Stopped without starting, and relaxed (5)
I believe the answer is:
eased
'relaxed' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
I can't explain the rest of the clue.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for eased that I've seen before include "Made less hard" , "Became less painful" , "Calmed" , "Moved carefully" , "Lessened, pain or discomfort, say" .)