Due to it’s roots in Eastern religion and it’s success in clinical trials MBT has become perhaps the most widely misrepresented form of evidence based therapy in Western culture. To many even the word ‘meditation’ brings to mind associations of hippies and healing crystals that would be enough to send any rational person in the opposite direction. It’s also true that many of the so called ‘experts’ in mindfulness are also affiliated with all kinds of other experimental areas of wellbeing treatment that have far less (often no) evidence to support their effectiveness. But to those capable of keeping an open mind and with the ability to complete exercises for just a few weeks, the benefits of mindfulness based exercise can quickly be understood as being as effective for the health of the mind as physical exercise is for the health of the body. Beyond this, evidence shows there are also a range of physical benefits too.

MBT is often coupled with other evidence based therapies and through improving attention, can raise awareness of feelings, bodily sensations and thoughts we may not have been aware of previously. Often coupled with Acceptance & Commitment Therapy or Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (e.g. Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy MBCT), the purpose of therapy is first to simply be aware of thoughts, feelings and bodily sensations in a non judgemental way. Things like body scans are tools that can be used to reduce the stresses of day to day life. While focus techniques go on to help empower individuals to gain some control over how they respond when sensations arise. Attention can begin to feel like a muscle that can be exercised and strengthened to help people feel like they have more of a say in how they respond to a given situation.

Unlike many other types of therapy, once the techniques are understood individuals can practice MBT on themselves with little or no outside support making it one of the most accessible types of intervention there is! MBT has been proven to be effective in dealing with:

• Depression
• Anxiety
• Chronic pain
• Stress
• Addiction & Eating Disorders
• PTSD
• Insomnia
• Phobias