DBT Therapy Skills: Mindfulness
What do you think of when you hear the word ‘Mindfulness’? Take a moment to reflect on what comes to mind when thinking about that word. Often, people associate mindfulness with meditation and breathing activities. Although mindfulness can include these practices, the act of being mindful is not limited to meditation and breathing practices.
So what exactly is mindfulness?
Mindfulness is a cognitive tool you can use to be aware of your thoughts, emotions, physical experiences, perceptions, and behaviors. Using mindfulness is about focusing on your circumstances solely and without judgment. When you make a practice out of mindfulness you will start to notice an ability to accept and validate yourself more frequently.
Have you ever felt as if you were on auto-pilot or that your life felt like a video game you weren’t fully immersed in? Mindfulness gives you the ability to accept and validate that experience and also allows you to experience and connect with the present moment. The American Psychological Association identifies evidence-based benefits of mindfulness as reduced rumination, stress reduction, memory improvement, focus, decrease in emotional reactivity, cognitive flexibility, and relationship satisfaction. Everyone can benefit from mindfulness!
How does mindfulness work with DBT Therapy?
Let’s explore a few of the DBT Therapy mindfulness skills together.
States of Mind.
DBT therapy utilizes mindfulness in identifying your state of mind. Dialectical behavior therapy is all about dialectics (the ability to see two perspectives at once). One way DBT therapy makes an activity out of mindfulness is through something called States of Mind.
States of Mind looks at the balance between your emotional mind and your reasonable mind. In States of Mind, it is believed that the combination of the Emotion Mind and Reason Mind creates what is known as the Wise Mind. It is important to remember that one State of Mind is not better than the other, and it is helpful to balance the use of the three states of mind at once. When we notice our emotions are taking over our decisions, we must validate those emotions, and identify the logic and reason behind the decision. The same goes for when we notice we are not aware of our emotions and are solely thinking logically about life's circumstances - in this, we must identify emotions in order to make sure our needs and wants are being met.
The Path to Wise Mind
The Path to Wise Mind. This skill identifies what to do to achieve mindfulness and how to do it. The “What” skills are observing, describing, and participating. The “How” skills are non-judgmentally, one-mindfully, and effectively.
Focus on Nonjudgmental Stance.
Focus on Nonjudgmental Stance skill has a priority of looking at our judgments, non-judgmentally. With this skill, one will be able to identify their judgments, how rigid or general they are, and how to integrate new information to shift our initial judgments. In this skill, one will be able to evaluate whether they have a continual conflict due to certain judgments, and how to shift to a more non-judgmental stance. Judgments can be superficial or extensive. When one notices their judgments affecting a large part of their life, it is important to look at those judgments and identify what may need to shift.
Focus on One-Mindfulness.
Focus on One-Mindfulness skill implies that there are more trains of focus than one. One way this applies is through multitasking. Some have identified multitasking as being a strength. While multitasking can be helpful to complete multiple tasks at one time, the act can lead to a mindless completion of assignments. One-mindfulness is about putting the focus on one task and making a conscious effort to observe the experience of completing the task. Doing the dishes can be a daunting task for some. A great way to get the dishes done is non-judgmentally observing and engaging your senses. For example, identifying what the sponge feels like, what the soap looks and smells like, the sound of the water, etc.
By Leeann Martinez, LMSW, DBT-C
If you are interest in learning more about how to apply the skills of mindfulness into your world, we invite you to our DBT therapy skills group. We will be practicing mindfulness through interactive activities include, but are not limited to drawing to music, mindfulness with a bell, breathing colors, watercolor mindfulness, feet in the grass, and much more. Mindfulness can assist one in being present even in the small, “meaningless” parts of life. During the DBT therapy skills group, you will be encouraged to maintain a meditation practice.
Resources:
Lane Pederson. Cortney Sidwell Pederson. The Expanded Dialectical Behavior Therapy: Skills Training Manual. Second Edition. 2017
Dane Sharp. Accessing the Wise Mind - Image. 2021 June 3.
