Grounding Yourself: Mindfulness & Meditation for Treatment of Victims of Trauma and Stress

Grounding Yourself: Mindfulness & Meditation for Treatment of Victims of Trauma and Stress
By Anthony Botrus, LMFT, Evaluator for Dr. Alex Avila’s Premiere Forensic Dream Team

Originally published in OFFICES OF DR. AVILA: PREMIER FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY EZINE, # 102  on 2/28/17

As things heat up in the legal world due to recent (proposed) changes, both attorneys and clients are under increased stress and pressure. In our therapy with clients (and attorneys), we use a very valuable technique known as Mindfulness Meditation that can be beneficial in decreasing anxiety and sadness and increasing self-esteem and relaxation.

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), is the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, instead of being overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us. Mindfulness training has been shown to promote cognitive resilience in high-stress patients by curbing attentional lapses over high-demand intervals (Jha, Morrison, Parker, & Stanley, 2017). Mindfulness training has also been beneficial in the treatment of patients who suffer from chronic pain—patients who underwent training in mindfulness meditation in a 10-week Stress Reduction and Relaxation Program showed significant reductions in present-moment pain, negative body image, inhibition of activity by pain symptoms, mood disturbance, and psychological symptomatology, including anxiety and depression as well as a reduction of pain-related drug utilization (Kabat-Zinn, Lipworth, & Burney, 1985).

In addition to the short-term benefits, mindfulness training has been shown to have long-lasting advantageous outcomes. A longitudinal study of patients with anxiety symptoms demonstrated a significant reduction in the severity and frequency of panic attacks and depressive and anxious symptoms in the three years following a stress reduction intervention based on mindfulness meditation (Miller, Fletcher, & Kabat-Zinn, 1995). Furthermore, the findings of another recent study also support the hypothesis that MBSR reduces negative affect, and also reduces the extent to which individuals perceive their days as stressful, also suggesting that there is a dose-response relationship between the amount of mindfulness practice and reductions in daily stress and negative affect (Snippe, Dziak, Lanza, Nyklíček, & Wichers, 2017).

Lastly, mindfulness-based clinical interventions have shown promise in the treatment of disorders outside of trauma-related and anxiety disorders. Patients with anxious personalities may have a significant advantage in receiving training in mindfulness meditation. A longitudinal study aimed at determining personality factors (which mediate the effectiveness of mindfulness-based stress reduction interventions) found that patients with neurotic personalities had the greatest benefit from mindfulness training, even after a three-month follow up (Nyklíček & Irrmischer, 2017). Patients who suffer from recurrent episodes of Major Depressive Disorder may also find mindfulness training to be highly beneficial. The hypothesis is that mindfulness training may be an essential factor in the treatment of depressed patients, since it would help patients to disengage from ruminative (obsessive) thought patterns.

In conclusion, when working with patients who suffer from anxiety, traumatic stress, and depressive symptoms, treatment models that integrate mindfulness meditation training can offer truly helpful coping strategies. Patients who have been victimized, or who have experienced a traumatic event, may be better served by clinical treatment that includes interventions such as meditation, grounding, and mindfulness-based stress reduction training.
References
Jha, A. P.,  Morrison, A. B., Parker, S. C., & Stanley, E. A. (2017). Practice Is Protective: Mindfulness
Training Promotes Cognitive Resilience in High-Stress Cohorts.  Mindfulness 8(1) 46-58. doi:10.1007/s12671-015-0465-9
Kabat-Zinn, J., Lipworth, L. & Burney, R. (1985). The clinical use of mindfulness meditation for the self
regulation of chronic pain.  Journal of Behavioral Medicine. 8(2). 163-190. doi:10.1007/BF00845519
Kabat-Zinn, J. (2015). Mindfulness: Getting Started. Retrieved from
http://www.mindful.org/meditation/mindfulness-getting-started/
Miller, J. J.,  Fletcher, K., & Kabat-Zinn, J. (1995). Three-year follow-up and clinical implications of a
mindfulness meditation-based stress reduction intervention in the treatment of anxiety disorders. General Hospital Psychiatry. 17(3). 192 – 200.
Nyklíček, I., & Irrmischer, M. (2017). For Whom Does Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Work?
Moderating Effects of Personality.  Mindfulness. 15 February 2017. 1-11. doi:10.1007/s12671-016-0650-5
Segal, Z., Williams, J. M., & Teasdale, J. D. (2002). Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for depression.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Book Reviews, (3) 11
Snippe, E., Dziak, J. J., Lanza, S.T., Nyklíček, I., & Wichers, M. (2017). The Shape of Change in Perceived
Stress, Negative Affect, and Stress Sensitivity During Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction.  Mindfulness. 10 January 2017. 1-9. doi:10.1007/s12671-016-0650-5

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