Research Into Guided Imagery for Healing

Guided imagery is an alternative healing practice that has shown an exceptional capability to heal and to prevent a wide variety of illnesses. Extensive research into its effectiveness has been conducted on adults and children with impressive evidence as to the mind's ability to heal itself and the body.

History

• Guided Imagery (GI) is a psychotherapy that began to gain momentum and acceptance in the 1960s. However, well before that, leading physicians such as Sigmund Freud began to nurture the concept that healing could take place via imagery in the mind. In his groundbreaking paper "The Ego and the Id," first published in 1923, Freud stated, "it is possible for thought-processes to become conscious through a reversion to visual residues. In many people, this seems to be a favorite method; thinking in pictures."

  In 1969, German psychiatrist Hanscarl Leuner presented his research on GI through lectures at Princeton University and publication in the American Journal of Psychotherapy. Leuner is considered to be one of the fathers of modern guided imagery.

Types

• Guided Imagery is a catch-all term that may refer to a wide variety of techniques including visualization and suggestion using imagery, game-playing and fantasy exploration, story-telling and metaphors, drawing and dream interpretation. In his 1969 paper "Guided Affective Imagery: A Method of Intensive Psychotherapy," Hanscarl Leuner suggested that patients begin by lying on a couch and visualizing a peaceful setting such as a meadow. The idea is for a therapist to slowly move the patient into a relaxed state of "quasi-reality" where the individual experiences a meditative, altered consciousness

Research

• A large amount of study continues today, as respected physicians delve into the healing properties of guided imagery. Nearly every illness, mental and physical, in adult or child, from cancer to depression, has seen significant guided imagery research.

  Research from the College of Nursing at the University of Akron states, "Guided imagery is an effective intervention for enhancing comfort of women undergoing radiation therapy for early stage breast cancer."

  A University of Florida study titled " Effects of Guided Imagery in Patients with Chronic Bronchitis and Emphysema" says, "Results showed that the intervention of guided imagery significantly improved subjects' perceived quality of life."

  A report from the Inova Heart Center in Falls Church, Virginia, explains, "Clinical research has demonstrated that guided imagery, a simple form of relaxation, can reduce preoperative anxiety and postoperative pain among patients undergoing surgical procedures. Patients who completed the guided imagery program had a shorter average length of stay, a decrease in average direct pharmacy costs, and a decrease in average direct pain medication costs while maintaining high overall patient satisfaction with the care and treatment provided."

Children

• In a 1996 paper in the Journal of Developmental Behavioral Pediatrics titled "The Effects of Hypnosis/Guided Imagery on the Postoperative Course of Children," researchers state, "Hypnosis, guided imagery, and relaxation have been shown to improve the postoperative course of adult surgical patients. Children have successfully used hypnosis/guided imagery to significantly reduce the pain associated with invasive procedures and to improve selected medical conditions. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of hypnosis/guided imagery on the postoperative course of pediatric surgical patients."

Self-Guidance

• Clinical applications of guided imagery are extremely broad and encompass all disciplines of medical care. While it's advisable to seek a qualified practitioner of guided imagery for assistance with moderate to severe illness, it's also possible to utilize GI techniques on your own for less extreme medical problems. A wide variety of self-help courses, books, CDs and DVDs are available for those who wish to reduce stress and pain while improving overall health and vitality.