Your mind is a powerful tool for physical, mental, and emotional health and well-being. Let me share a client story with you to illustrate this. A woman that we will call Sharon, came to see me because she had lost all motivation to do anything at home. The dishes had piled up, she was cooking very little and lost interest in house and garden work. She said her house was very cluttered now. It was a struggle to get up, get ready, and go to work. She normally enjoyed her work but no more.
I started by testing her for oils that were stimulating and could help with emotions of depression, lack of motivation, and lethargy. I made a 3 oil blend she liked and instructed her to use it 4 times a day.
We then did an ideal self-guided imagery. She imagined herself doing all the things she desired but was unable to in the present. I assisted her to feel that in her body and talk with her ideal self. She came up with a plan to begin moving forward in her life. She agreed to meet with her ideal self once a week. I made a guided audio for her to use at home.
When I saw her 2weeks later she had made some progress on household chores and felt more energetic. We did a different guided imagery so she could amplify the positive feelings and tap into her inner strengths. She felt very energized and empowered by this experience.
When I saw her 3 weeks later she said she felt like her old self. She had energy, had cleaned her house, and started to work in the garden again. She had also started another project about her family history.
Imagery is the language of our subconscious mind, emotions, and autonomic nervous system. It is thinking with our senses of sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell. It is our creative self. Imagery allows your mind to be active yet calm and you can access your inner wisdom, shift your mood, build personal strengths to help you cope with worry, stress, or other life situations that arise. Imagery is dialoguing with different parts of our self.
Unfortunately, imagination is also the source of most of our worry and stress if we let it get out of control. When we think of all the bad things that might happen, our mind and body react as if it has happened. The good news is we can use our imagination to make new brain pathways to replace worry and stress with calmness, creativity, and curiosity.
Guided imagery benefits include:
- Decreases physical pain
- Decreases stress & anxiety
- Aids in problem-solving
- Manages emotions of depression, sadness, anger
- Improves performance (athletic, theatrical)
- Assists in making lifestyle changes
When I work with clients 1:1 in-person or distance, I do interactive imagery which takes the person deeper into the image. I ask questions of the person so all of the senses are involved. I have you ask questions of the image and can get information that may not have been received when doing a recorded version.
If you are curious to learn more or would like to schedule an appointment to experience guided imagery please contact me.
laurie@mindandbodymethod.com