Can There Be Too Much Guidance In Your Guided Meditation Script?

By John M. Allison

When you write a guided meditation script, the whole idea is to guide the recipient through the experience, giving shape and reinforcement to the process. However, this isn't always ideal. Guided meditations can be used for any number of purposes, and you'll have to adjust just how much "guidance" is needed accordingly. For some, you may wish to take them through from beginning to end like a tour guide in a hurry. Other times, you may wish to hand them a map and compass and just act like a lighthouse and reference point for them to use in their exploration.

If your guided meditation script is to impress images of protection and safety upon a child, you don't really need to give them time to wander. While it might be very entertaining, it defeats the purpose. The idea is to produce a feeling of safety and security, and as entertaining and illuminating as side-trips might be, it would be folly to engage in them because the whole point of this guided meditation would be lost. In cases where you're trying to get a point across or reinforce something, you want a constant stream of guidance. Not oppressive, but like the tour guide, you show what there is to see, and keep the party moving. Pause just long enough for it to sink in, and move on.

If your guided meditation script is somewhere in-between the example above and almost free-form exploration, then my suggestion would be to provide a structure, but give them time to experience each stop along the way. Classic examples of this would be a guided meditation experience from mythology, (be it modern or ancient). Another example would be if you are using this meditation as a cleansing experience. Bring their attention to something, let them experience it and/or deal with it, and then move on. Keep it going, but let them explore.

On that note: Your guided meditation script is just that, a script. When a script is to be read for any kind of theater (TV, film, stage, you name it), a director will guide and coach the actors and crew into bringing that script to life. Coming back to the topic of meditation, it is important to remember that the person meditating is top priority. Paying close attention to them is your first concern. If they need more time to process what's going on, let them have it. If they're ready to move on, then go ahead. The guided meditation script is meant to serve, not control. If they actually wind up in distress, then bring them out immediately and help them get their bearings. Remember to have a safe and secure feeling environment to reinforce the sense of well-being.

In cases where they are exploring pretty much on their own, there is still work to do. Here, your observation skills will come in very handy, and you can monitor them and see how things are going. The signs will be subtle, but there. Look for REM movements, and changes in facial expression. Look for muscle twitches and changes in breathing. The guided meditation script here would be rather short and often rather vague, as the exploration is more open. However, you can use the script to point them out where they wish to go during the meditation. Even if it's free-form exploration, you can still use a handy script to guide them in, provide reference, and bring them out again for optimal results.

If you would like to know more about reading a guided meditation script to yourself, without relying on an audio player or another person, please click the link.

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