A Short History Of Guided Imagery

A guided imagery is a state of calmness, relaxation, and reflection achieved with the help of our imaginary thoughts and directions. It is mainly based on the mind and body concept where you can achieve a relaxed state through your imagination. Such natural and heightened states of consciousness and relaxation would improve and enhance our physical, emotional and the mental states through our positive thinking and suggestions. When we start to use all our senses, our body would seem to respond to our imaginations as if it’s happening in real. For example, if you are imagining that you are sitting in a comfortable place in a garden or beach, your body would automatically be transformed into a relaxed state. This deep thinking process would also aid in improving your heath, attitude as well as your well-being. It would also help you in controlling your anger or emotions by guiding your thought process in a certain direction. The guided imagery could also be used for lowering the blood pressure and also treat stress related disorders. It has been used even used to quit smoking or losing weight! This particular technique has proved effective in eliminating fears of public speaking and calming the nerves of a speaker. People often tend to confuse between hypnosis and the guided imagery, but there is a slight difference between the two. Hypnosis is a process where selective thoughts occur in relation to the body and mind whereas guided imagery is an experience which is more than visual. It uses the imagination with smell, taste and sounds and has a general theme for accomplishing specific goals like losing weight, quitting bad habits, deals with pain, etc. Though these concepts are there for centuries, only recently it has gained popularity. It is a great stress buster and a unique relaxation technique achieved through coordination between the mental and physical processes. This process is also called as “Visualization” and this imagery state strengthens our mind just like exercises strengthen our body. It could create a psychological or a physical state when we start activating our senses or when imagining ourselves in a new environment. It has been proved that such state of imaginations improve the immune system in our body and increases the positive thinking within us and reduces depression. Nowadays, these techniques are widely used for patients to help them prepare for surgeries and relieve the anxiety and stress. This therapy helps in better healing when the individuals connect to their inner resources through their imaginations. The mental images would help the individuals to take a positive control over a stressful situation and also influence their attitude or beliefs towards their recovery. Thus the guided imagery is mainly based on our perceptions and inner thoughts. The primary aim of this technique is to calm down our thoughts and subconscious mind and to control the physical tension. This technique is the right choice if you are planning to make some major changes to your body or mind or if you want to achieve a goal while being at peace with your inner self.