Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Mindfulness And Psychotherapy

The term "mindfulness" in conjunction with therapy is quite popular in certain circles now. So what does this actually mean? And why is it being associated with psychotherapy?

In its simplest form, mindfulness means, simply, awareness. To be mindful. To be aware. This awareness applies to all aspects of our experience, both internal and external. This would include our thoughts, images, beliefs, desires (our "cognitive" self), our bodily sensations, our feeling states or emotional experience, and our spiritual condition. Body, speech and mind, to use the Buddhist formula: our physical behaviors, what we say out loud, and both our cognitive and spiritual conditions.

Psychotherapy is, in the final analysis, about change. It's about doing things differently, it's about thinking about things differently, and it's about feeling differently than we do at present. It is not about awareness only, or mindfulness only, yet these are considered to be essential before desireable changes can be made. If my behavior is causing distress for example, I'm not likely to be able to change it to something healthier unless and until I have an awareness of what I'm doing, and some idea of what I'd rather be doing. The same holds true for what I'm thinking and feeling, believing and imagining.

Since much of what we think and imagine and believe, and even much of what we do, is out of consciousness, developing new self-awareness - becoming more mindful - is a key to successful therapy. It isn't enough by itself, but it's an essential step.