Stress Management: Mental Imaging

What is mental imaging?

Mental imaging is a way to quiet your body and calm your mind. Mental imaging involves picturing yourself in a calm place and letting your muscles relax. It uses mental exercises that create feelings of warmth and relaxation in your muscles.

It helps in several ways:

• It can help you deal with stress and the pressures of everyday life by helping you to relax. The more you practice mental imaging, the less stress you will feel. It can also help you sleep better and improve your mood.
• It can take your mind off what is bothering you and decrease anxiety.
• Mental imaging can help improve your physical health. It can help with pain, blood pressure, heart disease, and lung problems.

This relaxation method is also called guided imagery.

How do I do this exercise?

1. Sit in a comfortable chair or lie down in a quiet room. Close your eyes.
2. Breathe in slowly and deeply and picture waves on a beach. As you breathe in, imagine the waves coming toward shore. As you breathe out, picture them moving away from the shore.
3. Imagine the sun shining on you. Focus on your different muscle groups one at a time. Visualize the sun warming the area and feel your muscles relax. While you visualize and feel the muscles relax, say to yourself, for example: "My forehead and scalp feel warm, loose, and relaxed." Do the exercise for each of the following muscle groups:
   • Forehead and scalp
   • Eyes
   • Face and jaws
   • Neck
   • Right arm
   • Left arm
   • Back
   • Chest
   • Stomach
   • Buttocks and thighs
   • Right leg
   • Left leg

Do these exercises twice a day. Each session should last 5 to 10 minutes.

Learning mental imaging takes practice. You may find it helpful to learn from an instructor, take a class, or check online for videos or audio downloads.