Mindfulness Module
In Virtual Therapy we go over all the modules of DBT. And in the Mindfulness Module of DBT we focus on the practice of paying attention by focusing the mind (Linehan & Wilks, 2021). This helps clients to stay focused on one thing at a time. In the here and now.
Mindfulness Skills are central to DBT Skills as they are incorporated throughout all other modules. And there are three subsets of Mindfulness Skills that we go over,
1. The What skills are Characteristics of Mindfulness
2. The How skills Guide us on how to be mindful
3. Finding Wise Mind: is through teaching clients the dialectical balance of the Reasonable mind (rational/logical part), with the emotional mind which is the feelings and thoughts part.
Basically, Wise Mind is the balance of the two:
It is about breaking down the moment and determining which of the three states your mind is in.
Are you solely in emotions and spiraling? Or are you only thinking about the logical perspective?
In Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (dbt) it is about the dialectics or balance between these two states. And thus, helping clients to arrive at a wise mind means that we challenge clients to see both sides.
We do this by:
reviewing their perception of events or thoughts
checking in with their emotions
and asking what their logical side is telling them
The mindfulness module is put into action through homework exercises, like chain analysis where clients are taught how to use a chain analysis tool and then asked to bring in their own breakdown of situations, behaviors, emotions, and reactions.
It’s recommended that clients use the headspace app or other meditative practices as a weekly exercise at controlling their nervous system. This mindfulness meditation time can help to calm and heightened nervous systems such as with trauma clients that are in a constant state of flight or fight.
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