Mindfulness and Meditation Therapy

Mindfulness and meditation therapy are not metaphysical practice of "clearing the brain", nor are they panacea for emotional diseases. They are a set of evidence-based psychological adjustment techniques that have been verified by neuroscience and adapted to different scenarios. The core logic is "to perceive the current state of mind and body without judgment". At present, they have been included in the guidelines for public mental health intervention in 37 countries around the world, but at the same time, there are clear differences in applicable boundaries and practice methods, and there is no standardized exercise program suitable for everyone.

Last week, Xiao Zhou, the 98-year-old Internet operator, said, "Do I have no wisdom?" I followed the online meditation class for two weeks. Every time I closed my eyes, my mind was full of unanswered work group news. The more I practiced, the more annoying I became. I almost smashed my mobile phone yesterday. " In fact, this is a pit that 90% novices will step on: equating mindfulness with no distractions adds another layer of self-attack that I can't even practice meditation well to my already stressful life. When Kabajin first put forward Mindfulness Decompression Therapy (MBSR) in 1979, he clearly said: Mindfulness is not to drive away all thoughts in your mind, but to stand on the side of the road and watch cars coming and going, not to follow any car, and not to scold "why are there so many cars", just to watch-even if you do this for only 3 seconds a day, it is an effective exercise.

Oh, yes, many people will combine mindfulness with spiritual practice and religion. In fact, the mindfulness therapy currently used in clinic has already stripped off all religious attributes. You can practice whether you believe in Buddhism or not, and there is no conflict at all. There are several schools of common mindfulness exercises in the market now, and the people who adapt to them are very different. I have compiled a simple comparison for your reference:

I know that many bloggers are boasting about mindfulness, saying that "practicing for half a year with an annual salary of one million" and "curing all depression", but the academic controversy has never stopped. A follow-up study conducted by the Department of Clinical Psychology of Oxford University in 2023 shows that about 10% of the people who practice mindfulness without professional guidance will have the side effects of panic attack and emotional dissociation, especially those who have a history of PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder). Blindly practicing meditation like "body scanning" can easily trigger traumatic flashbacks. I met a visitor who had experienced campus violence before. She did a body scan with audio at home. When she swept her shoulder, she suddenly triggered the memory of being pushed. She had a panic attack on the spot and was sent to the emergency department. Later, it took me three months to help her get her back.

Some colleagues have also raised another controversy: does mindfulness emphasize "accepting the present" too much, will it weaken people's motivation to change reality? I really came across such a case: a girl was led by a leader in the company for half a year and practiced mindfulness for three months and told me, "I accept the present situation, and everything is the best arrangement." I was anxious at that time and told her, "Accepting your anger and grievances now is not in conflict with you to strike a table with the leader and ask for labor arbitration to defend your rights." Mindfulness is essentially a tool, which helps you to see your real feelings first, instead of letting you hold down your emotions and pretend that nothing happened, which is the most regrettable thing.

Let's talk about some practical experience. I have been a consultant for 6 years and never let visitors sit cross-legged for half an hour when they come up. Before, a courier brother came to me and said that he couldn't sleep because of the pressure of running a single ticket every day, and he didn't sit down and practice for a whole time. I taught him the "traffic light mindfulness": every time you wait for a red light for 30 seconds, feel the touch of the handle of the courier car in your palm, and the wind blows on your face. If the red light lasts for a long time, take a few deep breaths and it will be over. He practiced for half a month and sent me a message, saying that he wanted to curse the street every time there was a traffic jam before, but now he can just hold his horses. Last month, he also commented on the service star of the site. I am tired of writing my own case report, and I will stand up to get a glass of water, feel the temperature of the water flowing through the cup and the weight of the cup in my hand. These 30 seconds are my mindfulness practice, so I don't need any ritual feeling of burning incense and meditation.

The research data of Nature Human Behavior in 2022 is very real: 20-minute mindfulness exercises for 8 weeks and 3 times a week can indeed reduce the volume of the gray matter of the amygdala responsible for anxiety and fear by 0.2%, and the response to stress will be more gentle. But I still want to tell everyone who wants to try it: this thing is just like running and iron-throwing. Some people are suitable for running marathons, some people are suitable for doing aerobics at home, and some people are naturally inactive, and there is nothing wrong with it. If you want to try, you don't have to buy thousands of classes. Starting from tomorrow, every time you eat with chopsticks, you should first feel the weight of chopsticks. When you chew the first bite of rice, you should carefully taste the taste of food. If you feel comfortable, you can continue to do it. You think it's a waste of time. It doesn't matter if you turn your head and forget it. After all, the methods that can make you live a good life are all good methods.