From the 70s to the present, a large number of investigations have emerged, which are increasing, about the positive results that the practice of mindfulness has brought people with physical and psychological problems.
When we speak of Mindfulness or full consciousness, we refer to the action of paying attention to the present moment without judgment and with an attitude of acceptance of the internal and external stimuli that appear..
What we know today by the name of Mindfulness, is actually a style of meditation that is located more than 2,500 years ago in some religious traditions. Among them the buddhism and in this case it was transmitted by Siddhartha Gautama, that is, the historical buddha.
The word Mindfulness (translated into English in the book "The Miracle of Being Awake" by the monk Thich Nhat Hanh) comes from the word "Pali sati", being "Pali" an Indo-European language from Nepal, where Buddhism began.
Hence comes the translation of Mindfulness or "sati" which is translated into Spanish as "Mindfulness" or "mindfulness". Referring to a mindful and pure non-conceptual attention.
It was the religious institutions that made this practice popular in the East and it was not until the late 19th century, through the British colonization of India, that the European empire knew this type of meditation.
Thanks to globalization and the intensification of cultural exchanges, this practice became known over time, awakening the interest of scientists and researchers..
The person with the greatest influence in making this type of practice known in Western culture is John Kabat-Zinn, who dedicated himself to studying mindfulness or mindfulness and had the opportunity to do so in the company of several Buddhist teachers. Kabat-Zinn was the founder of the Stress Reduction Clinic at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center In the 70s.
The practice and research of Mindfulness gave Kabat-Zinn the opportunity to integrate meditative practice with science, leaving aside the religious part. From there he was able to develop his program (MBSR) which means: "Stress Reduction Based on Míndfulness". This 8-session program is intended for anyone who wants to reduce their stress levels.
This type of program is scientifically validated and has been completed by more than 18,000 people, showing extremely favorable results not only in reducing stress levels but also in relieve chronic pain, anxiety, heart disease, depression, among others.
Due to the success of the MBSR, the Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) program was created, which is aimed at the treatment of major depressive disorder. This program, like the MBSR, has shown favorable results for people with this disorder, helping to reduce the risk of relapse..
Due to the success of this type of Mindfulness-based interventions, this type of meditation plays an important role in the field of psychology. So both programs (MBSR and MBCT) have been accepted by psychologists to provide Psychological attention to many patients.
Other different therapies that are based on Mindfulness or that include a component of this type of meditation are the following:
The founder of this type of therapy, Fritz perls incorporated into it concepts related to oriental thought. Among the oriental concepts that he included in his therapy is that of the "here and now" where he emphasizes one of the principles of Mindfulness which is that of focus the mind and body on the present moment, ceasing to fantasize about the past or the future which is what is usually done.
This program that was created by Marsha Linehan in the 90s, has the purpose of treating people who have serious problems in terms of the regulation of their emotions and with the control of their impulses, leading to suicidal behaviors..
For this reason it is mainly focused on people with Borderline Personality Disorder. However, it is currently also used to treat Eating Disorders and addictions. In this type of therapeutic program, an emphasis is placed on acceptance and promotion of change, Mindfulness being one of the techniques used to facilitate acceptance and regulation of emotions..
This behavioral approach was developed by Hayes in the late 1990s and is designed to help the person get out of the content of their own positive and negative psychological experiences by understanding the context in which they find themselves to finally guide them towards the achievement of their own goals vital.
This type of approach is based on the Relational Frame Theory and its key concepts are fusion, evaluation, avoidance and reasoning. So one of the techniques used to work especially with the fusion part and to weaken the verbal relationships that control part of the person's behavior, is Mindfulness.
It is a way in which psychotherapy sessions can be approached through a multicomponent and psychodynamic approach that was developed thanks to an empirical research carried out by Safran and Muran in 2005.
This way of approaching psychotherapy is based on a constructivist epistemology and focuses your attention on the here and now. This is why the application of Mindfulness is essential for patients to achieve their therapeutic goals, also based on the principles of this practice..
Finally, mention that today, the practice of Mindfulness has reported a great variety of benefits on a psychological and even physical level. And it is really that this practice, now used by psychologists in clinical consultation, is of great help for anyone who wishes to practice it since it increases their levels of well-being, which is why it is also practiced not only in the clinical area.
Mindfulness practice can be done in individual or group way. There are various organizations that are responsible for delivering mindfulness programs to specific groups of people, depending on what they want to treat.
For example, there are groups focused on the practice of mindfulness for children, people who have a chronic disease, mental health problems, etc. There are also groups dedicated to anyone who wants to know this type of practice and increase their emotional well-being, so we can all have access to it.
Bibliographic reference:
Vásquez, E. V. D. (2016). Mindfulness: General concepts, psychotherapy and clinical applications. Retrieved May 8, 2019, from http://www.scielo.org.pe/pdf/rnp/v79n1/a06v79n1.pdf
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