Many mental health clinicians--even those well acquainted with mindfulness--still view physical, body-oriented techniques as outside their scope of practice. In this accessible book, clinical psychologist, exercise physiologist, and yoga and mindfulness teacher Paul Salmon gives therapists of any orientation the tools to use mindful movement with clients. Salmon shows how simple practices like breathing, walking, and yoga-like stretches can help clients center their attention in the present moment with curiosity and self-acceptance. He summarizes research on the benefits of movement for specific mental and physical health conditions and provides vivid case examples and scripts. Purchasers get access to a companion website where they can download audio recordings of 29 guided practices.

This practical guide helps therapists from virtually any specialty or theoretical orientation choose and adapt mindfulness practices most likely to be effective with particular patients, while avoiding those that are contraindicated. The authors provide a wide range of meditations that build the core skills of focused attention, mindfulness, and compassionate acceptance. Vivid clinical examples show how to weave the practices into therapy, tailor them to each patient's needs, and overcome obstacles. Therapists also learn how developing their own mindfulness practice can enhance therapeutic relationships and personal well-being. The Appendix offers recommendations for working with specific clinical problems. Free audio downloads (narrated by the authors) and accompanying patient handouts for selected meditations from the book are available at www.sittingtogether.com. See also Mindfulness and Psychotherapy, Second Edition, edited by Christopher K. Germer, Ronald D. Siegel, and Paul R. Fulton, which reviews the research on therapeutic applications of mindfulness and delves into treatment of specific clinical problems.

This acclaimed work, now in a new edition, has introduced tens of thousands of clinicians to mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) for depression, an 8-week program with proven effectiveness. Step by step, the authors explain the "whys" and "how-tos" of conducting mindfulness practices and cognitive interventions that have been shown to bolster recovery from depression and prevent relapse. Clinicians are also guided to practice mindfulness themselves, an essential prerequisite to teaching others. Forty-five reproducible handouts are included. Purchasers get access to a companion website featuring downloadable audio recordings of the guided mindfulness practices (meditations and mindful movement), plus all of the reproducibles, ready to download and print in a convenient 8 1/2" x 11" size. A separate website for use by clients features the audio recordings only. New to This Edition *Incorporates a decade's worth of developments in MBCT clinical practice and training. *Chapters on additional treatment components: the pre-course interview and optional full-day retreat. *Chapters on self-compassion, the inquiry process, and the three-minute breathing space. *Findings from multiple studies of MBCT's effectiveness and underlying mechanisms. Includes studies of adaptations for treating psychological and physical health problems other than depression. *Audio files of the guided mindfulness practices, narrated by the authors, on two separate Web pages--one for professionals, together with the reproducibles, and one just for clients. See also the authors' related titles for clients: The Mindful Way through Depression demonstrates these proven strategies in a self-help format, with in-depth stories and examples. The Mindful Way Workbook gives clients additional, explicit support for building their mindfulness practice, following the sequence of the MBCT program. Plus, for professionals: Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy with People at Risk of Suicide extends and refines MBCT for clients with suicidal depression.

Bringing together leading scholars, scientists, and clinicians, this compelling volume explores how therapists can cultivate wisdom and compassion in themselves and their clients. Chapters describe how combining insights from ancient contemplative practices and modern research can enhance the treatment of anxiety, depression, trauma, substance abuse, suicidal behavior, couple conflict, and parenting stress. Seamlessly edited, the book features numerous practical exercises and rich clinical examples. It examines whether wisdom and compassion can be measured objectively, what they look like in the therapy relationship, their role in therapeutic change, and how to integrate them into treatment planning and goal setting. The book includes a foreword by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

Embodying mindfulness allows both therapists and clients to make the most of treatment sessions. More than just a guide to techniques and benefits, this book provides a comprehensive understanding of mindfulness meditation, and shows how to effectively incorporate mindfulness into every aspect of the therapeutic process. Mindfulness isn’t simply a therapeutic tool that can be used at a specific time. If you’re a psychotherapist interested in implementing mindfulness practices into your therapy sessions, you must first embody a mindful presence yourself. In Mindfulness Meditation in Psychotherapy, psychotherapist Steven Alper presents the mindfulness pyramid model, an easy-to-use reference approach for integrating mindfulness into the very fabric of your therapy sessions—in every action you take. A therapist’s mindfulness practice and the mindful activity during sessions forms the foundation of clients’ mindfulness practice. This practical guide will help demystify mindfulness meditation; elaborate on the psychotherapeutic benefits of practices such as body scan, breath awareness, sitting meditation, and lovingkindness; and offer helpful strategies for teaching formal and informal mindfulness skills to clients. This book conceptualizes and explores the applicability of mindfulness and delves into the many ways in which mindfulness can manifest in psychotherapy. This is a must-have resource for any therapist interested in honing their own mindfulness practice and incorporating mindfulness in treatment sessions.

Discover the Benefits of Exercise as Meditation “Let me say it simply. Someone should have written this book a long time ago.” —Shinzen Young, meditation teacher, neuroscience research consultant, founder of Unified Mindfulness, author of Meditation in the Zone and The Science of Enlightenment Award-winning Finalist in the “Health: Diet & Exercise” category of the 2022 International Book Awards #1 New Release in Sports Health & Safety, Other Eastern Religions & Sacred Texts, Cycling, Sports Psychology, Walking, Theravada Buddhism, and Meditation Transform movement and meditation into the powerful practice of mindful movement Exercise can be meditation. What do you think of when you hear the word meditation? A quiet room filled with monks? An Instagram influencer? What about moving meditation? Yoga? Tai Chi? For too long, meditation in books has focused on specific periods of meditation, rather than mediation through fitness or daily activities. What if lifting weights, dancing with your love, or walking across a room counted? What if you could use exercise as meditation? What if you could make every move a meditation? Let's combine the two. In Make Every Move a Meditation, award-winning author, meditation leader, and mental health advocate Nita Sweeney shows us fitness can be mindfulness. She teaches us how to bring meditation and mindfulness into any activity by incorporating centuries-old techniques. Studies show that both exercise and meditation reduce anxiety, stabilize blood pressure, improve mood and cognition, and lead to a deeper self-relationship and wisdom. Movement is medicine, and meditation is medicine. Inside you’ll learn to: Turn exercise into a meditation tool Make any activity a mindful practice Enjoy the benefits of meditation while getting fit If you like meditation books and best sellers such as Think Like a Monk, Practicing Mindfulness, or Breath, you’ll love Make Every Move a Meditation.

This ground-breaking book explores the theoretical, clinical and training application of integrating mindfulness with all of the arts therapies, and includes cutting-edge contributions from neuroscience. Written by pioneers and leaders in the arts therapies and psychology fields, the book includes 6 sections that examine mindfulness and the arts therapies from different perspectives: 1) the history and roots of mindfulness in relation to spirituality, psychotherapy and the arts therapies; 2) the role of the expressive arts in cultivating mindful awareness; 3) innovative approaches that add mindfulness to the arts therapies; 4) arts therapies approaches that are inherently mindfulness-based; 5) mindfulness in the training and education of arts therapists; and 6) the neuroscience underlying mindfulness and the arts therapies. Contributors describe their pioneering work with diverse applications: people with cancer, trauma, chronic pain, substance abuse, severe mental illness, clients in private practice, adolescents at camp, training dance and art therapists, and more. This rich resource will inspire and rejuvenate all clinicians and educators.