended for anyone looking to introduce more relaxation into their lives and isn’t that everybody?

Some read alikes: Relax RX: A Self-Hypnosis Program for Health and Well-Being by Steven Gurgevich (very relaxing, all you have to do is listen), Guided Mindfulness Meditation by Jon Kabat-Zinn (simple and relaxing), or 10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works by Dan Harris (a regular guy teaches himself to meditate- a light hearted memoir).

Thanks for reading!