“Everything you can imagine is real.” – Pablo Picasso
Well, maybe not everything. If that were the case, you could just imagine a passing grade on that upcoming midterm and go have a beer. And if you have seen Picasso’s work, you might wonder about his perception of reality. But still, the man has a point.
Imagination is a powerful tool. Visualization is one way to wield it.
Have you ever reminisced about a good time? Or wished you were somewhere else besides right here? When you do that, you are using your imagination. You can almost see the beach and hear the waves, right? That is a kind of visualization. We all do it. Turning it to our own advantage to improve our lives is just a step beyond simple daydreaming.
Gerald Epstein, M.D., in his book Healing Visualizations, points out quite reasonably that “though Western medicine (and Western science) is reluctant to accept that the mind can alter the body, it already firmly believes the reverse — that the physical can affect the mental — and it regularly utilizes this connection. Tranquilizers, antidepressants and anesthetics are all examples of this.”
He challenges us to consider that the reverse is true as well, that the mind can affect the body, and that we can use the untapped power of our own mental energy to heal ourselves.
Jack Niklaus, arguably the best professional golfer in history, visualizes every shot before he takes it. Other accomplished athletes do the same. Many big league sports teams have special visualization coaches that teach players how to use this technique.
The players imagine the move, the shot, the play as if they were actually doing it. They not only picture what the move would look like, they imagine what their body will feel like as they make the successful play, even to the emotional rush of victory.
Why? Because it works. Rehearsal in the mind leads to success in the game.
“The Secret” of the best selling book by the same name is that if you imagine what you want in life, it will come to you. It is called the Law of Attraction. I happen to believe getting the life you want involves a fair amount of elbow grease as well, but beginning with the mind makes sense.
We create our own reality with our minds, and if you expect health and success you are more likely to experience them than if you expect misery and failure.
Visualization as a technique has entered the medical mainstream. Research supports it, scientists write about it and everyone from actors to yogis to the guy next door practices it. Medically speaking, visualization is a mind-body practice where mental images are used to focus energy on relaxation or healing.
You can use visualization techniques to help you manage stress, pain, addiction and many other health problems. The basic technique is to sit quietly and comfortably, take a few breaths and focus on an image in your mind.
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
For example, you could imagine your pain as a pile of snow and watch it slowly melt. Or you might see your high blood pressure as water through a hose and imagine that you are turning the water down. Maybe your stress is a huge black cloud that, as you observe it in your mind’s eye, is slowly but surely dissipated by sun and wind.
All that snot in your head? A flock of birds that flies off into the sunset. Pick your own picture. Use a still image or turn it into video. It’s your mind, your choice. Harness its power.
To learn more about visualization, read Creative Visualization by Shakti Gawain or Healing Visualizations by Gerald Epstein, or harness the power of the Internet. And now, go take that midterm.
But first, visualize the graded exam with a big red “A” on top. Hey, it’s worth a try.
_Dr. Peggy Spencer is a student-health physician. She is also the co-author of “50 ways to leave your 40s.” Email your questions directly to her at pspencer@unm.edu. All questions will be considered anonymous, and all questioners will remain anonymous.
This column has general health information and cannot replace a trip to a health provider._
