Pratipaksha Bhavana: (II:33-34) “When disturbed by negative thoughts, opposite [positive] ones should be thought of. This is pratipaksha bhavana.” This is a direct reference to images: you are thinking one way and are now going to consciously picture it being something else in order to change it. (taken from the Healing Relationships manual, p.32)

In initial assessment and intake I will interview her to discover images, colors, textures, scents, objects, and experiences that resonate with her. I will also ask about those which do not resonate to determine what could be triggering in the experience. I will then customize a guided imagery to give her a practical tool to manage anxiety.

The client is a 55-year-old female in overall good health, with no history of serious injury or surgery. Ongoing management of perceived stress and anxiety are her goals in yoga therapy, as well as to establish a regular and supportive asana practice. She is a licensed massage therapist who specializes in MFR (Myofascial Release) as taught by Dr. John Barnes.

I would guide the client through an awareness practice, followed by gentle asana and the extended exhalation pranayama practice. I would then assist her in finding the most comfortable position for deep relaxation. I would utilize the basic yoga nidra script of Integral Yoga to guide the client through tensing and releasing, then incorporate the guided imagery I crafted for her. After guided imagery I would check in, inviting her to share as much or as little as she felt comfortable about her experience. I would then discuss with her sutras 33 and 34 of book 2, pratipaksha bhavana.

I will attach my completed imagery intake with handwritten notes, as well as the her customized guided imagery script to the report.

I incorporated hatha through asana, pranayama, pratyahara, and dharana. The awareness practice, adapted from YCAT, allowed her to focus inward, concentrating on her physical, emotional, and intellectual layers without judgement. Guiding her through joint activation practices allowed her to explore the ranges of motion and movements that felt good, and enjoy the experience without judgement. Exploring extended exhalation for pranayama allowed her to shift into a more parasympathetic and calming response in both her body and mind. Yoga nidra allowed her to intentionally withdraw her senses, choosing how to reengage them during in guided imagery. The main branch was Raja yoga, with a focus on pratipaksha bhavana. The “message” shared by the otter in guided imagery offered her a more encouraging and empowering thought, shifting her perspective from self-doubt and critical self-talk.

We had scheduled the guided imagery intake to be an in-person session, however something come up in her schedule. I offered to meet over the phone, which she appreciated. Midway through the intake her daughter needed help to pick up her car, so I encouraged her to take care of her family and call me back when she felt able finish the conversation - for her, not me. She called back about 30 minutes later, and seemed more calm and present to the process. She offered generous responses to my questions, and prompted me to ask some I had not planned. She seemed to enjoy answering the questions, and even seemed surprised by some of her own responses, as well as excited to receive imagery tailored specifically to her.

While physically tired from her day, the client was excited for our in-person session. Adjusting props to support her yoga nidra posture became a self care exercise for her.

I encouraged her to use the awareness practice as a tool for self-care. She could use an abbreviated version in between massage and MFR clients on a busy day, and explore a more extended practice as part of her morning or evening rituals. I also offered to record the guided imagery so that she could further explore how it could continue to support her healing journey.

Our in-person session went mostly according to plan. The client was both encouraged and challenged by the awareness practice, as she struggles to not judge herself on every layer. The client enjoyed the joint activation practices, and spending time increasing awareness of her own body and reconnecting with her physical layer. Because of her work and knowledge of anatomy and physiology, she tends to offer commentary - and judgment - on her body. I encouraged her to offer herself love and compassion. The client had previous experience with yoga nidra and was able to shift into more relaxed and calm states of both body and mind through it. The client loved her guided imagery. Her overall feedback on the experience was “I feel loved.” She enjoyed both her time “under the tree” as well as her conversation with the otter, who was also a mother.

I had to adapt the planned gentle asana. We met at her home on a Friday evening, following a particularly long day of offering massage. I had planned some gentle asana, progressing from standing to seated to supine, but opted to guide her through joint activation practices learned during the HBED module. This also offered the opportunity to discuss how all movement is nourishing for the body, and to practice letting go of thoughts such as "I should push myself to perform more demanding asana."

A key learning for me was the importance of my word choice to offer a safe space of exploration for the client. She mentioned that, because I specifically scripted “It would be totally safe” for her to walk barefoot , she did, and enjoyed the experience. Crafting guided imagery allows me as a yoga therapist to choose words that will empower the client.

I feel that I would approach it the same way, or at least in a very similar fashion. My preference is to always meet in person when possible, but I discovered conducting the imagery intake over the phone was a very rich experience. Knowing I tend to overextend myself, this was a valuable learning for me on how to still offer support and better focus my time and energy. I would not change offering the imagery to virtual unless there was no other option.

As we were fine-tuning her support for yoga nidra, I would ask her how the positioning of a bolster of folded towel felt. She would respond mostly with "good." I would then ask, "could it be better?" It was a challenge for her to allow herself to want "better" at first. After three times of being asked this question, she would then offer more feedback, such as "I think the support needs to be higher," or "Could I have a little more?" I had not anticipated this process offering so much learning and awareness for the client, and I intend to incorporate it more strategically as an exploration with future client work.

• Guided-Imagery-Colette-Woods.pdf
• Completed-Guided-Imagery-Intake-Form-Healing-Relationships.PDF