When looking for new approaches to depression, especially when medications are unwanted or ineffective, one of the lesser-known options is mindfulness based cognitive therapy. For depression, many approaches deal with the active examination and rejection of thought processes and patterns that are deemed unproductive… but MBCT turns this upside down, taking an entirely different approach.
Based on the works of Jon Kabat-Zinn, the purpose of mindfulness based cognitive therapy for depression is not to alter the processes and patterns themselves, but to alter one’s response. Instead of rejecting the way your brain and mind react to the world around you, MBCT accepts this activity, and chooses to take a different response.
The key element of mindfulness based cognitive therapy for depression is to understand what is happening in the moment, from second to second throughout the day; to recognize it, accept it, and act rationally – rather than emotionally – without assigning any value judgement to the patterns and processes themselves.
When applying this to your own life, and seeking a condition of greater awareness and self-control, it is important to recall that the processes and patterns… while they may be unproductive, or incorrect, or even irrational… are not bad or wrong. They are simply a condition, and you can choose whether to respond – taking a reasonable and intelligent action – or react, taking an emotional and possibly unproductive action.
Depending on the people you ask, mindfulness based cognitive therapy for depression is either a wonderful thing that has made their lives immeasurably better, or a complete waste of time. Like any therapeutic method, you get out of it roughly what you put into it – the therapy itself does not cure anything, but serves as a tool you can use to cure yourself.
You must log in to post a comment.