Published 9th September, 2023, Anxiety, Depression and CBT

Good Morning, Afternoon, Evening, where ever you are in the world as we speak, Welcome to The Takeover Strategy Blog, Welcome, Welcome, Welcome

Mindfulness in Counselling

Mindfulness is an ancient art that has existed for as long as humanity. When you see a still, self-contained, and highly spiritual person, they are likely to have achieved the ability to practice mindfulness regularly.
Acting without thought, being on auto-pilot, or drifting from one situation to another without having any depth of mind or awareness of self is mindless living.

Symptoms of Mindless Living

Over-Eating

Losing control in one or more areas of life

Anxiety

Depression

A feeling of lack of control

Anger

Sadness

Feeling Isolated

Feeling that you are missing out on something better

Wanting more or believing that the "grass is greener" elsewhere

Relying on drugs or prescription medication to get through the day

A reliance on alcohol

An inability to relax and enjoy the moment

Worry

Complaining

Irritation with yourself and others

Feeling rushed and unable to concentrate

Most people are running through life, not paying attention to anything other than the next thing they must do. Mindlessness has become standard in our society; we have learned that there must always be something more, something else, or something better from the day we were born. It's not simply a case that we are mindful or mindless.
People, in general, are usually on a scale; some areas of their lives are entered with mindful awareness, others with a complete lack of thought control. A loving parent, for instance, may raise their child with affection and mindful guidance, without even being aware that they are practicing almost perfect mindfulness in this area of their life, yet have no control over their own self-image diet or other relationships.
There are many benefits to nurturing a new habit of mindfulness. Not least, there is a complete change in the approach to food and eating habits.
Many professional organizations embrace mindfulness as the first step to regaining control over the mind and damaging negative thoughts. Here are what the experts say about mindful living:
"Professor Emeritus Jon Katrat-Zinn, founder and former director of the Stress Reduction Clinic at the University of Massachusetts Medical Centre, helped to bring the practice of mindfulness meditation into mainstream medicine and demonstrated that practicing mindfulness can bring improvements in both physical and psychological symptoms as well as positive changes in health attitudes and behaviors.

Mindfulness improves physical health

Help Relieve Stress

Treat Heart Disease

Lower Blood Pressure

Reduce Chronic Pain

Improve Sleep 

Alleviate gastrointestinal difficulties

Mindfulness improves mental health

In recent years, psychotherapists have turned to mindfulness meditation as an important element in the treatment of a number of problems, including:

Depression

Substance Abuse

Eating Disorders

Couples' Conflicts

Anxiety Disorders

Obessive-compulsive disorder

Some Experts believe that mindfulness works, in part, by helping people to accept their experiences - including painful emotions - rather than react to them with aversion and avoidance.
Combining mindfulness meditation with psychotherapy, primarily cognitive behavioral therapy, has become increasingly common. This development makes good sense since both meditation and cognitive behavioral therapy share the goal of helping people gain perspective on irrational, maladaptive, and self-defeating thoughts.
"Mindfulness can dramatically reduce pain and the emotional reaction to it. Recent trials suggest that average pain "unpleasantness" levels can be reduced by 57 percent, while accomplished meditators report up to 93 percent reductions.
Clinical trials show that mindfulness improves mood and quality of life in chronic pain conditions such as fibromyalgia and lower-back pain, chronic functional disorders such as IBS, and challenging medical illnesses like multiple sclerosis and cancer.
Mindfulness improves working memory, creativity, attention span, and reaction speeds. It also enhances mental and physical stamina and resilience.
Mindfulness is at least as suitable as drugs or counseling for treating clinical Cognitive Therapy (MBCT). It is now one of the preferred treatments recommended by the UK's National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence.
Mindfulness reduces addictive and self-destructive behavior. These include the abuse of illegal and prescription drugs and excessive alcohol intake.
Mindfulness may reduce aging at the cellular level by promoting chromosomal health and resilience.
Meditation and mindfulness improve control of blood sugar in type 2 diabetes.
Meditation improves heart and circulatory health by reducing blood pressure and lowering the risk of hypertension. Mindfulness reduces the chances of developing and dying from cardiovascular disease and decreases its severity should it arise.

I suggest booking a call if you are looking for therapy on this. It's a free and confidential call for 15 minutes, and you don't have to book with us after this call; it's totally up to you. We map out a strategy for you, and you can then go away and have a think, as this isn't a sprint to the finish line. This is a journey that you need to be prepared for.

Comments