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What is Mindfulness?

Mindfulness for Therapists


“Mindfulness is the energy of being aware and awake to the present moment. It is the continuous practice of touching life deeply in every moment of daily life. To be mindful is to be truly alive and present with those around you and with what you are doing. We bring our body and mind into harmony while we wash the dishes, drive the car or take our morning cup of tea.”

–Thich Nhat Hanh, Zen Buddhist Monk and Founder of the An Quang Buddhist Institute

Think about the things that have caused you anxiety, stress or depression in the past. Now ask yourself, “Was it the things themselves that caused the anxiety, stress and depression, or was it what I believed about those things?”

Can you think of anything that you’ve ever been worried about, that wasn’t a product of your thoughts and feelings? Isn’t it true, in fact, that the worries come from the thoughts and feelings themselves, and not from the situations in which you find yourself?

If it is true that anxiety and depression are rooted in our thoughts, then we should be able to change our thoughts and eliminate, or at least minimize, anxiety and depression. Mindfulness is a way to change our thoughts. If you can change your thoughts, you can change your world.

The last two decades have seen an explosion in interest in the utility of Mindfulness for treating mental disorders. Consequently, there has been an interest in devising a clinical definition for the term ‘Mindfulness.’
Kabat-Zinn (2003) refers to Mindfulness as “paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally to the unfolding of experience moment by moment.”

Segal et al., (2004) describe Mindfulness as a state of being “fully present and attentive to the content of moment-by-moment experience.”

According to Baer (2003), “In general, while the specific focus of mindfulness may vary, individuals are instructed to be aware of thoughts but to be removed from the content of these thoughts.”

In short, mindfulness is a state of awareness in which we can choose to participate in the thought stream, or to simply observe it.

When we are able to be fully in the present, without worries, stress, or anxiety about the past or the future, we are being mindful. This doesn’t mean that we ignore or deny our thoughts or feelings. Instead, it just means that for now, in the present moment, we are consciously choosing how to respond to those thoughts and feelings.

REFERENCES

Baer, R. A. (2003). Mindfulness training as a clinical intervention: A conceptual and empirical review. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 10, 125-143.

Davidson, R.J., Kabat-Zinn, J., Schmacher, J., Rosenkranz, M., Muller, D., Santorelli, S.F., Urbanowski, F., Harringtron, A., Bonus, K., Sheridan , J.F., Alterations in brain and immune function produced by mindfulness meditation. Psychosomatic Medicine, 65: 564-570, 2003.

Segal, Z. V., Teasdale, J. D., & Williams, J. M. G. (2004). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy: Theoretical rationale and empirical status. In S. G. Hayes, V. Follette, & M. Linehan (Eds.), Expanding the cognitive behavioral tradition. New York: Guilford Press.

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Book a Training Seminar with Dr. Hall

client portal for teletherapy with Charlton Hall, PhD, LMFT

Charlton Hall, PhD is available for training and instruction at your organization. This could be an in-person training, a webinar training, or a hybrid of both. Seminars are available in half-day, all-day, or multiple day formats for any of the topics in our Courses section of the website.

The complete Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy Certified Facilitator Program is also available as a live or web-based seminar. This fifty-hour seminar is only available live in a two-week format, in two 5-day weeks of five hours each, either online or live at your organization. Volume discounts on the Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy Workbook are available for these seminars for your employees or members.

Any of our other courses are also available for your organization. Please view our Courses section if interested.

Dr. Hall is also available for public speaking opportunities on the following topics:

  • Clinical Supervision Best Practices
  • Ecotherapy
  • Marriage and Family Therapy
  • Mindful Suicide Prevention
  • Mindful Treatment of Addiction
  • Mindful Treatment of Anxiety
  • Mindful Treatment of Trauma
  • Mindfulness
  • Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy
  • Play Therapy
  • Suicide Prevention
  • Trauma

Rates for public speaking and seminars are $500 per day per half-day or $1000 per day for full day, plus travel expenses, meals, and accommodations.

Charlton Hall, PhD is available for training and instruction at your organization. This could be an in-person training, a webinar training, or a hybrid of both. Seminars are available in half-day, all-day, or multiple day formats for any of the topics in our Courses section of the website.

The complete Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy Certified Facilitator Program is also available as a live or web-based seminar. This fifty-hour seminar is only available live in a two-week format, in two 5-day weeks of five hours each, either online or live at your organization. Volume discounts on the Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy Workbook are available for these seminars for your employees or members.

Any of our other courses are also available for your organization. Please view our Courses section if interested.

Dr. Hall is also available for public speaking opportunities on the following topics:

  • Clinical Supervision Best Practices
  • Ecotherapy
  • Marriage and Family Therapy
  • Mindful Suicide Prevention
  • Mindful Treatment of Addiction
  • Mindful Treatment of Anxiety
  • Mindful Treatment of Trauma
  • Mindfulness
  • Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy
  • Play Therapy
  • Suicide Prevention
  • Trauma

Rates for public speaking and seminars are $500 per day per half-day or $1000 per day for full day, plus travel expenses, meals, and accommodations.

If you are interested in booking a training or a public speaking engagement with Dr. Hall, please complete the contact form below.

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December is National
Stress-Free Family Holidays Month

It’s been said that the holidays are the one time of year we get together with family to remember why we only see them one time a year.

We live in stressful times. The holidays can be particularly challenging when it comes to family dynamics. Here are some tips to help you have a calmer and stress-free holiday season.

Ten Ways to have a Stress-Free Holiday Season


1. Plan ahead
It can be tempting to attend multiple events in multiple locations during the holidays; however, if you give in to the temptation you may find yourself running around all over the place trying to visit everyone. Plan ahead by limiting your appearances to one or two special occasions. It may help to alternate locations in even and odd years.  For example, if you’re a married couple you may choose to spend the holidays with your parents in even-numbered years and then with your spouse’s parents in odd-numbered years. Look for compromises whenever possible to have a stress-free season.

2. Say no
It’s okay to say “no!” If you find yourself feeling overwhelmed, just set limits. For example, if you’ve been invited to too many holiday events this year, just say “no” and thank them for the offer, then consider attending next year. The ones who matter won’t mind you saying “no,” and the ones who mind you saying “no” don’t matter.

3. Plan spending
Make a budget and stick with it. Remember that the purpose of the season is friends and family, not material goods. Don’t buy a lot of things that you’ll be paying off well into the next year. Consider making something hand-made instead if you have the time and talent, or just offer to help out. Your family will cherish and remember the hand-made things longer than something bought from a store. I know I still have many gifts that were made for my by my children that I cherish to this day.

4. Create a soothing environment
Turn on calming holiday music. Light scented candles. Dim the lights and create ambience. Research demonstrates that scents and music are especially useful in creating a stress-free environment.

5. Set boundaries
We all have at least one relative who triggers us at holiday get-togethers. Deal with difficult friends and relatives by setting appropriate boundaries. Remember that you can agree with another’s right to hold their viewpoint without agreeing with the viewpoint itself. If they still refuse to respect your boundaries, consider not inviting them next year. Being blood-related to someone doesn’t give them the right to be mentally or verbally abusive.

6. Respect differences
All families have different viewpoints, different interests, and different tastes. You can honor those varying opinions and interests without having to agree with them. It helps to focus on what you have in common instead of what you disagree on. This is difficult, but with practice you can respect differences, set appropriate boundaries, and have a calmer holiday season.

7. Be realistic
If you are one of those people who routinely takes on too much during the holiday season then winds up regretting it, learn to be realistic about budgeting your time and energy. Ask family members to help, or set aside some tasks for later and eliminate others altogether. Focus on the intention of the season, which is spending time with loved ones, and the rest will fall into place.

8. Take a break
Before beginning any holiday activity, first ask yourself, “What’s the smallest thing I can do today to make a difference?” then concentrate on doing that. Once that’s done, take a break. If you have any energy left after your break, then go on to the next thing. Repeat this process until you’re out of energy or you’ve finished everything.

9. Be flexible
The nature of plans is that they change…sometimes on the spur of the moment. It helps to realize that this will happen at least once and with all probability more than once this holiday season. When you plan ahead and expect the unexpected, you’re less likely to be stressed out when things go wrong. Flexibility goes a long way towards helping you de-stress your holidays.

10. Unplug
Finally, don’t forget to spend time outdoors! While the holidays tend to be less conducive to outdoor activities, depending on the weather where you live, you can still bundle up and enjoy a brisk walk around the block or in a park. Spending time outdoors naturally calms the nervous system and re-sets your body to help you calm down and be more present in the moment.

Always remember to focus on the intention of the holidays: Spending time with loved ones. Everything else is secondary to that goal. A year from now your family won’t remember the decorations, the party, or the meal, but they will remember the laughter, good times, and the love you shared together!

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Mindful Moments – The Emotional Aggression Cycle

We create our reality based on our assumptions and our perceptions about the world and our place in it. By making assumptions about the world, and using our perceptions, based on those  assumptions,  to  look  for  evidence  to  support  our  beliefs,  we  eventually  create  a  reality  that reflects those assumptions and perceptions.
In this episode of Mindful Moments will talk about how our assumptions and our perceptions influence our reality.

 

To be informed when new episodes of Mindful Moments are available, subscribe to the Mindful Ecotherapy Center’s Youtube channel. You may also subscribe to the newsletter. Future episodes will be announced in the newsletter as they become available.

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NEW COURSE COMING: STARTING A THERAPY BUSINESS

starting a therapy business

Dr. Charlton Hall started his Family Therapy business career in 2008 by creating and running the Family Therapy Teaching Clinic at the Upstate Family Resources Center in Spartanburg, South Carolina while still in graduate school. He served as the Clinical Services Director, then went on to start several successful Family Therapy private practices. His last job before becoming the Director of the Mindful Ecotherapy Center was Chair of Behavioral Health for a major medical clinic in South Carolina.

Starting a Therapy Business Course Content

In this course due to be released in January of 2023 Dr. Hall shares his expertise and experience in starting a private practice therapy business. In this course we will cover:
• Is private practice right for you?
• Types of business entity
• Taxes and licenses needed for each type of business entity
• Learn the basics of getting on insurance panels and the process of billing
• How to get on EAPs and HMOs
• Professional Organizations: Should you join them?
• Advertising and Branding
• Marketing your therapy business
This course will be announced in the newsletter when available!

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Transgender Remembrance Day

Transgender Remembrance Day is November 20, 2022. On this day we honor the memory of those who have lost their lives to anti-transgender violence.

Imagine your life was in danger on a daily basis simply for being who you are. Imagine suffering discrimination not only in the workplace, but also in your school, in your church, or in your own family or even when you visit your health care provider.

If you can imagine this then you have a good understanding of what most transgender people endure on a daily basis.

Did you know that in 2019 twenty-six Americans lost their lives due to transgender violence?

These victims were killed by acquaintances, partners and strangers, some of whom have been arrested and charged, while others have yet to be identified.

Some of these cases involve clear anti-transgender bias. In others, the victim’s transgender status may have put them at risk in other ways, such as forcing them into unemployment, poverty, homelessness and/or survival sex work and sex trafficking.

Of the victims murdered, 80% were people of color, 55% were transgender women, and 50% were transgender women of color.

Transgender women survivors of hate violence were also more likely to experience police violence, physical violence, discrimination, harassment, sexual violence, threats, and intimidation compared to those who were not transgender women.

Violence and harassment were experienced by the more than 6,000 transgender people across a variety of contexts, including educational settings, at work, in interactions with police and with family members, at homeless shelters, accessing public accommodations, and in jails and prisons.

Additionally, murders of transgender people often go unreported, and the identity of transgender murder victims is often misreported, so the actual numbers are probably far higher.

So what can you do? Start by calling attention to local victims of anti-transgender violence.

Highlight positive stories of transgender individuals, and the dehumanizing discrimination they have faced in their every day lives.

Familiarize yourself with statistics on transgender violence and make your community aware.

Statistics from the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) show that in schools, 16.2% of transgender students report being physically assaulted as a result of gender expression, while 32.5% experience physical harassment including bullying and physical assault. You can talk with transgender youth about their experiences growing up and create educational networks to fight such discrimination.

Contact local transgender and LGBTQ organizations to find out how they plan to observe Transgender Day of Remembrance.

Many universities and high schools, through their Gay-Straight Alliances and other organizations, hold candlelight vigils or other events to recognize the day.

You can also get involved in a local event or start one of your own.
Here are types some events to Look For:

  • Candlelight vigils are the most common way that local communities recognize Transgender Day of Remembrance, Such events may also include:
  • Marches
  • Forums and panel discussions with local advocates
  • Poetry or spoken word readings
  • Art exhibits
  • Movie screenings of feature films or documentaries that center on transgender characters or subjects
  • Representations of the number of transgender people murdered, such as tombstone cutouts, memorials with photographs, or chalk outlines.

To learn more about what you can do, visit some of the resources listed below.

National Center for Transgender Equality
https://transequality.org/

Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation
https://www.glaad.org/transgender/resources

Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays
https://pflag.org/

The Trevor Project for Young LGBTQ Lives
https://www.thetrevorproject.org/

If you are a transgender person who has experienced discrimination, contact one of the organizations listed here for a list of resources and support in your area.

And remember…having a transgender child doesn’t mean you’ve failed as a parent. Rejecting your transgender child means you’ve failed as a parent.

If you are currently feeling suicidal or know someone who is, contact the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 800-273-TALK (8255) or dial 988 on your smart phone.

Together we can make a difference!

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Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy Facilitator Manual 2nd Edition

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This Second Edition of the Facilitator Manual for the Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy Program contains the complete text of the Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy Workbook plus additional material on how to facilitate each session of the program. The Facilitator Manual also includes information on running a successful group, and the stages of group change and group dynamics. This manual is designed to help facilitators of the Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy program successfully implement a workshop series.
The Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy workshop series teaches you the 12 skills of Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy (MBE) by introducing one of these skills at each of the 12 sessions in the program. The experiential nature of the work allows anyone with access to outdoor spaces the opportunity to complete the series on their own. The Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy Workbook allows you to embrace the healing power of nature in an experiential way.

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Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy Workbook 2nd Edition

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This is the second edition of Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy Workbook. The original workbook was published in 2015, and the sciences of mindfulness and ecotherapy have advanced a great deal since that time. This second edition was updated to reflect this new research. This edition, like its predecessor, was written to accompany the 12-week Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy workshop series. Some of the exercises in this new edition have changed based on participant feedback regarding what is more helpful in facilitating nature experiences.
This new version of the handbook introduces the 12 skills of Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy (MBE) and introduces one of these skills at each of the 12 sessions in the program. Although this book is designed to accompany the 12-week Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy workshop series, it may also be completed on your own at home. The experiential nature of the work allows anyone with access to outdoor spaces the opportunity to complete the series. If you are interested in participating in a workshop series near you, you can visit the Mindful Ecotherapy Center’s website at www.mindfulecotherapy.org. The website contains a directory of Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy programs worldwide at
https://www.mindfulecotherapycenter.com/directory-2

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A New Certification for Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy

Gallery of the Mindful Ecotherapy Center, LLC

The Mindful Ecotherapy Center, LLC has been providing continuing education in mindfulness and ecotherapy since 2007. During all of that time, students of Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy have continually expressed a desire for an organization that specifically caters to the educational needs of counselors and therapists who practice Mindful Ecotherapy.

With these needs in mind, the Mindful Ecotherapy Center, LLC is exploring the possibility of creating a new two-year certification in Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy. This new certification would train and certify counselors and therapists specifically in Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy. This would be an intensive two-year certification process, including up-to-date training in the latest techniques, research, and education in Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy.

Such a certification would require renewal every three years, and would have a continuing education requirement during each renewal period, so that MBE practitioners are up-to-date on the latest techniques and interventions. It would also require case presentations and supervision for certification.

This would be a different and much more intensive certification than our current Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapy Facilitator Certification training. Trainees who complete the two-year training would be certified Mindfulness-Based Ecotherapists (MBE). The Mindful Ecotherapy Center, LLC is now opening a dialog with interested parties who would like to potentially serve on the MBE Certification Board or otherwise help in making this long-awaited vision a reality. If you would be interested in joining the discussion as we move forward, please visit the forum by clicking here.

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Ecospirituality: The Way of the Coyote

Ecospirituality: The Way of the Coyote

Now Available!

Ecospirituality: The Way of the Coyote

Ecospirituality: The Way of the CoyoteEcospirituality: The Way of the Coyote
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The word “spiritual” comes from the Latin spiritus, which means, “breath.” So originally, that which was spiritual was simply that which was breathtaking. From this perspective a spiritual experience is an awe-inspiring experience. People of all religions…or none…can experience such awe-inspiring events in nature. Ecospirituality can be spiritual without being religious. Those breathtaking moments for me most often occur when I have made some sort of connection to nature. Ecospirituality is the process of seeking wonder and awe in those moments in natural environments. The Ecospirituality Program is available for use at any organization that teaches principles of ecology and/or mental and spiritual health. If you are interested in presenting the program at your organization, training is available for facilitators at www.mindfulecotherapy.org.If your organization would like to implement the Ecospirituality Program, Charlton Hall, MMFT, LMFT/S, RPT-S, CHt also offers facilitated live instruction and consultation on the program, as well as volume discounts on copies of the Ecospirituality Workbook.Learn more at the Mindful Ecotherapy Center’s website at www.mindfulecotherapy.org.