Shut Your Eyes and See Clearly
Why moving your attention from your thinking mind to the quietness that exists between your thoughts can help you receive your heart's wisdom.
Written by Nancy Miller
Travel inward to receive your heart’s wisdom for a healthy life.
What if you could shut your eyes, and when you opened them, clearly see how to transform everyday problems, or even life-changing traumas? “Everyone has the ability to access their inner sanctuary of wisdom by looking at the images their own heart conveys,” says Leslie Davenport, M.S., M.F.C.C., therapist and author of Healing and Transformation Through Self-Guided Imagery (Celestial Arts, 2009). Images are the communication network among mind, body and emotions. For instance, if you picture an upsetting scenario, your physiology reflects it through a cascade of reactions—from adrenalin to muscular tension. The key to “eyes open” self-guided imagery and transformation is to become aware of the images in your mind, release the images that promote stress, and cultivate thoughts that support health and well-being. According to Davenport, “Self-guided imagery is always a perfect fit because the source of guidance is you.” Here, Davenport tells how our hearts can guide us on the path to healthy thoughts and actions.
How can we learn to travel inward to our heart?
Traveling inward involves moving attention from our thinking minds to the quietness that exists between thoughts. Give yourself permission to take time for repose rather than always being on the go. Conscious, full breathing is the easy way to quiet the mind, and you can use it anytime. Every person has within them untapped intuitive wisdom. That place is your inner sanctuary.
What are the steps in the journey to the wisdom of the heart?
Clarify your intentions; what do you need help with? Find a way to quiet your active mind. Discover your inner sanctuary. Bring your question to your heart’s sanctuary. Invite your heart to speak, and allow images to form. Take that image and apply it to your daily life. It is in the application that true growth and change can occur.
As we age, do our heart’s messages change?
Our heart’s messages are always wise and compassionate. Our ability to hear and live our heart’s wise voice often changes as we age.
[Ed. Note: For more information, visit LeslieDavenport.com.]
| Live “As If.” According to Leslie Davenport, there is an antidote for “iffing” our happiness and health away. Add two additional letters and say “as if.” For the next 20 minutes, live as if life is bringing you a gift of good health and happiness. |
More on guided imagery, plus a free MP3 offer:
Is there a way to identify our key issues and clarify our concerns?
Over the course of a week, make a list of the disturbing thoughts that upset you. Rate the emotional intensity of each thought on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the most intense. Identify the three thoughts that come up most often. Write the three thoughts in a single paragraph. Look for a common thread in the three statements, and reduce to a single sentence. Distill the sentence into a short word or phrase. Often by doing an imagery session on the core theme, the relief flows out to the other areas of life.
What is anchoring and how does it get us ready to bring guided imagery into our lives?
An anchor is a link between a state of being and something else, often a person, place, object or sensation. For example, a favorite love song can be an anchor to romantic feelings. Or, if you want to do guided imagery to bring ease into your work life, you can create an anchor to make it easier to reenter a relaxed state. One anchor would be pressing your thumb and forefinger together during imagery when you are feeling deeply relaxed. Then, at work, you can use your hand anchor anytime, letting the hand sensation become a fast track into the relaxed feeling. Anything can be an anchor as long as it is intentional and comfortable for you.
Guided Imagery 101
Guided Imagery is a technique that has been shown to make you feel better, improve your health, cope with depression, change your mood and decrease stress. How do you do it?
Go to a quiet place, relax and breathe deeply, then visualize yourself in various scenarios such as a pleasant place (beach), practicing for a big presentation (and doing well) or fighting disease (see your good cells fight off bad invaders). If you are ill, visualize the spot of pain. Follow the nerve from the spot to the center of your mind. Ask your body (heart) if you can take control of the pain and visualize how that would happen. Once you have visualized these changes, apply your vision to your life.
[Free Stuff] For a free MP3 focused on stress reduction, visit LeslieDavenport.com.
