The Power of the Mind

     The practice of using focused mental images and sensory perceptions to affect the health and well being can be traced to the traditional healing arts in both Egypt and India, however Western medicines did not seem to take imagery very seriously until the 1070s when some American doctors began using imagery to support medical treatment for cancer patients.  The results were impressive;  The patients who visualized successful cancer treatment and the ability to return to good health were found more likely to be able to feel better quicker and live longer than those patients who did not "see themselves doing so."  Since then, studies have documented that such body functions as heart rate and blood pressure respond to mental images.  Just as your moth waters when you think of a lemon, or your pulse quickens with the thought of a stressful event, you can also affect other body responses.  Imagery can help you to boost immunity, manage pain and ease stress; these, in turn, can benefit a wide range of health conditions.
     Mental imagery has a profound effect on the hypothalamus in the brain, this is the gland that controls the nervous and endocrine systems.  Since those systems regulate such body functions as blood flow, heart rate, blood pressure, brain waves and the release of chemicals and hormones in the body, mental images can affect all of those functions.  Imagery can help produce a state of calm, decrease pain and enhance immunity.
Imagery can be very eeffective for depression, pain, anxiety, headaches, asthma, skin ailments, immune disorders, high blood pressure, allergies, fatigue, menstrual and menopausal problems and cancers.
     Below are some simple steps for successful imagery:
1.   Set clear goals for yourself.  Break down large goals into small, manageable steps.  Develop ideas and methods to move from one step to the next.
2.   Create a precise image of one of your goals in great detail, as if it has already become a reality.  See yourself basking in the happiness and success of having already realized your dream.
3.   Concentrate on your image.  Set aside 15-20 minutes at least once a day, but try for twice a day to visualize your dream.  Fill it with details, until a mental movie is playing before your eyes every time you think about it.
4.   Engage all of your senses.  To make your imagery even more vivid, ask yourself the following questions;
      A.  What aromas are associated with my goals?
      B.   What are the temperatures and weather?
      C.   What skin and body sensations do I feel?
      D.   What sounds do I hear?
      E.    What flavors do I taste?
      F.    Am I motivated to be happy in these circumstances?
    
It is best to clearly define what you want to change in your life, on both a physical as well as an emotional level.  Then develop some mental images along with sensations, sounds, smells and tastes that will suit or harmonize with those needs. 
     Healing my be defined as a miraculous unfolding of the consciousness for one's being in the world.  When we learn who we are, what and who really matter to us and how to properly express ourselves is when the ultimate healing journey begins.  It is a slow passage and should be a unique journey for each individual.  It can be filled with risk, triumph, danger, and joy which when nurtured will grow into peace, trust, awe, reverence, love and tenderness.  Tapping into the deeper levels of our intelligences we connect with our greateer sense of wholeness/wellness.

HAPPY IMAGING!