Imaginary Exposure

[sevenroses]

Ever try to conquer SA through imaginary exposure? (Where you close your eyes and just imagine about the feared event.) Maybe it could help if its too hard in real life and it's good for practice. You can even imagine scenarios where you are intentionally making a mistake like trip in front of someone or pay something with the incorrect amount of money, and increasing the risk of disapproval by others and finding out that it really isn't that bad. I guess this could help us handle disapproval in actual feared situations.

 

[agoraphobickatie]

my therapist talked with me about doing some serious imaginary exposure before i started really pushing myself into 'real' exposure.... it didn't really work for me, just because you're supposed to really imagine and make yourself anxious, and i could never make myself be anxious because i was always thinking "well, i'm not doing anything.. i'm just sitting here on my stupid couch" lol.. she even said to go sit in my car and all that jazz, but i guess my imagination sucks or something.... i ended up just jumping right in to the real exposure, lol

 

[IamThisOne]

Tried it. It doesn't help me.

 

[EasySkanking]

Yeah, for people that find it very difficult to do the actual thing, imaginary exposure is very helpful. Did you know that your mind doesn't know the difference between a real event and an imagined one?

It's not the only way that one's imagination is used by the way. Athletes use it to perform better (they imagine every single thing they are going to do before doing it)... it's like practicing... it really helps if you do it right . People use it to work out too... they call it "the mind-body" connection... it helps get better results apparently.

The mind is a powerful thing!

 

[Mr.Moon]

Sometimes it helps sometimes it doesn't.. Like when I was trying to get up the courage to ask out a gal in HS. I spent the entire class period, (about 40 minutes), simply thinking of this and that and telling myself over and over to get up and do it. Then after class I sat there waiting for everyone to leave and asked her. Course I got rejected, but 'eh. Found out she was a whore afterward anyway.

Then most of the time it really don't do anything. I live to far from everything.