The Time Line

[Michelle]

Here's something I found and used on my clients the other day at the end of my class whilst I was getting them to cool down. It aims to motivate them to focus on the consequences of their current habits. Going beyond simple creative imagery and visualisation, this technique requires the client to focus on using all five of their senses - sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell. They said it made them think, so I thought I would share with those of you on this forum who are really into the mind/body connection like me:

Visualise your time line by pointing to your past and your future in the space around you. Place this line in front of you so that you can look on from an observer's position. Create a 'picture' of the person you are now and see yourself at the appropriate place in your time line. Still in the observer position, look back on the time line to five years ago and picture yourself as you were then - notice physical, social, intellectual, emotional and spiritual aspects that made you 'you'. Now look down the time line to see the person you will become if you continue on your currnet path without making any changes. Are you happy with the future 'you'.? No? then remodel that future self into the ideal of who you want to be.
Now setp onto your time line to the position where you see your current day self , and move to the future five years from now, and step into your 'ideal' self, experience being that person. Focus on sensory acuity once more, think about how you feel, what you see, hear, taste and smell.
By shifting your focus from a negative to a positive for your future self, you are able to 'experience' meeting your goals before you even get there. Focusing on what you don't want usually only resulsts on you getting more of it, whereas focusing on a clear idea of what you do want helps you to move towards that goal.

Remove unwanted behaviours and achieve positive outcomes!

In health
Michelle (UK Spinning Team) :D

[Raptor]

Nice thought, I'm sure it works great for many.

But what about our other senses? Why don't they tell us about them in elementary school?

You know where your left foot is, thanks to your sense of proprioception. This whether you're typing at the desk or playing basketball.

You know where the bagel you're eating (uh, you are eating one aren't you? but I digress) whether you look at it or not. I don't know whether that's considered more proprioception or a different spatial sense.

And at least some of us have a sense of the passage of time, which connects this post very loosely with yours. But take away the cues we get from the world around us, and our sense of time starts slipping. I wonder what value a subtle sense of one's own body rhythms (especially heartbeat) does for those who've been isolated, either in a lab, a prison or being the victim in a rescue situation.

Lynn