The Healing Power of Guided Visualization: A Journey to Shorter Recovery Times
Recovery time following a medical procedure or injury is a vital contributor to health outcomes, with longer recovery times lending to long-term side effects (along with the associated cost of spending more time in the hospital or undergoing physical therapy). However, the recovery process can go by more easily by employing the mind.
Guided visualization, or the active engagement of the mind, can be utilized during recovery to set goals, visualize full recovery, and distract the mind from the pain associated with the recovering injury.
Below, we can see the power of guided visualization in action, whether employed in the hospital, joined with physical therapy, or done on your own at home.
Table of Contents
1. Guided Visualization Promotes a Healing Environment for Patients on Mechanical Ventilation
2. Guided Visualization Reduces Stress and Fatigue in Thyroid Cancer Patients
3. Motor Imagery Increases Muscle Activation
4. Athletes Aid Healing and Increase Mental Toughness with Guided Visualization
5. Guided Visualization Leads To Enhanced Healing, Alongside Other Mental Links
1. Guided Visualization Promotes a Healing Environment for Patients on Mechanical Ventilation
Mechanical ventilation is commonly needed for patients in the intensive care unit to provide their body with enough oxygen, but it can cause symptoms such as pain, agitation, anxiety, and lack of sleep, all of which can hinder the healing process. Sedatives and opioids are commonly used to address these symptoms, but nonpharmacological complementary therapies can be used in their place (or as an adjunct) to lessen the risks associated with the use of sedatives and opioids, one of which is a longer recovery period.
Complementary therapies, such as guided visualization, offer the potential to decrease patient anxiety and promote sleep, which can support a healing environment conducive to improved health outcomes.
2. Guided Visualization Reduces Stress and Fatigue in Thyroid Cancer Patients
The most effective treatment plan for thyroid cancer is thyroidectomy, followed by radioactive iodine treatment and TSH-suppression therapy. However, radioactive iodine treatment, while effective at killing any lingering cancer cells, leaves the patient radioactive for about a week.
Because of this, they must endure isolation to keep themselves at a safe distance from others, including friends, family members, and even medical staff. This isolation can breed feelings of stress and anxiety, which can complicate the patient’s recovery and health outcomes.
A study by Lee et al. explored how guided visualization can help patients undergoing this isolating treatment. The researchers had patients listen to guided imagery CDs once a day for four weeks and saw a significant decrease in stress and fatigue after just three weeks of daily practice.
These findings are notable because they show the potential for guided visualization to improve healing outcomes when you’re going through a specific medical treatment; radioactive iodine therapy.
Considering this is one of the more severe treatments within cancer care because of its isolating and demanding nature, the ability of guided visualization to make the treatment process easier shows the immense potential of this intervention.
3. Motor Imagery Increases Muscle Activation
Motor imagery is a form of guided visualization in which someone mentally visualizes an action but does not perform the movement, such as imagining that you move your hand even though it remains still. While it has previously been used to reduce pain and aid rehabilitation, Lebon et al. show how it can increase muscle activation, equating to an improved recovery period.
Twelve patients with a torn ACL were included in a study and randomly divided into two groups. Both groups received a series of physiotherapy, while one group also underwent motor imagery. The findings showed greater muscle activation in the group undergoing motor imagery, and it is speculated that this occurs because motor imagery redistributes the central neuronal activity.
These findings show the power of the mind in healing physical ailments and how imagining a fully functioning limb or joint can manifest that within reality.
4. Athletes Aid Healing and Increase Mental Toughness with Guided Visualization
With the physical exertion experienced by athletes, they’re more susceptible to injury, but guided imagery can help athletes visualize—and then achieve—their recovery.
Driediger et al. interviewed 10 injured athletes who utilized visualization alongside their physiotherapy to further aid their healing process. The athletes in the study felt as though the imagery offered motivational, cognitive, and healing purposes. Motivationally, guided visualization allowed the athletes to set goals, such as imagining full recovery, and to foster a positive attitude, which is powerful during recovery.
The cognitive purpose of imagery was to learn and properly perform the rehabilitation exercises. Finally, imagery was used to manage pain by practicing dealing with the expected pain, imagining the pain dispersing, and using imagery to block the pain.
The study concluded that positive imagery can enhance the rehabilitation experience and facilitate the recovery rate. With there being no limit to what the mind can imagine, athletes can use their brains, as well as their bodies, to ease their recovery. Not only can this make recovery a smoother process, but it also allows athletes a way to manage the pain and discomfort that often accompanies it.
5. Guided Visualization Leads To Enhanced Healing, Alongside Other Mental Links
Ievleva and Orlick completed an exploratory study to find an explanation for why some athletes heal more quickly than others. Their findings revealed that there may be a mental link to enhanced healing.
The recovery times of the athletes who filled out the survey varied drastically, from 4 weeks to 20. The two injury types included were ankle sprains and knee injuries, and the average recovery time was 9.25 weeks for ankle injuries and 10.58 weeks for knee injuries.
Fast healers were characterized as healing in 5 weeks or less, with 6 participants across both injury types having this short recovery period. The researchers noted that fast healers had a consistently positive attitude to all questions about their recovery and also elaborated more. This is compared to the slow-healing group, who were much more negative overall. As for what helped the fast healers the most, they tended to take personal responsibility for their healing, and one method they employed was visualization.
This research reveals that taking control of the healing process by employing the mind may lend to faster healing or, at the very least, a more pleasant recovery process.
Guided Visualization Promotes Recovery
The studies outlined above show the power of guided visualization when added to a recovery program. By imagining a healed injury, those who are injured can make recovery a reality. Additionally, guided visualization has been shown to make the recovery process more pleasant for patients, encouraging them to keep up with it and increasing their mental toughness.
With the ability to promote relaxation and reduce stress and fatigue, guided visualization can also promote healing, acting as a valuable addition to your recovery plan.
For people recovering from an injury or undergoing intensive treatment, guided visualization can help them relax, improve their well-being, and take control of their recovery.
Read more in our series highlighting recent research on guided visualization’s effect on health and well-being below:
References
Mary Fran Tracy, & Chlan, L. (2011). Nonpharmacological Interventions to Manage Common Symptoms in Patients Receiving Mechanical Ventilation. Critical Care Nurse, 31(3), 19–28. https://doi.org/10.4037/ccn2011653
Mi Hye Lee, Kim, D.-H., & Hak Sun Yu. (2013). The Effect of Guided Imagery on Stress and Fatigue in Patients with Thyroid Cancer Undergoing Radioactive Iodine Therapy. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3857993/
Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2013, 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1155/2013/130324
Lebon, F., Guillot, A., & Collet, C. (2012). Increased muscle activation following motor imagery during the rehabilitation of the anterior cruciate ligament. Applied psychophysiology and biofeedback, 37(1), 45–51. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10484-011-9175-9
Driediger, M., Hall, C., & Callow, N. (2006). Imagery use by injured athletes: a qualitative analysis. Journal of sports sciences, 24(3), 261–271. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640410500128221
Ievleva, L., & Orlick, T. (1991). Mental Links to Enhanced Healing: An Exploratory Study. Sport Psychologist, 5(1), 25–40. https://doi.org/10.1123/tsp.5.1.25
