Mindfulness workshops to focus attention
Mindfulness is a central component of DBT (Dialectical Behavioural Therapy) used to treat challenging behaviour, poor attentional capacity and difficulty interacting with others. It is also useful in decreasing rumination linked with violent behaviour and dissociation. More recently emerging evidence has supported its use in several areas of mental health especially with individuals experiencing psychosis.
Our services in Essex and Northampton offer this treatment medium as part of a low secure ward based programme for both men and women, yielding some very positive outcomes for service users.
Mindfulness is defined as “Paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally (John Kabat-Zinn 1994)
Mindfulness is different to relaxation as it enables the ability to direct and focus attention while accepting the inevitable distractions that occur when sitting still. It also allows the individual to experience and observe unpleasant emotion or distracting thoughts instead of avoiding or suppressing them. This ability is key in preventing the escalation of unhelpful thoughts and reducing emotional avoidance.
The mindfulness workshops will be delivered on thirty minute sessions across a ten week period offering a mix of didactic teaching and group discussion with a core emphasis on concrete mindfulness and breathing exercises.
The aims of this trial are to familiarise the service users with the concepts of mindfulness and encourage the practice of these techniques through assisted workshops and breathing exercises. We hope to teach these individuals how to apply the techniques to psychotic rather than everyday experiences, giving them the tools to manage their condition independently. The five factor Mindfulness questionnaire will be used to assess their progress both before and after the trial to provide outcomes.
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Typical behaviours beyond those listed above include substance abuse and difficulty with emotional regulation. Early indications in Essex show that this is yielding some positive increases in mindfulness across a five factor scale.