Calm Place Imagery
What is the ‘calm place’ technique:
‘Calm place’ imagery is a therapeutic technique used in psychotherapy to help you create a mental image of a secure and calming environment. This could be a real location you have visited, such as a beach or forest, or an entirely imaginary setting you have created. The primary purpose of this imagery is to foster feelings of safety and calmness, allowing you to manage emotions more effectively when faced with distressing situations. You will be encouraged to close your eyes if this feels ok to do, and imagine your chosen calm place by engaging all your senses (what you see, hear, smell, feel, and even taste in this environment). The more sensory detail included, the more effective the imagery becomes in creating a sense of presence and safety.
This technique is particularly beneficial for those dealing with trauma as it provides a mental refuge where you can retreat during overwhelming moments. It also helps reduce cortisol levels and gives us a punctuation in the day of emotional regulation.
Steps for developing ‘calm place’:
1: Start by getting comfortable in a quiet place where you won't be disturbed, and take a couple of minutes to focus on your breathing, close your eyes, become aware of any tension in your body, and let that tension go with each out-breath.
2: Imagine a place where you can feel calm, peaceful and safe. It may be a place you've been to before, somewhere you've dreamed about going to, somewhere you've seen a picture of, or just a peaceful place you can create in your mind’s eye.
3: Look around you in that place, notice the colours and shapes. What else do you notice? Look for shadows, reflections, vivid colours, or perhaps there is darkness.
4: Now notice the sounds that are around you, or perhaps the silence. Sounds far away and those nearer to you. Those that are more noticeable, and those that are more subtle.
5: Think about any smells you notice there.
6: Focus on any skin sensations - the earth beneath you or whatever is supporting you in that place, the temperature, any movement of air, anything else you can touch. Notice the pleasant physical sensations in your body whilst you enjoy this calm place. This emotional anchoring helps to counteract feelings of anxiety or panic that may arise in real-life situations.
7: Now whilst you're in your peaceful place, you might choose to give it a name, whether one word or a phrase that you can use to bring that image back, anytime you need to. Your calm place can be revisited at any time, providing a quick method for self-soothing during stressful moments. This aspect is crucial if you struggle with feelings of safety in your daily life due to past trauma.
8: You can choose to linger there a while, just enjoying the peacefulness and serenity. You can leave whenever you want to, just by opening your eyes and being aware of where you are now, and bringing yourself back to alertness in the 'here and now'.
9: It can also be useful to collect small items from your calm place if you’re able to – or things that can evoke the senses, such as; a stone from your calm place to help tie physical anchor, bottle sea water to evoke the smell of your calm place etc.