How Mindfulness Can Heal

A client, I’ll call Blake, sought treatment with me for depression and anxiety. Blake said he often woke up in the middle of the night in a sweaty panic, with a racing heart. He was in treatment for slow-growing prostate cancer. I asked about other recent stressors in his life. “My dad died last year, and my wife just got a pacemaker for her ticker. We thought she wasn’t going to make it,” Blake said, tears streaming down his bearded cheeks. “I don’t know how to handle this right now,” Blake said.

Source: Anne Nygard/Unsplash

I suggested a few mindfulness-based tools to help him soften his response to the very painful stresses he faced. Mindfulness is paying close attention to the present moment on purpose without judgment.

When stressed, the mind typically fills with judgmental thoughts like, “This is boring, I’m such an idiot, I hate this traffic, what a waste of time.” When judgments capture our attention, we no longer pay attention to the moment. We’re interpreting our experience rather than dwelling in it.

Blake’s mind flooded with thoughts like, “I can’t handle this. Everything is going wrong in my life. I can’t manage without my wife.” I taught him a simple mindfulness trick. I said to Blake:

“Focus on what is happening right now. Where are you right now?”

“In your office,” he replied.

“Tell me what you notice about your body right now,” I asked.

“I’m sitting. I feel hot. My posture is bad. Makes my neck hurt,” he said.

“Can you observe without judging anything as good or bad? Feel free to adjust your body to feel more comfortable,” I said. Blake started massaging his neck.

“My neck feels stiff. Rubbing it feels better,” he said.

“What sounds do you hear?” I asked.

“I hear the ticking of a clock—maybe a little traffic noise. A hum from the air conditioner,” he noticed.

I encouraged Blake to observe with all his senses: sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell. With each observation, he was to ignore any judgments popping into his mind. After a few moments, I asked:

“Is this moment manageable for you?”

“Yes, I feel better right now. I see how settling down and paying attention to what is right in front of me can make me calmer,” he said.

Meditation and Your Brain

We can practice mindfulness in our everyday lives and during meditation. When we meditate, distinctive brain patterns emerge. These brain patterns differ from other mental states, including relaxation (Kaur and Singh, 2015). During mindfulness meditation, a combination of Theta and Alpha waves creates a state of both relaxation and wakeful alertness (Ahani et al., 2014).

Experienced meditators can quickly enter this state. Using magnetic resonance imaging, researchers compared long-term meditators' brains with non-meditators. They found significantly higher gray matter density in meditators' lower brain stem regions. As a result, meditators enjoy better cardiorespiratory control, immune system health, and emotion control than non-meditators (Vestergaard-Poulsen et al. 2009).

Mindfulness and Mental Health

Researchers discovered that mindfulness-based approaches are effective in the treatment of anxiety, depression, and other mental health conditions. Changes in brain volume and structure help improve self-awareness and self-calming abilities in meditators (Shapero, B.G. et. Al. 2018). Meditators also enjoy better memory and executive functioning of the brain (Whitfield, T. et al. 2022).

Cancer patients showed a significant reduction in anxiety and depression symptoms after mindfulness training. These benefits remained six months after the end of treatment (Oberoi, S. et al. 2020).

Several studies have shown mindfulness effectively lowers stress (Grossman, P. et al. 2004). A meta-analysis researchers found that Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction training significantly reduced anxiety and improved the psychological functioning of healthcare providers (Kriakous, S. A. et al. 2021).

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Mindfulness and Physical Health

Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a condition in which the force of blood pushing through arteries is consistently too high. If untreated and uncontrolled, it can increase the risk of heart attacks, strokes, and other conditions. The American Heart Association recommends physical exercise, dietary changes, and reduced alcohol consumption.

In a study of hypertension patients who were not compliant with the recommended guidelines, those who participated in a Mindfulness training course significantly improved on several behavior and health measures. Their blood pressure lowered, and they were more likely to stick with medical recommendations even one year later (Loucks, E. B. et al., 2019).

Another study found that Mindfulness meditation improved immune system functioning, reduced inflammation, and lowered biological aging measures (Black, D.S. et al. 2016).

Mindfulness is effective in relieving pain, lessening the need for opioids, and reducing inflammation that causes pain (Zeidan and Vago, 2016).

How to Learn Mindfulness

Blake noticed that he felt less tense and overwhelmed and a bit more clear-headed with the mindfulness tools I provided in therapy. I suggested that he take a meditation course and referred him to a local university offering mindfulness-based stress reduction classes. Though hesitant in the beginning, he was able to find a class compatible with his work schedule, and he signed up.

Many hospitals, universities, health centers, pain management clinics, and psychotherapy groups offer mindfulness-based training programs. If you are currently seeking medical treatment and want additional help, ask your doctor for a referral. You can also find programs with a simple online search. You might find effective programs in your area named:

• Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR).
• Compassion Cultivation Training (CCT).
• Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT).
• Mindful Self-Compassion Training (MSC).

Mindfulness pioneer Jon Kabot-Zinn said, “The richness of present-moment experience is the richness of life itself. Too often we let our thinking and our beliefs about what we ‘know’ prevent us from seeing things as they really are.” Our thoughts are limited to what we already know. Mindfulness helps us learn by opening our eyes to the unfolding of experience as it happens. With that awareness, we can make helpful adjustments to reduce pain and lower stress and distress.

Blake enjoyed the training so much that he recommended it to his wife. She took the course, and together they made meditation a daily practice. He was thrilled to report that his wife’s blood pressure had improved. Buddhist Monk and peace negotiator Thich Nhat Hanh says, “The past is gone, the future is not yet here, and if we do not go back to ourselves in the present moment, we cannot be in touch with life.” With renewed vitality, joy can bubble up spontaneously within you.

To find a therapist, please visit the Psychology Today Therapy Directory.