What is Guided Imagery?

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Guided Imagery is a relaxation technique used for people with various mental health concerns, including anxiety disorders, panic disorders, trauma disorders, and substance use issues.

Guided Imagery uses the mind to recall or imagine a pleasant scenario. Some people might refer to it as a person visiting their “happy place” in their mind. The idea is that the individual takes themself, mentally, to a place where they can be calm and at peace.

For people attempting to manage stress, Guided Imagery can be a technique that they engage in when they recognize they are feeling overwhelmed. They can take a few moments, practice some deep breathing, and go to a peaceful place in their mind without physically going anywhere.

People who deal with anxiety may find themselves particularly anxious in a crowded situation. In these moments, their counselor may encourage them to find a safe, quiet place to stay while they breathe and close their eyes. Then, they could engage in Guided Imagery by imagining themselves in a place that isn’t crowded and instead puts them in a state of relaxation.

Therapists Who Specialize in Using Guided Imagery

I am a board certified cardiologist and actively research the relationship of emotional stress and heart disease. I have described this intimate relationship in my book, The 15 Minute Heart Cure. As a practicing cardiologist I see daily examples of how stress negatively impacts our cardiovascular system. I have developed a simple, seven step relaxation exercise that helps elicit the relaxation...
Laura provides individual counseling via a secure virtual online live stream platform only. Online therapy benefits are: no travel time, no chance of running into someone you know in the waiting room, and it can provide access to those who have difficulty making it in to an office. The platform is HIPAA compliant. She can see clients who are in Maryland or Florida. Extensive training and...

Rhea N Anderson

Austin

Texas

My current practice focuses on helping youth age 12 and older, individual adults, and families. While I am eclectic in approach, I primarily utilize techniques & practices drawn from Person Centered Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Mindfulness, Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Solution Focused Brief Therapy, Relaxation Skills, Guided Imagery, and Transpersonal Psychology. Needs...
( English | español ) I am passionate about working with clients and feel honored to supporting them throughout their growth. My goal is to create an environment that is accepting, supportive and understanding. I strive to create a safe and nurturing atmosphere in which individuals can be supported in their efforts to grow as well as become reconnected to their strengths and dreams. I am a chil...
I have a passion for helping adolescents connect with their personal strengths while empowering them with coping skills to overcome their mental health and addiction challenges. My experience entails providing individual and group therapy in community counseling centers, intensive outpatient and partial hospitalization programs, and residential and inpatient hospital settings. In my capacity as...
Via online video sessions at Alchemydoor.com, I invite you to a therapy of self -compassion. Transformation can be disorienting. I offer a nonjudgmental, spacious relationship that can weather the natural ebbs and flows of the seasons of your life, so that when you define your compass and head out on that wide sea, you are not alone. Clarifying your own unique personal path, you gain...
I am an Integrative Mental Health Specialist serving as a bridge between traditional allopathic (Western) medicine and other World Medicines (Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ayurvedic Medicine). As a doctor of Mind-Body Medicine, I specialize in the relationship between emotions, the mind, and physical health. I utilize a holistic, psychodynamic, root-cause perspective focusing on the integration...
I welcome individuals family and couples. As Clients present their issues we can work together and develop a strong therapeutic process that is best for them and set healthy and achievable goals. The key is communication and trust. The client will develop coping skills and tools needed for their specific issues. One of our goals is to see themselves as a valuable individual in any situation tha...
Early exposure to the mental healthcare system taught me that oppression can be as multi-layered and intersectional as the oppressed, and diagnosis will continue to be an act of oppression if it ignores cultural context, societal phobias, and systemic oppression. For a great number, our mental health is a representation of how we survive our social climate. To see things creatively is to see...