Introductory Articles by Chris Walsh
Mindfulness In Action Techniques
These techniques are useful for bring mindfulness into the activities of everyday life.Urge Surfing
In action technique for dealing with urges, cravings and addictions.Initial Problems Practising Mindfulness & Solutions
Why Mindfulness Instructors Need Their Own Regular Practice
The "Just Worrying" Labeling Technique
It turns out that worrying is a quite destructive way of avoiding being mindful that feeds on itself. This technique helps break the vicious cycle.The Legend of Nasrudin
This article shows how, hundreds of years ago, the Sufis recognised the difficulties negotiating between the extremes of overly skeptical thinking and magical thinking.
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SOME OF THE BENEFITS OF MINDFULNESS
1. Development of a stronger “Observing Self”
2. It can be applied in a variety of settings
3. We can see thoughts as “Just thinking” without feeding or fighting them .
4. We can see the temporary nature of sensations, feelings and thoughts.
6. More Creative Solutions are then able to emerge spontaneously
7. An Increased Appreciation of Life
Introduction
Mindfulness interventions have been demonstrated to be beneficial for a number of psychological and physical conditions such as chronic pain, depression, anxiety, addictions and personality disorder. (Baer 2003) It has also been shown that after only eight weeks of practice that practitioners have positive changes in the brain function and immune response (Davidson 2003)
Many people notice the benefits of mindfulness in their day to day lives. In fact mindfulness is now being researched as a tool to enhance teachers' abilities. www.cultivatingemotionalbalance.org
Upon reflection (often in psychotherapy) we can notice certain destructive repeating patterns in our lives, but we are usually powerless to change them at this stage. In this article I attempt to describe some of the beneficial effects of mindfulness that help us address this problem
We can see how these beneficial components can operate by considering an example.
e.g. A man getting irrationally angry at his partner when she spends time away with her old girlfriends.
1. Development of a stronger “Observing Self”
Through mindfulness the practitioner becomes less identified with the contents of consciousness. Segal, Williams & Teasdale (2002 p.38, 39) name this process as "decentering". In metaphorical terms it is as if you are watching the stream of consciousness rather than swimming in it and being buffeted by its eddies and currents. As we do this we begin to notice smaller and smaller component patterns. This depends on the capacity to observe ourselves which is strengthened by our mindfulness practice.
The feelings of anxiety, a tightening in the chest with constriction of breathing.
The thoughts : "She is going to leave me" "I always end up alone"
Images of being left in hospital by his parents when he was four years old.
The transition of anxiety into anger with all the accompanying changes in physical sensations and thoughts.
Through this mindful observational process we can identify smaller and more manageable patterns.
2. It can be applied in a variety of settings
Unlike relaxation techniques mindfulness can be developed to the point where it can be practiced in the middle of stressful situations. While being mindful we can still remain alert and respond appropriately to the situation at hand. Normally in these situations we regress to a reactive and unskillful automatic pilot.
So this man can be mindful when a memory of a fight with his partner appears in his mind or even when they are actually fighting.
3. We can see thoughts as “Just thinking” without feeding or fighting them .
So in our example this man may find himself getting angry with his partner despite his best intentions, even though he knows his anger is unjustified and totally out of proportion. So he is trapped in automatic pilot and feel out of control. This happens in one way to all of us from time to time.
When we practice mindfulness of the body or the breath in this situation we are already doing something different. We are bringing awareness into the situation. That simple act weakens the power of automatic pilot (or as they say in Buddhist literature "habitual tendencies") So we see our thoughts as just thinking and our experiences as just experiences without reacting to them.
Sogyal Rinpoche (
4. We can see the temporary nature of sensations, feelings and thoughts.
This allows for the practice described by Allan Marlatt as “Urge Surfing” which he uses as part of “ Relapse Prevention” . Often trying to change things compounds the problems for example when someone tries to get rid of unpleasant feelings by taking substances. Also the internal struggle to put something out of your mind usually results in increased tension and a rebound phenomenon where the avoided thought feeling returns even stronger ( Wenzlaff et al 1991)
5. Mindfulness allows covert desensitization to negative thoughts and feelings to occur spontaneously.
Often we try to distract ourselves from unpleasant thoughts and feelings. This is a form of avoidance. Behavioural theory and research shows that avoidance creates more problems. Mindfulness allows us to stay present to the unpleasant thought or feeling for its natural duration without feeding or repressing it. During mindfulness practice we get countless opportunities to do this until our anxiety and desire to avoid naturally extinguishes. (Breslin 2002)
So in our example, the jealous husband may be able to notice his anxiety with it's associated thoughts and physical sensations without trying to distract himself or without trying to relieve it by controlling his wife's behaviour.
Often we try to distract ourselves from the unpleasant physical sensations by escaping into our thoughts - even worrying thoughts. So staying with the unpleasant physical sensations can be especially important. This does not just apply to the emotion of fear or anxiety. It applies just as much with any other associated emotion. such as shame, anger, sadness or distress. So we replace fear and avoidance of the physical sensations with curiosity about their exact nature -the quality, the temperature, the location, the borders the nature of the sensations, How it changes with inspiration and expiration and how it changes and moves as time passes. In this way the phobia of our own internal responses abates.
6. More Creative Solutions are then able to emerge spontaneously
As the grip of automatic pilot on the mind is relaxed we also become more free to act skillfully. Our unconscious mind can then process information differently and present us with a completely novel and effective response. In Buddhist literature this is called "spontaneously arising wisdom".
In our example the jealous husband may find himself making a joke of his own anxiety rather than flipping into anger. In this way he is able to reconnect to his wife as an adult rather than as the needy child who is overwhelmed by his fear -an action he would have been very unlikely to have constructed and executed successfully through conscious effort. By the time he would have thought of it, the moment for action would have passed.
Although this can sound quite ethereal and mysterious, it can be at least partly explained by modern understandings and research.
Firstly we are more able to access embodied cognition when less absorbed in our mental chatter. Many psychologists are realizing that our thinking does not just occur through manipulation of abstract symbols by the mind. Our thinking is in fact embodied. We feel our thoughts. studies of robotics have shown how disembodied representation is incredibly inefficient To know more about this (Monica Cowart ) click here This shows up in team sports like football when an athlete suddenly does a skilful move that he has never done before in the midst of a high pressure game. Automatic pilot obviously gets in the way of this process. Mindfulness clears the way for it to occur.
This process has also been identified in the Western philosophical tradition of existential phenomenology. The process of mindfulness is very similar to the process of "Phenomenological Reduction" (epoché) where our assumptions about the nature of the world are set aside and novel phenomenological insights emerge with a sense of astonishment. (Fink, Eugen 1970). In the Christian tradition this is often described as "grace" and is associated with the idea of the Holy Spirit.
Secondly we are less vulnerable to the process of mindless emotional contagion. Emotional contagion has now been clarified as unconscious and very subtle synchronization of facial expressions, voices, and postures with others in the immediate environment (Hatfield, Cacioppo and Rapson 1993; Hsee, C.K., Hatfield, E., and Chemtob, C. 1992). This can be very enjoyable when we are sharing positive emotions. However it can also mean we feed off each other's shame, anger, fear or depression.
There is also now been identified a neurological process that supports this mutual imitation. Mammals including humans have a system of "mirror neurons" These fire both when we perform a particular action and when we perceive someone else perform that same action. (Rizzolatti,, G., Fogassi, L., Gallese, V. 2001).
The Emotional Contagion Scale ( Doherty 1997) has been recently developed and validated to assist further research in this area.
Mindfulness allows us to stay present to the other person without being caught up in destructive emotions. This also frees us to respond in a wiser way.
Often this spontaneously arising wisdom manifests in a very simple and subtle way. We just stay present to the situation and our breath without zoning out. Instead of acting in our habitual unskillful way we simply stay still and silent. Often this very humble act can interrupt escalation of destructive emotions by dampening emotional contagion. In this way it can create a very positive outcome for all concerned.
7 An Increased Appreciation of Life
A person with high base-line attentiveness finds, in general, all life activities to be more fulfilling. Intrinsically pleasant experiences (food, music, sexuality, etc.) are vastly more intense and satisfying simply because one is more fully "in the moment." Furthermore, ordinary, banal experiences (washing dishes, driving to work, social conversation, etc.) take on a quality of extraordinary vibrancy and fascination. Boredom becomes a thing of the past.
Dealing with pain from illness or injury becomes a major issue for most people sometime in their lives. Indeed for millions of chronic pain victims, it is the issue of every moment of their lives. When analgesics and medical treatment cannot mitigate the pain, what option is left? Must one be subject to meaningless, abject suffering? Absolutely not. It has been clinically demonstrated that in states of sufficiently high concentration, pain, even very acute pain, can be dissolved into a kind of moving energy. This greatly diminishes ones suffering in the moment.
More importantly, when one learns to experience pain in this way, one actually gets a sense of being empowered and even nurtured by it. Thus, meditation skills provide not merely a mode of pain management, but allow one to experience pain as deeply meaningful in the sense of contributing to personal growth and empowerment.
Emotional Pain, Compulsions and Addictions
What is true for physical pain is also true for emotional pain such as fear, grief, anger, jealousy, shame, etc.
Using mindfulness skills, one can clearly detect and discriminate the mental images, internal words and body sensations that constitute the negative emotion as they arise moment by moment. By "deconstructing" the emotion in this way, one becomes less caught up while at the same time allowing the emotion to flow without suppression.
The same skills can be applied to overcoming negative habits and compulsive behaviors such as alcohol, tobacco and drug abuse, eating disorders and so forth, "staying with" the unwholesome urge until it weakens and passes.
Furthermore, the mindfulness itself produces a kind of "intrinsic high" which can replace the unhealthy high of substance and alcohol addiction.
1. States of high attentiveness and deep relaxation involve not only the mind but also affect the body and therefore impact one's health. Brain alpha waves increase, skin conductivity decreases and the metabolism becomes more efficient.
2. Mindfulness helps people be more in contact with and hence more responsive to their bodies.
3. Heightened attentiveness also greatly increases the "high" associated with running and other forms of health-promoting exercises, thus making exercise easier and more appealing.
4. There is improved functioning of the immune system in regular mindfulness practitioners. Davidson (2003) et al have shown an increased response of antibodies to flu vaccination in people who have been practising mindfulness regularly for eight weeks.
5. The same study showed an increase of blood flow to the left frontal cortex of the brain in these mindfulness practitioners after the 8 week course. This change is associated with increased optimism and sense of well being.
References
Baer, Ruth A. (2003) Mindfulness training as a clinical intervention: A conceptual and empirical review. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 10(2), 125-143.
Breslin, F. C., Zack, M., & Mcmain, S. (2002) An information-processing analysis of mindfulness: Implications for relapse prevention in the treatment of substance abuse. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 9(3), 275-299.
Cowart, Monica Embodied Cognition [Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy]
Davidson, Richard J., Kabat-Zinn, Jon, et al. (2003). Alterations in brain and immune function produced by mindfulness meditation. Psychosomatic Medicine, 65, 564-570.
Doherty, R.W. (1997). The Emotional Contagion Scale: A measure of individual differences. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 21:131-154.
Fink, Eugen (1970). “The Phenomenological Philosophy of Edmund Husserl and Contemporary Criticism.” In The Phenomenology of Husserl, 73-147. Chicago: Quadrangle Books, .
Hatfield, Elaine, Cacioppo, J.T. & Rapson, R.L.(1993) Emotional Contagion. Cambridge: CUP.
Hsee, C.K., Hatfield, E., and Chemtob, C. (1992). Assessments of the emotional states of others - conscious judgments versus emotional contagion. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 11:119-128.
Rizzolatti,, G., Fogassi, L., Gallese, V. (2001). Neurophysiological mechanisms underlying the understanding and imitation of action. Nature Reviews /Neuroscience, 2, 661-670.
Sogyal Rinpoche (1992) The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying. Sydney: Random House
Wenzlaff D., Wegnerd.M., & Klein S.B. (1991) The role of thought suppression in the bonding of thought and mood. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 60, 500-508
Dr Christopher Walsh
806 Lygon St
North Carlton
Victoria 3054
Ph: 03 9347 4300
Fax: 03 9347 4355
Send email to: info@cwalsh.com.au
Mindfulness In Individual Cognitive Therapy
Taking advantage of the recent acceptance of mindfulness meditation by cognitive therapists, Chris presented this paper to the 28th National Conference for the Australian Association for Cognitive and Behavioural Therapy in April 2005.
Dr Chris Walsh: 806 Lygon St, North Carlton, Vic, 3054, Australia
Phone:+61 (0)3 9347 4300 Fax: +61 (0)3 9347 4355
E-mail: info@cwalsh.com.au
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