Holding Pain Gently in the Palm of Your Hand
BY ARLENE HARDER, MA, MFT
This guided imagery exercise from an expert in pain and stress reduction helps you find comfort and release from pain and tension.
Imagery Script
As you prepare to find comfort and release from pain and tension, loosen any clothing that may be binding you. . . . And now let yourself settle into your chair or sofa or bed, allowing it to fully support the weight of your body as you being to relax, shifting your position if you need to, so that you can as comfortable as possible . . . and, as you close your eyes, relax a little more. . . . And now imagine there is a soft and soothing light that shines all around you, filling the air with comfort and peace. . . . With each breath, you take in this comfort and peace and release some of your pain, . . . becoming more relaxed, . . . more comfortable, . . . and more able to follow along on a journey to holding pain gently in the palm of your hand. . . .
You begin the process of releasing the pain that has seemed so intractable by bringing your awareness into the body where those sensations of pain and discomfort arise, . . . paying attention to what is there, just like a camera takes a picture, without judgment that the pain is wrong or that you haven’t done something right, but simply noticing what is true about your pain and discomfort, . . . noticing perhaps that the pain extends beyond its core into the muscles, tendons and tissues that surround it like a tight binding. But when tension constricts, instead of relieving the pain, it adds to its intensity.
And so, without trying to change the pain itself, in your imagination you can begin to loosen the band of tension that is wound tightly around the pain . . . allowing it to slowly stretch, . . . yield, . . . bend, . . . and become softer. . . . And as the muscles, tendons and tissues give up the tension and discomfort they have been holding so tightly, allow the source of your pain to float freely. . . . Allow the pain to simply be there, without denying its existence or trying to change it . . .
And now, out of the discomfort you may still feel, allow an image to arise of a tightly clenched fist . . . and notice that it is clutching a burden of pain within it. . . . And now imagine that very gently the hand opens and very slowly the fingers are relaxed one by one . . . and then, as it lies at rest, you see a thistle in the middle of the palm, a small thistle with barbs that had been hurting because it was held too tightly. . . . Now that the hand is open, the thistle simply sits there without any problem and you can leave the thistle there or you can choose to blow it away and let the hand lie empty. . . .
And as you imagine your hand lying still and your pain floating freely without constriction, let your body become like the sky and your sensations like clouds that can change shape from moment to moment . . . at first you may imagine that the clouds are rushing across the sky so fast and with such intense screeching fury that you are sure a hurricane is in the making . . . and yet, because weather can change very easily, you might imagine that the dark clouds moving across the sky evolve gradually into rain clouds with an occasional clap of thunder . . . and the rain clouds can change into large white billowy clouds that follow the storm . . . and even they can change, so there are only soft wisps of almost invisible clouds, giving the sky the promise of a clear and beautiful day. . . . Notice that the sky above the clouds is peaceful, even when the clouds below it may look threatening. The sky remains what it is, an observer of what goes on below. . . .
And just as the sky above the clouds does not affect the clouds themselves, but only watches their ever changing shapes, let yourself gently hold the changing sensations of your pain . . . allowing the pain to move freely from one moment to the next, . . . noticing how the pain changes, . . . noticing that in one moment you may experience a hot sensation and at the next a cold biting sting. . . . You may feel a pulsing throb at one moment and at the next a steady pressure. . . . Let yourself experience the changing sensations of the pain that lies freely in your body. . . . And perhaps you may be able to feel the shape and form of the pain, noticing if it is round or square or some other shape . . . and whether it is hard or soft, . . . solid or empty. . . . And notice the way in which the form of the pain sensations change, how in one moment your pain feels large and sharp and unbending, and in the next moment, you experience something smaller and softer and pliable. . . . Your sensations change their character, just as clouds change shape and character. . . . And as you allow the pain to flow freely and to change as it will, you may notice that is not as inflexible and stubborn as it was when it could not be free. . . . It may already seem milder and willing to soften even more, as you observe it without trying to change it. . . .
And as you experience the softening and changing nature of pain, in your imagination create an image to reinforce the way in which you can be aware of your pain and yet not be distressed by it. You may want to imagine that you are the sky and your pain and discomfort are clouds that lie below you . . . and you watch their changing expressions without anger or emotion. . . . Or you may choose to be the ocean, accepting within your currents whatever floats or swims from place to place. . . . Or perhaps you would like to imagine you are a forest animal safe in a comfortable den. The rain or snow may fall and the wind may blow, but you are not affected by them. . . . And as you continue to observe the changing tides of pain and discomfort that move freely within you, choose an image that will allow you to feel peaceful and calm . . . rested and comfortable. . . .
And now, as this exercise comes to a close, you may want to drift off to sleep, looking forward to awakening later refreshed and free from pain. But if you would like to, or need to, be awake now, become aware of the room once more . . . gently stretch your body . . . and open your eyes, slowly returning to a state of wakefulness . . . feeling relaxed and peaceful, continuing to hold your pain as though it is a small thistle lying gently in the palm of your hand.
© Copyright 1997, Arlene Harder, MA, MFT |
