Warning:  The Dial Technique may sound a little strange when I describe it.  I thought so too when I first heard about it, but after using it for myself (darn migraines) and with many of my clients, I can honestly tell you that it can help you manage cravings, moods, and even pain.  It’s easy to do and you can use it anywhere.  All you need is your imagination and a willing attitude.

Decide on the emotional or physical state you would like to dial up or down.  Perhaps you’d like to feel less anxious about an interview, for example.  Take a few moments and really focus on it. What does your anxiety feel like?  Where do you feel it?  Is there a knot in your stomach, are your muscles tense, does your head feel like its throbbing?  What thoughts are you having?  Are you thinking about how your mind will go blank or worrying you will say something ridiculous?  And what behaviors are you doing?  Is your leg shaking, are you breathing rapidly, is your heart racing?  Become aware of all of your senses connected to the state you want to change.  Now, imagine a dial with the numbers 1 through 10 written on it, like the volume knob on a radio.  Think of the dial being in control of the intensity of the state you are aware of.   Now turn the dial up.

Yes, the first step is to turn the dial up to increase the intensity of the anxiety.  As you turn it up a few numbers, see how much you can increase your experience.  See how far you can go to make your anxiety match the number on the dial.  Tighten the knot in your stomach, let your leg shake, and mind race.  Feel your heart pound and breathing become more rapid.  Now go another small turn of the dial up.  See how high you can go in your anxious experience.  Notice all that goes along with it.  Hold it at this number for a minute or two as best as you can tolerate.  Now, turn it down.  Turn the dial to a lower number and let your anxiety drop.  Feel the relief as you begin to let go and relax a little bit.  Is your stomach settling a bit?  Is your breathing slowing down and heart rate dropping?  Focus your attention on reducing the experience of anxiety in all the ways that you can.  Once you feel this, turn the dial down just a little more.  Focus your attention once again on reducing your experience of anxiety as fully as possible.  Now, play with your dial.  Turn it up, then turn it down.  Practice your ability to have your experience match the number on the dial.  Over time, if you keep practicing, you can become better and better at it.  In doing so, you have given yourself a control knob to manage your anxiety no matter where you are.

I first learned the Dial Technique a long time ago when I studied hypnosis.  It has recently come back into fashion with the focus on mindfulness in mind/body medicine.  The point of the technique is for you to become as aware of your sensations as possible, and to realize that you have the power to alter them.  It is a mini biofeedback session you can do with yourself.  You first turn it up as a way of really emphasizing what is going on related to your emotional or physical state and to see that you can affect it if you try.  Turning it up is a much easier place to start.  Once you realize that you can turn it up,  you then have the tool to turn it down as well.

This technique can be used for quite a broad range of experiences.  It has been used successfully with depression, anxiety and panic disorder, headaches, back pain, and even stress and anger management.  I use it in my quit smoking class to help people lower the intensity of their cravings. You can also use it to highlight feelings of joy or contentment, even excitement or love.  Whatever you personally decide to dial up or down, you’ll find it gets easier with practice.   The more you can use it when you are feeling relatively okay, the greater the range of intensity you will be able to master. And while it’s not a miracle cure that can take away all of your discomfort, it is a nice little technique to help you cope a little bit better.  So, the next time you don’t like what you’re feeling…try turning that dial!