129: Flexing the Mindfulness Muscle

In this role-reversal of the traditional Feeling Good Podcast, Dr. David Burns and his special guest, Dr. Rhonda Barovsky, interview Dr. Fabrice Nye, your beloved podcast host, on the topic of Mindfulness and Meditation, which are currently popular with the therapeutic community.

Fabrice answers questions like these:

1. What’s mindfulness? How does it differ from meditation?
2. What’s the history of mindfulness as well as meditation? Did it originate with the Buddha, or did it date back even earlier?
3. What are some of the goals and potential benefits of mindfulness?
4. Why specific exercises can you do to develop greater mindfulness ?
5. Why is mindfulness helpful? How does it work?
6. Some people meditate in silence for prolonged times, like ten days, for example. What is the goal here?
7. Are there any dangers of meditation?
8. How does mindfulness differ from yoga, relaxation training, and self-hypnosis?
9. Some people seem to love and benefit from meditation, and others find it uninteresting or even annoying. Why is this? What's the difference in these two groups of people? Is it okay not to be interested in meditation, or is something that everyone “should” do?
10. The goal of mindfulness seems to be learning to deal more effectively with stressful thought and feelings. Does it deal with motivation and the resistance to change? TEAM-CBT makes us aware of the incredible importance of resistance, and provides many methods for reducing or eliminating resistance before you try any Method to “help” the patient. Does Mindfulness Meditation deal with resistance, or would it best be viewed as a method that can help individuals who are already strongly motivated to invest time and effort in their personal growth?