Guided Imagery Class 5:
 Choosing Each Day's Focus
BY ARLENE HARDER, MA, MFT
— PHOTO BY FABIAN
Classes 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10
Since every day is different, it's not surprising that each day's imagery exercise or guided meditation will be different. Here are some ideas of what you might do to meet the needs of the day.
Wonderfully unexpected gifts can arise from your subconscious when you have completed the first phase of imagery, which is quieting your mind, and then opening yourself to what might be called "the heart of imagery." At first you may experience this phase as though you are observing a play written by someone else, unaware that your own creative genius is the playwright. How you set the stage for the unfolding of this play depends upon your needs for that particular day and the path you choose to reach the heart of imagery.
Every day is not like every other. That may seem so obvious that it doesn't need being said. Many people, however, feel they have to do the same imagery day after day or "it" won't work, whatever they may mean by that. The truth is that if every day were like every other day, we would be bored to death. Why should every imagery session be identical?
My view is that, as life unfolds in its unpredictable pattern from day to day, you can enhance the weaving of that pattern by noticing what would be best for you to focus on each separate day. Thus, the heart of your imagery can strengthen what you do for the rest of the day.
You can set the stage for these varied experiences by doing the following:
Listening to a Guided Imagery Tape
As noted in an earlier class, tapes can be excellent guides in teaching you how to do imagery on your own. Sometimes they're good to use even when you are experienced.
One of my very favorite guides is Belleruth Naparstek, a premier imagery guide whose informative website, HealthJourneys, provides information on the value of this technique for healing. But Imagery Audio Tapes and Videos gives you a number of others who are also good.
Selecting a Focus Before You Begin
When you first sit or lie down to do your imagery, take a moment to reflect on some situation you want changed. It might be a physical problem you are having, a place you are stuck emotionally, a difficult problem you're trying to solve at work, a relationship issue or a spiritual question. Then, after you have relaxed and quieted your mind (as discussed in the last class), rather than thinking about the situation with your rational mind, simply allow an image to bubble up from your subconscious. Play with that image and see how it unfolds, noticing in what way it resonates within you. You may discover that it represents a valuable insight or points you toward the next step you need to take in resolving that situation.
I can give you a good example of this kind of imagery. A few years ago, I did something that was not consistent with my usually high sense of personal integrity. Consequently, I felt very guilty. No matter how much I told myself that everyone makes mistakes, I'm only human, get over it and move on, etc., I dwelt on the incident far more than was necessary. Yet I couldn't seem to stop. So one day I decided to see what my guilt was all about.
After relaxing, I opened my mind to an image of my "guilt". Almost immediately I saw in my mind's eye a heavy ore cart, the kind that runs on rails and is used to haul ore out of mines. This was an especially thick metal cart. No wonder I felt its weight! Without forcing the image, I wondered what I could do about it. Without thinking about it rationally, the cart changed into a butterfly that flitted around my head. And of course, a "rational" mind knows metal can't become an animal.
Nevertheless, it wasn't hard to realize that the butterfly was my subconscious telling me that it would always be somewhere nearby to remind me that I had already realized that I wouldn't repeat the mistake and would continue to remain true to my principles. I didn't need a heavy image of guilt when a light image of a lesson learned would do just as well.
Being Receptive
Often you may not have a specific purpose for which you want to spend your imagery time, yet you may want more than mindfulness meditation. In this case a "receptive imagery" experience can work very well. In this approach you quiet your mind and then allow any image to emerge spontaneously. You may wonder, at first, the meaning of this image, seemingly unrelated to any particular problem. Just accept it as a gift from your healing core of wisdom that can give you an important insight or can lead you in the direction that is best for you that day.
If you sense that the image is something your rational mind has decided you "should" have or if it has overtones of being critical, let the image fade and allow another image to arise. However, if you keep getting the same response several times, perhaps there is something about that image you need to know.
While there are times, as with my butterfly, that you can almost immediately know the meaning of an image, frequently you may get a sense that "something" is there but you can't figure it out. If that happens, remember that your subconscious mind will very likely offer you "hints", after the imagery session is over, until you understand the reason the image has come into your conscious mind.
Reflecting on a General Idea
About midway between doing imagery for a specific purpose and giving your subconscious free reign is a technique of placing a word or idea on the stage of your inner world and watching how you respond. An example would be to reflect on a special quality you would like to have (such as patience, love, generosity, simplicity, creativity) and allow a symbol for that quality to come into your mind. Check out Developing Qualities Over a Period of Time to see how this has been working in my own life as I work on being graceful under pressure.
Rehearsing an Upcoming Event
In a later class we'll cover several aspects of rehearsal imagery. Here I just want you to know that such techniques are excellent ways to prepare yourself for a future event by going through the situation in your imagination with assurance and calm confidence. For example, in Experiencing Medical Procedures as Healing Adventures and Rehearsing Your Healing Adventure, you can learn how to practice upcoming medical procedure so that you will be better able to go through the actual event with a sense of calm and control. Also, you can use this method to develop a new habit, seeing yourself moving step by step toward the behavior you want to achieve.
Opening Yourself to Physical Well-being
There are several methods you can use to reduce pain and discomfort and imagine yourself sending healing energy to the part of your body that needs special attention. For example, you could imagine the "chi," or energy which some people believe flows through the body, is moving up from the bottom of your feet, through the spine, up the back of the head and down the front of your head, across the shoulders and arms and out the hands. Some also suggest you imagine energy coming into your body from the top of your head and going out your toes.
In either case, you might want to imagine that the energy has a color and you can visualize the color flowing through you. In future classes relating specifically to cancer and healing imagery, we will discuss in greater depth these and ideas for reducing fatigue and communicating with your mind/body connection.
Class Exercise: Creating Balance
Before you have your next imagery session, you may want to read Creating Balance. It can help you create greater harmony by selecting a focus for your imagery.
Class Symbol: The Ability to Choose
When you have finished the exercise, I recommend that you think of a symbol that represents your ability to choose balance and harmony, affirming that there are things you can do to stay more in control of your life.
© Copyright 1997, Revised 2002, Arlene Harder, MA, MFT |
