Case Example # 2
] Dee is a 55 year old nurse who works many hours and is the sole supporter of her family. She presents at the office with her arms scarred and scabbed severely from her digging and scatching. After discussing the various issues in her life that are “making her itch”, she is guided through a mental imagery exercise (Epstein, 1989) for general relaxation. Several days later, Dee emails the clinician the following (personal communication, with Shafer, 2003) exercise she developed on her own, evolving from the general relaxation exercise she was given in session. Her intention is to stop the itching and heal the wounds on her arms:I sit in a quiet place (if at all possible). I close my eyes gently and take a few deep breaths. During this time, my mind travels to the spleen and watches as red blood cells (rbcs) come out to travel around the body. They travel to the heart and to the lungs and I watch as they pick up oxygen and return to the heart to be sent to all parts of the body. At this time, the rbc’s have also picked up glucose and there are white blood cells and antibodies traveling with them. I view them as they descend through the network of arteries, arterioles, and capillaries and then, they are at the sites that need healing. I like to visualize the right and left sides separately, but if I am tired and start fighting sleep, then I pull my perspective back and watch both sides at the same time. I see the rbc’s leaving oxygen and glucose at the base of the lesions. I see the antibodies surrounding the areas to prevent infection and I see the wbc’s backing up the antibodies.
I then pull my perspective back and gently stroke each arm separately and visualize more blood going to the areas to help them heal. The last thing I do is to take several deep breaths and tell my body that I do not want it to show me evidence of my anger, frustration, or stress. I tell it that there is no need for my body to hurt itself. Then I take three long breaths out and with each exhale I say (imaginally): “With this breath, I breathe out all of my anger, with this breath, I breathe out all of my stress, with this breath I breath out all my frustration.”
Like Sandra, the impact for Dee was immediate. She stopped itching within the week, created her own imagery exercise making her the authority over her healing, and the scabs were healed (without scarring) within one month. The confidence and esteem Dee gained from the creation of her own exercise and the results she achieved from doing the work herself drastically improved her sense of self. Clients gain a sense of mastery and call recall such achievements when future health challenges present senses of doubt, and helplessness.
Summary
As with the beginning of all habits, start with simple relaxation exercises first, perhaps with yourself and other colleagues to gain comfort and familiarity with engaging the imagination and each of the five senses. The mind and the body can interact in many ways to bring about health and illness as is introduced throughout this chapter. At first these interactions may be difficult to understand or see, however practice observing and reading the images provided in the exercises with a deeper appreciation. Experiment with all the possible ways to gain access to the sensory world of the client. For example start listening in a more active way such as listening to music. Or, if the client has trouble imaging, involve the sense of smell or taste or touch, integrate aromatherapy in the practice. Clients may like to write impressions from the work in a journal, record dreams, and utilize the therapist as the teacher or guide in their journey.What may be discovered as the work of mental imagery continues, is that this not only attunes the therapist’s ability to image, but how to expand in this work with clients. While research is a challenge and is highly debated in this work, the evidence based research must continue to further the credibility of this mindbody practice.
