Sleep Tonight?
Using Imagery to Create a Soothing Blanket of Sleep
by Charlotte Reznick
It’s the end of the day. You’re tired. You’ve worked hard. The children have finally gone to bed. You’re looking forward to some peace and quiet by yourself. All of a sudden you hear the cries of your normally loving youngster: “I can’t sleep!” Or, your teen charges into the room and insists that he can’t fall asleep because he’s worrying about an exam the next day – or is fretting about a recent argument with her best friend – or a problem with her teacher. Wouldn’t you like them to learn a technique to help let go of worries and tensions of the day and fall asleep peacefully and easily?
Guided imagery has been an especially effective tool in alleviating many kinds of sleep disturbances. When children and adolescents have difficulty sleeping at night, imagery can offer a soothing and comforting way to drift off into dreams. Children discover their own solutions by using tools such as meeting a wise ‘animal’ friend for advice or receiving a special gift to help fall asleep.
For example, one 11-year-old girl was afraid to sleep alone in the aftermath of the recent L.A. fires. Jenny* had been sleeping in her parents room since the quake. We went on an underwater voyage to explore her feelings and she was met by a wise mermaid who had several messages for her: “You are safe”; “You are just as safe in your room as in your parents'”; “Nothing can hurt you”; and “You can be calm.” These internal messages were much more powerful than if she heard the same advice from her parent or therapist. The mermaid promised to watch over and protect her. After this session Jenny began to sleep in her own room.
Jenny then developed a fear that someone “bad” was going to come into her room if she slept alone; however, she was able to go inside and ask what could protect her if she slept in her own room. Jenny pictured a “magic purple light” around her door that would keep out any harmful or scary people and only allow in friendly and helpful ones. Sleeping alone then became much easier.
You may choose to consider some of these techniques and adapt them to your children’s personal needs. The following meditative journey is very effective for deep sleep. The teen that this imagery was developed for had difficulty falling and staying asleep because of ongoing stresses of school achievement and peer pressure in his life. He found that listening to this imagery each night helped tremendously. You will notice the images are simple and repetitive. It is helpful to use a very slow voice with relaxing, soft music in the background. You can create a recording for your children or have them make one in their own voice.
