M.D. Martin L. Rossman - Guided Imagery for Self-Healing

SECOND EDITION

An Essential Resource for Anyone Seeking Wellness

Martin L. Rossman, M.D.

H J K RAMER

N EW W ORLD L IBRARY

Copyright 2000 by Martin L. Rossman

An H J Kramer Book

published in a joint venture with

New World Library

Cover design: Mary Ann Casler
Type design and production: Tona Pearce Myers

All rights reserved. This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part, or transmitted in any form, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review; nor may any part of this book be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or other, without written permission from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Rossman, Martin L.

Guided imagery for self-healing : an essential resource for anyone seeking wellness / Martin L. Rossman.2nd ed.

p. cm.

Earlier ed. published under the title: Healing yourself : a step-by-step program for better health through imagery.
Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 0-915811-88-X

1. Imagery (Psychology)Therapeutic use. 2. Self-care, Health I. Rossman, Martin L. Healing Yourself. II. Title.

RC489.F35 R67 2000

615.851dc

21 00-055924

First Printing, September 2000

ISBN 0-915811-88-X

Printed in Canada on acid-free paper

Distributed to the trade by Publishers Group West

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

C ertain people have played especially important roles in the development of my understanding of imagery and healing. I am eternally indebted to Irving Oyle, D.O., who first showed me the healing power of thoughts and images by working wonders with patients in front of my skeptical eyes. Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D., has made major contributions to this book and my life as a teacher, colleague, guide, and friend. She reminds me without fail that life and healing are journeys of the soul. David Bresler, Ph.D., my partner in developing guided imagery training for health professionals, has taught me a great deal about both imagery and teaching, and has long encouraged me as both friend and colleague to write this book. Tom Yeomans, Ph.D., a master teacher and guide, has helped me to understand the healing process at the deepest personal levels I have been able to explore.

I want to especially thank Ken Pelletier, Ph.D., not just for taking the time from his busy schedule to write the introduction, but for his consistent and generous support of my work through the years. Thanks to my original editors, Harris Dienstfrey and Richard Winslow, for bringing the first edition of this book to life and to Hal and Linda Kramer for their support for this updated version.

I also want to thank some people who have come on the scene since this book was first published. All of the following have generously lent their support to further the missions of the Academy for Guided Imagery and the Imagination Foundation to enable people to use the power of the mind/body connection for healing, growth, and creativity. Thanks to Mike and Elizabeth Sweetow for their timely contributions and generous support; to AGI Board members Carl Hendel, Paula King-Treiber, Rich Berrett, Neil Fink, Peggy van Pelt, Betty Darby, Susan Reynolds and Ron Horn; and Imagination Foundation Board members Jan Maxwell, and newcomer but old friend Paul Rubin for their time, energy, and creativity. Research Director Marilyn Schlitz of the Institute for Noetic Sciences has been kind enough to champion our research and ideas. Obadiah Harris, Director of the Philosophical Research Society in Los Angeles, has inspired us with his wisdom and encouragement. Roy Johnston, Executive Director of the AGI, has been steady at the helm, while Shirley Tatum, Ginger Cohn, and Laura Wiecek have loyally and consistently made it possible for AGI to fulfill its mission. Lynne and Jon Zorn have been generous with their expertise and time to both AGI and the IF. A special thanks to Dean Ornish for taking the precious time to write a new foreword and for understanding and supporting this work like few people have. My love and deep gratitude to my parents, Manuel and Marion Rossman, my brother Howard, and the rest of my family, who have always loved and supported me. And to my beloved wife, Mie, and our daughters, Marisa and Mariel, thank you for making my life a warmer and happier one, and for the love we continue to share.

Finally, I want to thank my patients, who have shared their inner worlds with me, and who have had the courage to engage themselves with the challenge of healing.

M y research in reversing heart disease through lifestyle change has convinced me that learning how the mind, body, and spirit work together is one of the most important things you can do to stimulate healing. Our research has shown that although changing your diet can clearly improve your health, you must first change your mind before you can change your diet. Changing your approach to life, to love, and to relationships can change your health, but first you have to open your mind and heart to having such changes occur. Finding a spiritual path that is right for you will change your life and perhaps your health, but first you may need to cultivate the receptiveness needed by opening and quieting the mind.

Meditative and yogic practices that are thousands of years old teach us to quiet the mind and the body through methods that are highly effective yet gentle and that use attention and imagination more than will to create the changes we desire. It is these methods that my colleague Dr. Marty Rossman will teach you in this classic yet very up-to-date book.

Dr. Rossman is known the world over for his effective methods of teaching people to use imagery for healing themselves and others. For the past five years he has taught at our healing retreats in California, and our participants consistently regard his lectures and demonstrations as high points of the whole life-changing experience.

This book and the tapes that Dr. Rossman has created are fundamental tools for learning to use guided imagery for stimulating your own healing. His instructions are elegantly simple, yet they can lead to profound realizations and activation of the healing abilities inside you. He has a gift for explaining this approach and making it usable for people with widely varying beliefs and life experiences. His professional desire has always been to empower people to participate in their own healing and this book is a brilliant example of his lifes work.