Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy benefits people with depression
through promoting self-kindness
Date:
March 9, 2022
Source:
University of Exeter
Summary:
New research shows that Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy
(MBCT) can help promote self-kindness in people with a history
of depression, thereby putting their bodies in a state of safety
and relaxation.
FULL STORY ==========================================================================
New research shows that Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)
can help promote self-kindness in people with a history of depression,
thereby putting their bodies in a state of safety and relaxation.
==========================================================================
The research, led by the University of Exeter with collaboration from
the universities of Oxford and Magdeburg, indicates that MBCT may help
break the cycle of highly critical thoughts and feelings of worthlessness, which often lead people with depression to relapse.
Participants treated with MBCT showed a pattern of being kind to
themselves, along with body responses of reduced threat response, a state
of safety and relaxation that is important for regeneration and healing.
The authors believe the study helps to better understand how MBCT
prevents relapse.
MBCT is an effective group-based psychological treatment that helps
people change the way they think and feel about their experiences and
learn skills that reduce the likelihood of further episodes of depression.
Previous research has shown that individuals with recurrent depression
benefit particularly from MBCT when they learn to become more
compassionate towards themselves.
==========================================================================
This increased self-compassion has been defined as the ability to be
kind to ourselves in stressful times.
The researchers studied 50 people who were in remission from depression
and at risk for depressive relapse.
25 of this group were tested before and after an eight-week MBCT treatment
and compared with an untreated control sample of 25 people with recurrent depression.
Dr Hans Kirschner, of the University of Magdeburg, the first author
of the study, said: "It's encouraging to see that an evidence-based
treatment like MBCT can help individuals with recurrent depression to
move to a kinder self view and a related body state of safety. We hope
that this can strengthen individuals' resilience and prevent depressive relapse. Though, this idea must be tested formally in future research."
In contrast, the untreated control group showed body responses indicative
of a more adverse response to the self-compassion meditation when they
engaged in it a second time.
The study builds on the team's previous research that found that a
brief self- compassion exercise can temporarily activate a pattern of self-kindness and feeling safe in healthy individuals.
The researchers wanted to explore this effect in people with depression,
and found that the self-compassion exercise alone was not sufficient to
bring about the feeling of safety, but that MCBT did so effectively.
Professor Anke Karl, from the University of Exeter, lead author of the
study, said: "This study extends our previous research that found that
a brief self- compassion exercise can temporarily activate a pattern of self-kindness and feeling safe in healthy individuals but in individuals
with recurrent depression this is unlikely to happen without going through
an effective psychological therapy that we know addresses vulnerability
to relapse."
========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by University_of_Exeter. Note: Content
may be edited for style and length.
========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Hans Kirschner, Willem Kuyken, Anke Karl. A Biobehavioural
Approach to
Understand How Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy
Reduces Dispositional Negative Self-Bias in Recurrent
Depression. Mindfulness, 2022; DOI: 10.1007/s12671-022-01845-3 ==========================================================================
Link to news story:
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220309104429.htm
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