Review Article
Year: 2020 | Month: October-December | Volume: 5 | Issue: 4 | Pages: 77-84
Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression
Azeez Rizwana
Post Doc Psychologist, Epidemiology Research Unit, CSI Holdsworth Memorial Hospital, Mysore
ABSTRACT
Depression is an illness that restricts an individual’s ability to work, eat, sleep, or enjoys a pleasurable event. WHO identifies depression as one of the largest illness in terms of morbidity with statistics reporting higher incidence of depression in women than men. Factors related to depression in India have not been different from the other parts of the world. A major shift is to develop promising brief interventions that would have high potential to expand under real life conditions is the need of the hour. Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) is one such approach with promising effects as compared to other psychotherapies. Studies report MBCT efficaciously increases self-awareness, self-reflection, emotional wellbeing and functioning by equipping one with skills like acceptance, exposure, non-judgmental observation, cognitive flexibility, relaxation, and self-management. Thus, a client is helped to change depressive states. This therapy modality teaches the clients the necessary skills to disengage from habitual patterns of dysfunctional cognitive routines and help them to adapt a healthy behaviour.
Keywords: MBCT, Depression, Cognitive Therapy, Meditation-based therapy, Behaviour-Cognitive Models.