MINDFULNESS-based therapy

WHAT IS MINDFULNESS? +

Mindfulness refers to a wide range of practices that anchor us to the present moment. This can be as simple as following our breath, becoming aware of subtle body sensations, or paying deep attention to the physical details of the world around us.

By asking us to pay attention to the physical, mindfulness in fact helps with the emotional by taking us out of our heads. This releases us from the grip of negative thinking, allows us to observe - rather than be consumed - by our emotions, and opens us up to the choices we have moment to moment. This in turn leads to more calm, clarity and perspective.

What is Mindfulness-Based Therapy? +

Aside from practicing certain techniques, mindfulness-based therapy is a way of being with you in the room, one that pays deep attention to what is happening in this very moment, and holds you with kindness, curiosity, and non-judgment.

Mindfulness-based therapy also embraces not-knowing, letting go of what we think we know, so that we can open up to the incredible information and wisdom that our bodies hold.

My training and skill as a therapist guide me in this process. I am attuned to multiple layers of our experience in the room and use the questions and content that arise in our work to inform me of when to pause and invite you to explore with mindful presence and attention.

A mindfulness approach takes the therapy deeper, and vice versa - the emotional awareness that develops in therapy deepens the self-inquiry of one’s mindfulness practice.

How can mindfulness-based therapy help me? +

Mindfulness-based therapy can help you:

• Feel more content and “at home” with yourself
• Regulate your emotions, and soothe yourself
• Feel more compassion for yourself and others
• Find more clarity and perspective around issues
• Feel more connected to your partner, friends, and family
• Feel in tune with your body and emotions, and take better care of yourself

What training do you have in mindfulness? +

When I was in grad school I pursued two paths rooted in mindfulness. One was a thesis project studying how mindful presence facilitated and enhanced creativity. The other was training in DBT, a type of therapy built around mindfulness skills.

Over the past 15 years I’ve deepened my practice and explored various types of meditation including Insight Meditation / Vipassana, Loving-kindness practice, Yoga Nidra, and Zen Buddhism. My teachers in these practices include Dina Amersterdam, Tara Brach, Jack Kornfield, and Lawson Sachter.

What mindfulness techniques do you use in a therapy session? +

Here’s what mindfulness in a therapy session might look like:

• Grounding: Feet on the floor, body scans, attention to the outlines of your body as you sit on the couch.

• Resourcing: Guided meditations focused on balance, safety, sense of purpose, comfort, warmth, and loving attention. You might bring a hand to the heart or belly to offer support, or cultivate protective visualizations.

• Staying with a wave of emotion: Noting how it feels physically and emotionally.

• Training the mind: Bringing attention to the breath, observing and discussing challenges to your meditation.

• Using alternatives to breath practice: Sometimes (especially with trauma and anxiety) an internal focus such as the breath can be triggering or feel not secure. We use sensory stimuli to anchor your attention: such as the sounds of the room, the rain, the birds, the feel of the fabric of your shirt sleeve, or the couch pillow.

• Following the ebbs and flows: We observe with curiosity the constant shifts of sensations in the body, emotions, thoughts, and how these connect to and influence one another.

I meditate on my own, why bring Mindfulness into Therapy? +

Sometimes when we try to practice mindfulness by ourselves it can be difficult to set aside the time and space for it. Even when we do, it can be difficult to reach the sacred moments of clarity and peace amidst the busy-ness inside ourselves.

Here in therapy we practice dyadic mindfulness, or mindfulness in pairs. With the therapist holding the space, the sacred effect of meditation is amplified. It is somehow “easier” to get focused and reach a space of quiet and clarity where you are sitting with your true self, often called pure consciousness, or the witness. This part of you is central to healing as it can hold all of your experiences, emotions, and states of mind.