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Mindfulness- Marcio Guzman, Ph.D
1. Mindfulness Approaches for the
Treatment of Anxiety disorders
Marcio Guzman, Psy.D.
Castlewood Treatment Center
2. Time
• “Time is what keeps the light from reaching us. There is
no greater obstacle to God than time…” --M. Eckhart
• “The secret of health for mind and body is to not
mourn for the past, nor worry about the future but to
live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.”
• --Buddha
• “Past and future veil God from our sight…”
--Rumi
3. Differentiating Anxiety and Fear
• Anxiety is a response to the mind wondering
into the past or the future.
• Fear is a response to a clear and present
threat/danger.
4. Anxiety
• Anxiety is not a random process. It has a
pattern and structure (like all other emotions).
• It is produced by two events
1. Thought structures
2. Emotional energy
5. Conceptualizing Anxiety Disorders
• Products of not being attuned/connected to the
present moment.
• Anxiety is maintained by having one foot in the
past and/or the other in the future, which then
leads to a myriad of avoidance strategies.
• Consequences involve debilitating and incessant
mind noise (worrying, obsessing, planning,
JUDGING, etc) decrease in QOL
6. Avoidance Strategies
• Choosing to avoid people, places, and activities that
activate fear.
• Subtle changes in behavior that are sometimes
disguised as preferences.
• Going through the motions
automatically/disconnected.
• Making small choices and compromises to reduce
distress w/o awareness of consequences.
7. Anxiety and Presence
• The individual is no longer present for himself/herself.
– Disconnection from the body (existence is dominated by
the mind)
– Misinterpretation of body sensations (when connected)
– Consequences?
• The individual is no longer present for others.
– “the greatest gift a human being can give to another is
being fully present for them…”
–T.N. Hahn
– Consequences?
8. What Is Mindfulness?
• It’s the moment to moment non-judgmental
awareness that is cultivated by paying attention. -
--J.K. Zinn
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWaK2mI_rZw&feature=related
• Discernment through paying attention.
• Its about paying attention on purpose.
• Attending leads to awareness
– Awareness leads to clarity
– Clarity leads to less emotional reactivity…
– Thoughts?
9. Research has shown that
Mindfulness…
• Decreases:
– Anxiety
– Insomnia
– Substance use
– Urges to smoke
– Relapse into depression
– Chronic pain
10. Research has also shown that…
• Mindfulness improves:
– Quality of life
– Relationship satisfaction and closeness
– Sexual functioning
– Attention
– Immune system functioning
– Skin clearing in psoriasis
11. Conceptualizing Mindfulness
• Mindfulness is:
– Open awareness
– Non-judgmental curiosity
– Being in the here and now
– A Way of being
– Connection with Interoception and Proprioception
– Promotes compassion and kindness
12. Conceptualizing Mindfulness
• Mindfulness is not:
– Avoidance
– Suppression of emotional experience or behavior
– Distraction
– Rumination (on + or -)
– Cognitive reframing/restructuring of emotion
– Thinking
– A technique
13. Mindfulness does not mean
• Don’t plan anymore
• Don’t think anymore
• Don’t do anymore
• Don’t judge anymore
14. Mechanism of Action
• De-centering/Dis-identifying: witnessing that the
contents of mind (thoughts, emotions, events,
images. memories, sensations) are events that
are happening but are not “me.”
• Developing attentional focus: cultivating the
ability to place and maintain attention.
• Resting in awareness/befriending silence and
stillness.
15. Mechanism of Action
• Emotional regulation is a byproduct because it
(mindfulness) increases the gap between
action and reaction.
• It slows things down.
• Changes self-view: arises inevitably with the
practice.
• Negative self focus (rumination) is decreased.
16. Forms of Self-Processing
• Analytic/Narrative Self (saturated with
judgment)
– Past/Future oriented
– Fixed Self Concept (rigid and arbitrary)
– Rumination (preoccupied)
17. Forms of Self Processing
• Experiential Self
– Present moment focused
– Continuously changing the experience of self
(seeing self as context)
– Reduced over-generalized memory, anxiety, and
depression
– Mindfulness studies have shown a shift from
analytic to experiential self.
18. Mindfulness
• labeling>judgment>preference>resistance>
conflict>emotion>behavior>>>
-where in the chain would you apply mindfulness?
• Paying attention to an urge to avoid discomfort can
break the cycle of fear -> avoidance -> temporary relief
-> restricted life -> low QOL
• The practice does not have to be formal meditation but
how you live your life moment to moment… difficult
due to conditioning. (Thoughts?)
19. Mindfulness Skills
• Awareness practice
• Self-Compassion
• Present moment
• Beginner’s Mind
• Accepting things as they are (non-resistance)
• Exercising the muscle of attention
• “…attention is the key to transformation.”
– ET
20. Mindful Practices that must be
practiced “when not needed”
• Mindful breathing
• Body scan (sensations, proprioception,
interoception)
• Mindful eating
• Shifting attention from sense to sense
• Combining sensory awareness
• Compassion practice
• Meaningful pauses*
21. Awareness vs. Thinking
• Thinking requires awareness.
• Awareness does not require thought.
• Thought exists within the construct of
awareness.
• Thoughts?
22. Most common complaints
• I’m not good at this
• When I try to practice I become more anxious,
sad, etc (increased emotional awareness)
• Nothing happens…
• This is too hard!
• Can’t remember to do it
23. Mindfulness Meditation
• Much ongoing research with brain imaging
looking at the effects of contemplative practices
on brain functioning and plasticity.
• Associated with changes in neural bases of
-attention regulation of emotion.
• Discernment from conceptual to experiential
self.
24. Resources
• Center for Mindfulness at U of Massachusetts
• Mindful Awareness Research Center UCLA
• Mind & Life Institute
• Authors: Jon K. Zinn, Thich N. Hahn, E. Tolle,. C. Huber
• Books: “Present Perfect” (P. Somov), “Calming Your
Anxious Mind” (J. Brantly), “The Mindfulness and
Acceptance Workbook for Anxiety” (Forsyth & Eifert),
“The Mindful Way Through Anxiety” (Orsillo & Roemer)
• Google