Mindfulness as a treatment for ADHD

Click here to read a recent article in the NY Times about how mindfulness training can help children and adults treat outcomes for ADHD.

Mindfulness Exercise - Focus on the Positive

As taught in Emotion Regulation, being mindful of positive experiences can act as a buffer to unpleasant emotions and experiences.  Often in life, we hyper focus on the unpleasant which can lead to emotion overload or burn out.  The act of sharing or thinking of something positive may be one way to counteract overload.  For this mindfulness exercise, I would like everyone to think of a positive experience in the past week.  You may want to take a few moments and write down notes of your memory.  What was the experience?  What occurred?  How did it feel? 

Article on Using Mindfulness to Overcome Pain

Click here to read an article on the benefits of mindfulness training to reduce chronic pain.  The study authors compared mindfulness training to a conventional support group and found significant reductions in misusing pain medications in the mindfulness group.

Dream Vacation Mindfulness Exercise

This is one of my favorite mindfulness exercises, especially in the middle of the harsh winter.  Enjoy!

Dream Vacation Mindfulness

When we feel intense emotions, or during what feels like the 10th snow storm this winter, it can be helpful to use imagery to help regulate our emotions. Today, I'm going to ask you to imagine your dream vacation.  To begin, I'd like everyone to allow their eyes to close gently, if this feels comfortable.  If not, feel free to focus on a spot on the wall or the floor.  Take several slow, deep breaths and bring your mind into the present moment.  Try to imagine your dream vacation.  Where would you go? Who would you take with you? How would you get there? What would you do? What would you eat? How long would you stay? Try to imagine what the weather would feel like, what the food would taste and smell like, and what the sights would look like.  Try to engage your senses.

(Pause for a minute or two)

When you are ready, open your eyes and gently bring your mind back into this room and the present moment.

Article on Mindfulness in Low-Income Schools

Click here to read an article about how low-income schools are incorporating mindfulness into their curriculum.

Mindfulness and College Students

Click here to read an article about a study at the University of Miami of mindfulness for college students.  The study found that students who went through a short mindfulness training had increased attention as compared to those students in a control group. 

Mindful New Years Resolutions

As we turn towards 2014 and close the book on 2013, some of us find it helpful to take stock of our lives and make resolutions for the upcoming year.  This is certainly nothing new. As a DBT therapist, I can't help but wonder, what are some ways in which we can resolve to be more mindful in 2014?

1. Daily Activities - We can practice mindfulness while doing ANYTHING (by itself).  We can mindfully drive a car (no music, no talking on bluetooth, no eating, just focusing on the road), brush our teeth (focus on the taste of the toothpaste, the feel of the bristles on your tongue, etc), do the dishes, and take a shower (focus on the smells, the feel of the soap, etc).  We can mindfully change diapers, prepare dinner, and even type emails.  We can resolve to practice one daily activity mindfully each day; by doing so, we are fully participating in that activity alone and exercising our mindfulness muscle for other times when we may need it.

2. Relationships - We can practice mindfulness while talking on the phone or talking in person to anyone.  We all have had conversations with others while driving, doing the dishes, cleaing up around the house, etc; when we multitask in this way, we always miss out on something.  When we are mindful with others, we give them the gift of our attention which can help to improve the quality of our relationships.

3. Daily Formal Practice - A daily mindfulness practice could entail sitting for 5 minutes each morning and focusing on your breath.  It could also mean walking mindfully to the train station or doing a body scan every evening after dinner. Regardless of which formal practice you choose, we find that people tend to stick with the practice if they schedule it in (even a few minutes is sufficient) and commit to doing it every day. 

We wish everyone a happy and healthy 2014!

Article on Gratitude in Children

Click here to read an article in the Wall Street Journal about the many benefits of raising kids with gratitute.  The article cites research stating that teenagers with high levels of gratitude had higher GPAs, less depression, and less envy than less grateful teenagers.

Article on Happiness in NY Times

Click here to read an article from this week's NY Times about research on happiness.  The article discusses factors that contribute to our happiness, including those which we can and cannot control.

Mindfulness Explained!

Click here to see a very user-friendly site with great animated videos to explain the abstact concepts of mindfulness.  You can watch the short videos and try out the site for 10 days for free. 

Drinking Tea Mindfully

Click here to read a great post on taking time for yourself by being mindful during the holiday season.  The writer suggests several different mindfulness practices, including drinking tea, brushing your teeth, and walking mindfully.

Post-Doctoral Fellowship Position at CCDBT

POST-DOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP IN DIALECTICAL AND COGNITIVE BEHAVIOR THERAPY

The Center for Cognitive & Dialectical Behavior Therapy (CCDBT) PLLC  invites applications for a year long post-doctoral fellowship beginning Summer/Fall 2014 FOR OUR NYC & LONG ISLAND OFFICES

Professional activities will include: Providing individual and group Dialectical Behavior Therapy for adolescents, adults, & families; providing cognitive therapies for depression & anxiety;
providing skills training for parental management of childhood
behavior disorders, and providing Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction
to medically referred clients.  Postdoctoral fellows will participate
in program development and administration, monitoring client outcomes,
and conducting research. Specific activities will be determined with
the fellow to match his/her career goals.

The Center for Cognitive & Dialectical Behavior Therapy (CCDBT) PLLC,
is: a privately-owned therapy center made up of licensed psychologists
and social workers. The mission of CCDBT is to provide effective and
specialized treatment to people of all ages who are experiencing
difficulties in their lives.  The goal of CCDBT is to help people meet
the challenges in their lives and develop the skills needed to deal
with such challenges. For more information, see http://www.ccdbt.com.

Applicants will be considered who: Complete a clinical psychology
doctorate by the start date: demonstrate strong potential for a career
in programmatic implementation of DBT, have substantial experience in
CBT and with adolescents and families. Experience with Dialectical
Behavior Therapy is highly preferable. Applications are reviewed and interviews are granted on a rolling admissions basis.

Please email or fax letter of interest, CV, & 3 letters of reference to:   

Jennifer Byrnes, Ph.D.

Director of Research & Training, CCDBT

jbyrnes@ccdbt.com

fax: 516-396-2195

NY Times Article on Insomnia Treatment and Depression

Click here to read and article in today's NY Times about how treating insomnia can also lead to significant improvements in depression.

Ny Times Article on Mindfulness

Click here to read an article about how celebrities, corporations, and even the military are using mindfulness and meditation to improve quality of life and disconnect from technology.

Article in NY Times about Mental Health Parity

Click here to read an article in last week's NY Times about the new Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act.  According to the Obama administration, individuals may be entitled broader mental health coverage than before.

Graduate Group at CCDBT

We are excited to announce that CCDBT has started a DBT Graduate Group for young adults. Participants must have completed DBT Skills Group and have an individual therapist. The purpose of this group is to help young adults continue to practice DBT skills as well as to provide ongoing peer consultation. The group will be held Thursday afternoons from 2:15-3:15pm. The group is an open format, and we would love to have new members join as they are ready.  If you are interested, please contact Dr. Rachel Gerstein (516-390-3525 x17) or Dr. Liz Gellman (516-390-3525 x 24), or talk to your individual therapist.

Mindfulness Exercise from BTech

I came across this interesting mindfulness exercise from Marsha Linehan and Behavioral Tech and thought I'd pass it along:

"Radical acceptance requires turning the mind. Turning the mind is where you simply say, 'Yes. I will. OK.' It means you find within yourself the ability to say 'Every moment is perfect. Every day is a good day. Everything is as it should be.'' It may not be what you want, and it may not be what you like, but it’s what it should be. It’s turning the mind.

Now the fact that you turn back around again 30 seconds later is not important. You probably will turn back around and say, ‘No! Everything is not perfect!’ The minute you see that happening, just gently turn your mind again. ‘Every day is a good day. Everything is as it should be.’

In this mindfulness exercise, I'd like you to practice just that - turning the mind. Turning the mind is going within, following your breath within, and allowing yourself to accept the moment of the breath – just this one moment of this one breath.

You might find it useful, as you breathe in, to say, ‘Everything is perfect,’ and as you breathe out to say, ‘…as it is.’ Everything is perfect… as it is. So sit down. Get yourself comfortable. Get into a posture that is somewhat willing, sitting up straight, feet flat on the floor, and nothing on your lap.

Everything is perfect… as it is."

Article on Brandon Marshall and BPD

Click here to read an article about Brandon Marshall wearing green shoes in the Bears v Giants game to support Mental Health Awareness Week.  Marshall was reportedly diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder in 2011.

This Week in Adolescent and Family DBT Group

This week in Adolescent and Family DBT Group we are reviewing the FAST skill and the Interpersonal Effectiveness module as a whole.  The Interpersonal Effectiveness module deals with how to improve our relationships; specifically, how to ask for what we want (DEAR MAN), how to keep a good relationship (GIVE) and how to keep respect for yourself in relationships (FAST).

This Week in Adult DBT Group

This Week in Adult DBT Group we are beginning the Mindfulness module.  The first skill in this module is the States of Mind.  The three States of Mind are Emotion mind (acting impulsively based on our emotions), Reasonable mind (acting just based on the facts, no emotion), and Wise mind (acting based on some emotion and some facts, making decisions we feel good about for years to come).