Therapy- mindfulness

• What is mindfulness as a therapy?

  Psychological tool to manage anxiety, stress, chronic pain & depression
• What are the aims of mindfulness?

  • Allow people to be in control of their own mind by paying attention to their present thoughts and feelings
  • Enhances a person's positive characteristics --> allows them to become happier individual's
• What are the main components of mindfulness?

  1. Gaining control of thoughts
  2. Meditation and mindful breathing
  3. Informal practices of mindfulness
• What is 'gaining control of thoughts' in mindfulness?

  • Mindfulness --> trains us to focus on present thoughts, emotions & feelings
  • Enables us to avoid thinking about the past (feelings of worry, guilt, remorse) and the future (feelings of worry & anxiousness). These feelings= unnecessary
  • Allows individuals to gain greater awareness & control of negative thoughts that dominate them--> minimise negative thoughts and allow them to alter their response to be more optimistic & cheerful
• What is 'meditation and mindful breathing' in mindfulness?

  • Involves getting the client to sit comfortably , keep their spine straight and focus their attention of their breathing --> paying attention to bodily sensations, thoughts and emotions --> prevents intrusion of negative thoughts
  • Learning through guided instruction and personal practice
• What are the steps to mindfulness meditation?

  1. Sit in a quiet place they won't be disturbed --> position they feel comfortable (e.g. crossed legged on floor, sitting in chair)
  2. Get relaxed --> set timer for 5 minutes, shut their eyes, take a few deep breaths: in through the nose and out through the nose/mouth
  3. Focus on breaths --> e.g. the inflating/deflating of chest, sound of breath --> get rid of their body & body all the stress/toxins
  4. Brings thoughts back to the breath if they start to wander --> acknowledge thoughts, no judge them
  5. Commit to practice daily for 5-10 minutes
• What are 'informal practices of mindfulness' in mindfulness?

  • Mindfulness can be practiced informally in everyday life (e.g. whilst brushing teeth, commuting etc)
  • Informal mindfulness is the opposite of multitasking --> making the mind focus on one single task and the surroundings --> focus the mind away from negative thinking
  • If mind starts to wander, individual should bring attention back to breathing and bodily sensations
• How can informal practices of mindfulness be applied in everyday life (example)?

  Brushing teeth:

  • Be mindful of feet on the floor, and the texture of the soles
  • Be mindful of the appearance, smell, flavour and texture of toothpaste
  • Be mindful of the arm moving from side to side whilst brushing
• What are ways of practising mindfulness?

  • Basic mindfulness meditation: sit quietly, focus on natural breathing or a 'mantra' that is repeated silently. Allow thoughts to come and go without judgement & return to focus on breath/mantra
  • Body sensations: Notice subtle bodily sensations and let them pass without judgement; notice each part of body in succession from head to toe
  • Sensory: Notice sights, sounds, smells, tastes and touches
• State and explain an example of a mindfulness-based programme.

  MBCT (mindfulness-based cognitive therapy):

  • Goal of MBCT: develop consistent awareness of thoughts and reactions so you notice when you're being triggered into negativity & signs of incoming depression
  • Issued by NICE as a treatment for recurring depression --> can reduce the risk of relapse by 43%
  • Combines mindfulness techniques with elements of cognitive psychology to break negative thought patterns
  • Allows people to focus on the present, letting go of negative thoughts
• How can the 'free will' assumption be applied to mindfulness'?

  The key to mindfulness:

  • Becoming consciously aware of, being able to actively respond to, and take control of thoughts, feelings & emotions
  • Promotes self-responsibility for reducing the amount of time focused on negative emotions & thinking --> increases our control over our feelings, which leads to increased happiness and wellbeing
  • Helps people take control of their lives, and not be defined by biological/environmental factors outside of our control
  • Increased happiness= aim of positive psychology
• How can mindfulness be applied to the positive assumption 'the authenticity of goodness and excellence'?

  Mindfulness:

  • Demonstrates that positive human traits are as authentic as negative ones
  • Mindfulness therapy --> indicates people are trying to achieve fulfilment by developing core strengths
  • Mindfulness aims to help people develop signature strengths, such as perseverance, self-determination, gratitude and optimism
  • Focuses on the ability to master new skills --> the enrichment of characteristics leads to happier individuals
• What is an advantage of mindfulness regarding effectiveness?

  There is a growing body of evidence that suggests mindfulness techniques can have positive effects on our mental well-being:

  • Crane et al: For people who have experienced 3+ episodes of depression, MBCT reduces the recurrence rate over 12 months by 40-50% compared with usual care
  • Williams et al: found that MBCT is as effective at reducing the recurrence of depression as antidepressants

  These suggest that MBCT helps with depression, and that they are useful as the most popular therapy.
• What is an advantage of mindfulness regarding effectiveness?

  Mindfulness in schools project- a 9 week course for school students to help them improve concentration and exam skills, deal with exam stress/bullying, and improve overall well-being:

  • This has been demonstrated to have positive outcomes in reducing anxiety & distress, and improving behaviour
  • Evidence --> children who use mindfulness practices more frequently reported higher well-being and lower stress scores

  Suggests that mindfulness has many benefits for helping children, in school and with their overall well-being
• What is a disadvantage of mindfulness regarding effectiveness?

  It does not get to the root cause of a psychological disorder:

  • If mental illness is caused by traumatic childhood memories, faulty thinking or current life stressors, mindfulness is of limited use in addressing these issues
  • Mindfulness --> accept thoughts without judgement, not dwell on them --> this means thoughts could keep reoccurring if left unchecked
  • Mindfulness --> more about coping, not curing
  • Thus, mindfulness is not appropriate for disorders such as PTSD, anxiety, and schizophrenia
• What is an advantage of mindfulness regarding ethics?

  Easily accessible and fairly cheap:

  • Thousands of mindfulness courses around the country costing around £25 per hour
  • Courses allow anyone to be taught the basics of mindfulness and meditation.
  • Can also take place online --> strength for those reluctant to see a traditional psychologist, or does not want to disclose their problems & issues to a stranger --> can be accessed by people who otherwise would not be able to receive support
  • Better than CBT, with long waiting lists, and expensive courses