Mindandbodytwoinone
8-Week MBCT
In Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) integrated mindfulness practices and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). The programme (8 weekly sessions) aims to help the participants to learn to become more aware of their internal world (their emotions, thoughts and mental images, their reactivity, impulses and their physical sensations) and external world. They experientially learn about how their minds work, about their thinking patterns, and how their minds and body are consistent interacting. By experientially realising and understanding these patterns, the participants begin to comprehend the nature of their difficulties and learn to stay with and relate to them in new adaptive ways. They learn to choose more skilful responses to prevent themselves from continuing their unhelpful habitual way of thinking and behaviours that keeps their difficulties and suffering going on.
Also, MBCT programme can be offered to the general population as a preventive approach to equip the participants with skills to cope wisely and skilfully with internal and external difficulties in the future.
Indeed, there is mounting evidence supporting the reliability and efficacy of MBCT in targeting depression and other mood disorders. Therefore, MBCT is recommended by the UK National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for clinical and non-clinical population.
8-Week MBCT-L
Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Life (MBCT-L) is a simplified adaptation of the MBCT programme that developed for the mainstream—all of us. The MBCT-L programme takes us through structured 8-weekly sessions (each about 90 minutes) that promote understanding of our difficulties and nurture skills and attitudes that can really change things within and for us. The learning is largely experiential and is based on practising mindfulness formally and informally, on cognitive exercises and on exploration of our experiences in enquiry forms. It helps us to learn a new way to work with difficulties that we encounter in our lives but also a different way of relating to ourselves and others—a way that includes more contentment, appreciation, wisdom, compassion, and empathy.
8-Week MBRP
Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention (MBRP) is an aftercare intervention that aims to help the participants achieve recovery from substance use disorders (SUDs) and reduce risks of relapse. This 8-week person-centred and trauma-informed programme is developed for small groups, which suites one-to-one facilitation as well. The flexible structure of the program makes it suitable for various settings and populations, including inpatient rehab, sober living homes and hospitals, and various addiction therapy programmes. Yet, it can be integrated into aftercare planning and/or used as a standalone approach for those in early recovery.
In MBRP integrated core elements of Relapse Prevention programme and mindfulness practices. The programme focuses on helping the participants improve awareness of personal internal and external triggers, craving, high-risk situations, automatic thinking, and habitual impulsive reactions. Also, it helps the participants learn to recognise challenging negative thoughts, emotions and bodily discomforts, to stay with them, relate and respond to them in new adaptive ways. Moreover, it helps them to foster a non-judgmental, compassionate approach toward themselves and their experiences, which represents a fundamental mainstay of intervention. Finally, it helps them build a lifestyle that supports both mindfulness practice and recovery, which is the ultimate goal of the program. All these together help in reducing risks of addiction relapse and maintain long-lasting abstinence.
Yet, by integrating mindfulness practices into their daily life, the participant improves their levels of trail mindfulness, attentional control, acceptance skills, learn to observe their thoughts and feelings non-judgmentally as mental events, face their challenges and sufficiently cope with high-risk situation, urges and craving. In other words, from psychological perspectives, the programme promotes the participants’ psychological flexibility and self-esteem, enabling them to respond to high-risk situation, cravings and triggers in a more adaptable manner.
Wednesday community meditation
When practising together, we find ourselves surrounded by people who are here for the same reason—proactive self-care. In such an environment, we feel our universal human vulnerability and strengths, and our connection with each other, which is another benefit of practising together. Regularly practising mindfulness meditation gradually improves non-judgemental attitude social interaction, relationship, compassion, and empathy.