“Where can I find a safe place?”

“How do I get away from these heavy emotions?”

“How does a safe place work?”

The theater of the mind can be a powerful place.

For example, read the following, then close your eyes and think about the material.  See how vivid a picture you mind can paint!

Get comfortable in your spot.  Take a few deep breaths.

Now, take a moment to envision a beach.  You feel the warmth of the sun on your skin.  You can smell sun lotion. As you look around you, you spot two children building something out of the sand.  You can’t quite make it out, but it looks like they are digging an enormous hole. You glance downward and see a coconut filled with a green liquid.  

The coconut is cool to the touch.  You taste a balance of sweet and lime in your mouth.  You hear the dull roar of water rushing in and then back out again as the waves come and go.

Do you see it?  Our minds can build a picture that feels almost real just using this narrative.  This is so powerful that when we watch movie adaptions of our favorite books; the actors may look VERY DIFFERENT from what we had pictured in our imaginations.

So, how do we make this space?  Can we make a space that is safe, pleasant, and available whenever we need it?  I think so!

Think of a spot (real or imagined) that feels COMPLETELY safe.

This space is all yours!  So make sure it is safe, healing, and comfortable for you.  This might be an actual place you have been (a relative’s living room, a forest, a beach) or possibly something that you’ve never seen with your own eyes (being in a spaceship, living underneath the sea as a fish, being a bird in a nest, etc.)

Get comfortable

Take a few deep breaths to get you into a creative mood

Now build it with your senses

Remember how we stayed mindful in the moment with the senses?  Time to call up these skills again.

• What does the place smell like?  This is especially powerful, so choose carefully.  Does it smell like flowers? Clean? Lavender? The moisture of the woods?

• Really envision what smelling that smell is like.. Picture yourself inhaling that type of air.

• What does it sound like?  Is it loud? Quiet? Completely silent?  Think about actually hearing those sounds or lack thereof.

• What does it look like?  Is anyone there? Are you alone?  Are there animals there? Furniture?  What general color is the place? Are the colors ‘warm’ or ‘cool’?

• What does it feel like?  Are you wearing clothes? What do they feel like?  Are you sitting, standing, lying down? What does that feel like on your skin?  What temperature is the air around you? Warm? Cool? Hot? Cold?

• Do you taste anything?  Sea spray in the air? A strawberry-rhubarb pie your grandparent just made you (I’m particular to this picture in my safe place!)

With just a few minutes; you can build a place that you can ALWAYS go if things get stressful or anxiety provoking.  This place will exist EXACTLY as you wish it and as SECURE as you wish it to visit ANYTIME you want!

If you find yourself visiting this place for over 15 minutes at a time, then maybe consider what it is around you or in your life that causes you to go there as often.  Maybe something around you needs to be changed or accepted to reduce stress and anxiety?

Good luck and enjoy your new safe space!

To the powerful theater of the mind,

Chris