The applications and use of mindfulness-based interventions in medicine,
mental health care, and education have been expanding as rapidly as the
empirical evidence base that is validating and recommending them. This
growth has created a powerful demand for professionals who can
effectively deliver these interventions, and for the training of new
professionals who can enter the fold.
Ironically, while the scientific literature on mindfulness has surged,
little attention has been paid to the critical who and how of
mindfulness pedagogy. Teaching Mindfulness is the first in-depth
treatment of the person and skills of the mindfulness teacher. It is
intended as a practical guide to the landscape of teaching, to help
those with a new or growing interest in mindfulness-based interventions
to develop both the personal authenticity and the practical know-how
that can make teaching mindfulness a highly rewarding and effective way
of working with others. The detail of theory and praxis it contains can
also help seasoned mindfulness practitioners and teachers to articulate
and understand more clearly their own pedagogical approaches.
Engagingly written and enriched with vignettes from actual classes and
individual sessions, this unique volume:
-
Places the current mindfulness-based interventions in their cultural
and historical context to help clarify language use, and the
integration of Eastern and Western spiritual and secular traditions
-
Offers a highly relational understanding of mindfulness practice that
supports moment-by-moment work with groups and individuals
-
Provides guidance and materials for a highly experiential exploration
of the reader's personal practice, embodiment, and application of
mindfulness
-
Describes in detail the four essential skill sets of the mindfulness
teacher
-
Proposes a comprehensive, systematic model of the intentions of
teaching mindfulness as they are revealed in the mindfulness-based
interventions
-
Includes sample scripts for a wide range of mindfulness practices, and
an extensive resource section for continued personal and career
development
-
Essential for today's practitioners and teachers of mindfulness-based
interventions
Teaching Mindfulness: A Practical Guide for Clinicians and Educators
brings this increasingly important discipline into clearer focus,
opening dialogue for physicians, clinical and health psychologists,
clinical social workers, marriage and family therapists, professional
counselors, nurses, occupational therapists, physical therapists,
pastoral counselors, spiritual directors, life coaches, organizational
development professionals, and teachers and professionals in higher
education, in short, everyone with an interest in helping others find
their way into the benefits of the present moment.