Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression: A New Approach to Preventing Relapse by Zindel V. SegalIn Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression, the authors bring an Eastern approach to managing the increasingly common issue of depression. Just last week, an article in the news proclaimed that 1 in 10 Americans are on antidepressants , and that most of them do not seek therapy in conjunction with pharmaceutical treatment. This is unfortunate. "Antidepressants drugs do not provide a long-term cure. Their effects do not outlast their use." They can be instrumental in keeping a depressive episode from becoming severe, but it is important to do therapeutic work as well in order to change the way the brain is functioning. This is where MBCT has proven itself successful.
It turns out that "negative thinking could itself cause a depression… [and] could certainly maintain the episode once it started." This tendency to ruminate on negative feelings does not help, and is in fact, counterproductive. Unfortunately, people in depressed states have a tendency to do just that, which can feed their feelings of hopelessness and despair. Rather than feeding or fighting these feelings, MBCT helps people develop a new relationship with their thoughts.
Mindfulness based practice teaches people to watch their mental and somatic processes intentionally and non-judgmentally. This observation can help people to understand that their "thoughts are not facts." As Jon Kabat-Zinn explains, "It is remarkable how liberating it feels to see that your thoughts are just thoughts and that they are not 'you' or reality." In fact, a core skill of MBCT is "to teach the ability to recognize and disengage from mind states characterized by self-perpetuating patterns of ruminative, negative thought." This invaluable skill teaches people how to direct their attention and to reduce the amount of energy they expend in these self-defeating habits.
Although there are definite benefits to mindfulness based practice, it is important to remain non-attached to outcome. It is "easy to believe deep down that success is achieved when we are with the breath and failure occurs when the mind wanders." In fact, one of the most useful ideas in this book was the concept that "it is just as valuable to become aware that the mind has wandered and to bring it back as to remain fixed on the chosen object of attention." In our goal-oriented culture, it is easy to fall into the trap of self-judgment, even while meditating. One can become overly concerned with whether they are 'doing it right' as they internalize the 'God-as-Judge' meme. This is why it is so important to approach this work with a sense of acceptance and self-compassion. Even long-time meditators have wandering thoughts. They just have developed a different relationship with them. They are aware that "just because your thoughts are compelling, doesn't make them true." Once we understand this truth, we can stop identifying so strongly with our thoughts. This can take the charge out of our inner critic and help us tune in to a different channel that supports and nurtures our growth and healing.
Understanding that it is the process of returning to the breath itself that helps us remember to return to a grounded and centered state in times of stress. This practice of returning is the most useful thing I learned in this book.
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