Mindfulness and Acceptance in Couple and Family Therapy

Mindfulness and Acceptance in Couple and Family Therapy

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Diane R. Gehart Mindfulness and Acceptance in Couple and Family Therapy

Prof. Diane R. Gehart California State University Northridge CA 91330 USA Please note that additional material for this book can be downloaded from http://extras. springer.com ISBN 978-1-4614-3032-2 ISBN 978-1-4614-3033-9 (ebook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-3033-9 Springer New York Heidelberg Dordrecht London Library of Congress Control Number: 2012933752 Springer Science+Business Media New York 2012 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. Exempted from this legal reservation are brief excerpts in connection with reviews or scholarly analysis or material supplied specifically for the purpose of being entered and executed on a computer system, for exclusive use by the purchaser of the work. Duplication of this publication or parts thereof is permitted only under the provisions of the Copyright Law of the Publisher s location, in its current version, and permission for use must always be obtained from Springer. Permissions for use may be obtained through RightsLink at the Copyright Clearance Center. Violations are liable to prosecution under the respective Copyright Law. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. While the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication, neither the authors nor the editors nor the publisher can accept any legal responsibility for any errors or omissions that may be made. The publisher makes no warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein. Printed on acid-free paper Springer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com)

Preface The roots of this book go back to a hot and humid August afternoon in Williamsburg, Virginia, in 1988. My advisor had finished signing me up for the requisite first semester courses in psychology, when he told me to select an elective. As I flipped through my options, I was surprised to find that William and Mary had a department of religion; it was a state school, after all. As a native Southern Californian, the course in Buddhism caught my eye and, even though my professor was quite puzzled, I insisted he sign me up. I found the constructionist philosophy that described reality as constructed by the perceiver through language challenging but was fascinated, if not obsessed. Soon, I was speaking Chinese and majoring in both East Asian Studies and psychology. However, I was forced to keep these two worlds separate: I could not find a single professor in psychology or religion studies who was willing to supervise a senior thesis on Buddhism and psychology, all claiming the topic was inappropriate for scholarly study. Unable to follow both passions, I decided to pursue a doctoral degree that would allow me to become a Tibetan Buddhist scholar, earning a fellowship at the University of Washington. However, when I heard most of the graduates ended up doing classified work for the CIA rather than giving boring lectures in an ivory tower, I left to go back to less adventurous study of psychology. Unfortunately, at the time, I didn t understand the nuances of the field and landed in a marriage and family therapy program instead. As often happens in life, this mistake turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Once I sat through my first family therapy theories course, I knew I had finally found the discipline that would allow me to follow both of my passions. The systemic and postmodern family therapy theories were nothing less than Western therapeutic versions of Eastern philosophies, allowing me to put Buddhist principles into practical action that enriched the lives of others without my having to master 11 foreign languages. I had found my academic home. Thankfully, I had an open-minded faculty that allowed me to periodically pull out some of my Buddhist resources to write about how I approached family therapy as Buddhismin-action. After graduate school, however, I was careful to never whisper a word about the commingling of these two worlds, remembering the shameful lessons I learned earlier about subjects worthy of study in the academy. v

vi Preface When mindfulness began to emerge as major force in the field of psychotherapy, I was stunned. The taboo had been broken. I literally had tears of joy in my eyes. Although I know it seems a bit dramatic to those outside of academia, it was as if I were finally pardoned for my scholarly sins. I later learned that Jon Kabat-Zinn (1990) did much of the liberation by introducing the practice of mindfulness in behavioral medicine; thus, I, like so many others, am forever indebted to his pioneering spirit. In this book, I hope to bring this journey full circle by connecting mindfully oriented therapies and their family therapy kin, to their Buddhist foundations. I will do this in three parts. In the first, I will review the research and philosophical foundations for using mindfulness, acceptance, and Buddhist psychology in couple and family therapy. The second part of the book provides a detailed and practical approach for putting these ideas into action in the therapy room, including: Forming and maintaining a therapeutic relationship Developing a case conceptualization Identifying goals and developing a treatment plan Using mindfulness and acceptance principles to approach treatment Intervening to make changes in couple and family relationships Instructing clients in mindfulness practices as appropriate Practicing therapist self-care with mindfulness The practices in this approach are designed so that therapists can easily integrate them into their current practices, regardless of their preferred model. Finally, the last part of the book addresses using mindfulness in training and for therapist selfcare. Throughout the book, I share numerous client cases, all of which are based on clients I have seen over the years; identifying information and specifics have been altered to protect their identities. I am particularly grateful to the adventurous spirit of these people who explored new territory with me as I developed the practices described in this book. I invite you, the reader, to discover the potentials of mindfulness and acceptance in helping your clients to live fuller and richer lives and to also find ways to do the same for yourself. Enjoy the journey. Namaste.

Contents Part I Introduction to Philosophical and Research Foundations 1 Mindfulness in Therapy... 3 2 A Mindful Re-visioning of Couple and Family Therapy Practice... 21 3 Mindfulness Research Foundations... 39 Part II The Practice of Mindfully Oriented Couple and Family Therapy 4 Therapeutic Presence and Mindfulness... 59 5 Mindfulness-Informed Case Conceptualization and Treatment Planning... 73 6 Teaching Mindfulness Practice in Therapy... 105 7 Foundational Mindfulness- and Acceptance-Informed Interventions and Practices... 135 8 Mindfulness and Acceptance Interventions for Couples and Families... 159 vii

viii Contents Part III Training and Self-Care 9 Training and Supervision... 191 10 Therapist Self-Care and Style of Life... 211 About the Author... 223 References... 225 Index... 237