Person-Centered and Mindfulness - Essay Example

? Person-Centered and Mindfulness Person-Centered and Mindfulness Introduction Sadness and fear can be regarded as some of the most dominant emotional difficulties that most people report and pursue counselling. Sadness represents an expression of grief and loss through life transitions such as loss of a loved one and other disappointments in life (Barker, Vossler, & Langdridge, 2010 p.2 Chapter 1.). Several therapeutic approaches (such as existential, humanistic, and mindfulness) can be found in counselling of clients experiencing fear or sadness in which fear and sadness can be interpreted as universal experiences. Other approaches (mostly psychoanalytic and cognitive behavioural approaches (CBT) draw a line between everyday struggles and “anxiety” and “depression” as representing “mental illnesses.” In the same way as other humanistic approaches, person-centred approach views human beings in a holistic way, whereby individuals can be perceived as capable of making their own independent choices, generate personal meaning, exercising free will, and taking up spiritual dimensions of life (Barker, Vossler, & Langdridge, 2010 p.108. Chapter 5.). Mindfulness features special features such as consciousness that can be fostered and developed by means of mediation. Mindfulness incorporates a feeling of open, equal interest, and friendly presence (Barker, Vossler, & Langdridge, 2010 p.167. Chapter 8.). The paper explores person-centred and mindfulness approaches to counselling and how the approaches understand problems linked to fear and sadness, as well as the manner in which counsellors from these approaches work with clients struggling with fear and sadness. Person-centred Approach According to Rogers, the therapist core variables in person-centred approach encompass congruence, empathy, and unconditional positive regard (acceptance). The attention of the therapist, in this case, does not hinge so much on the individual expressing feelings and opinions, rather than, what is sensed on bodily level, irrespective of whether it is still vague, can be placed at the centre of attention and perceived to be the origin of change processes (Barker, Vossler, & Langdridge, 2010 p.113. Chapter 5.). Rogers proposed a number of conditions for therapeutic change, namely: individuals who are in psychological contact, in which the client is in a state of incongruence (vulnerable or anxious), the therapist is congruent of integrated within the relationship in which he/she experiences unconditional positive regard for the client, the therapist should experience empathic comprehension of the client’s internal frame of reference and seeks to convey the experience to the client, whereby the communication to the client draws from the therapist’s empathic understanding and unconditional positive regard (Barker, Vossler, & Langdridge, 2010 p.114. Chapter 5.). According to Gendlin, “experiencing” the way it is sensed within the present is the quality that can be prompted within the client, and, therefore, represents what the therapist should address. Furthermore, Gendlin, established a method that aids clients to learn how to behave in therapy so as to attain a positive therapy outcome (focusing). Unconditional positive regard highlights the attitude that a client-centred psychotherapist offers towards a client. Empathy/empathetic involves the therapist takes part in the emotional state of the other person in a direct way, which enables him/her to understand it. Congruence (genuineness) refers to a state in which the person is in harmony with his/her way of being and/or where his/her own experiences symbolized and incorporated the self-concept and the self (Barker, Vossler, & Langdridge, 2010 p.115. Chapter 5.). Mindfulness Approach Meditation forms one of the ways of practicing mindfulness, which has been adopted to inform and foster their understandings and practices. The teachings of Buddha draw from four noble truths, namely: attend to suffering; comprehend its origins in craving; let go of craving (and therefore terminate suffering), and nurture the path. CBT has engaged the Buddhist ideas to degree “mindfulness” sums up as its “third-wave” after behaviourism and cognitive revolution. Mindfulness can be considered to be a bit diverse from other approaches to counselling given that mindfulness therapists usually combine this approach with one of the other approaches to counselling such as cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), instead of using mindfulness as a solitary therapeutic approach (Barker, Vossler, & Langdridge, 2010 p.171. Chapter 8.). Largely, mindfulness represents a mode of approaching suffering that should be taught to clients to apply within their lives, rather than purely a form of therapy. In the same way that numerous and diverse versions of Buddhism, there are also numerous versions of mindfulness or psychotherapy heralding slightly different theories and practices based on the approaches that they have combined with which Buddhist teachings. This approach elevates the significance of being present and embracing the present moment in mindfulness. This arises from the realization that it is rare for individuals to be fully in the present moment. When the client is in the grip of depression or anxiety, the experience of revisiting the past and worrying about the future frequently plays out on an even bigger scale. Every difficult feeling appears to herald a tidal wave of memories of other instances, which means that the client experiences an avalanche of emotions. Hence, mindfulness represents a practice of bringing clients back to the present moment devoid of adding a load of past baggage, or instituting means of rendering it different (Barker, Vossler, & Langdridge, 2010 p.172. Chapter 8.). The notion of all aspects being impermanent is central to this approach in which whatever that bubbles up (sensations, sounds, thoughts, and feelings) will drift away again. Comparison of the Person-centred and Mindfulness Approaches Person-centred approach and mindfulness approach share some basic principles such as non-judgement listening, non-intrusiveness, and acceptance. Both approaches incorporate terms such as presence, mindfulness, openness toward all experiencing within the present moment and creating a free space. Both client-centred approach and mindfulness should be exercised in an attitude that fosters non-judgemental acceptance. Both approaches have a strong believe in the positive nature of all human being and believe that the client is the only expert within his/her own internal world and the only person, who should be aware of his/her feelings. Mindfulness incorporates an accepting listening style that is analogous to personal-centred approach proposed by Carl Rogers. Similarly, both person-centred approach and mindfulness recognize the significance of the presence. Rogers employed the variable of “presence” as one that exists within the arena of mysticism and spiritualism in which presence can be considered as releasing and helpful to the other. Rogers maintained that presence helps one to relax and be close to the transcendental core. Although, Rogers reflected on the possible presence, he did not extensively explore an understanding of the presence. The variable of presence is not exclusive to client-centred psychotherapy but also found in mindfulness cognitive therapy. Presence can be regarded as one of the most variable gifts that the therapist can award to his/her client, and perceived to be pertinent to being a successful therapist. Therapeutic presence enables the client and therapist to sense the emotions and the experiencing at a deeper level. Person-centred approach differs from mindfulness approach in numerous ways. For a start, client-centred therapy pursues to attain congruence, empathetic understanding, unconditional positive regard, and acceptance (Barker, Vossler, & Langdridge, 2010 p.113. Chapter 5.). In contrast, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy incorporate training in certain cognitive skills and involves consciously bringing one’s awareness to here-and-now experience with interest, openness, and receptiveness. Person-centred approach to counselling represents a basic view of human beings that highlights the capacity of self-development. Person-centred approach is distinct from mindfulness approach given that person-centred psychotherapy puts the relationship between the client and the therapist at the centre. The approach takes into account certain critical attitudes and ways of behaving in which the therapist meets, or encounters the client for the session to be generate a healing force that delivers change. The two approaches feature certain conditions (six conditions in the case of person-centred and noble truths in the case of mindfulness) which are necessary and sufficient. Personal-centred Approach: Fear, sadness and incongruence The person-centred approach does not essentially utilize diagnostic categorizations linked to fear and sadness such as “depression” and “anxiety.” Roger viewed such a diagnosis would amount to treating people as “objects,” which is likely to obstruct the establishment of a therapeutic relationship and the respectful admittance that the client is the expert on their experiences. Person centred approach holds that distress is a universal human experience, underlined by incongruence (Barker, Vossler, & Langdridge, 2010 p.111. Chapter 5.). Rogers defined incongruence as representing a “fundamental discrepancy” between an individual’s felt experience and the “picture he holds of himself” (divergence between the organismic self and self concept). When feelings such as anger manifest and threatens self concept, individuals may respond through repression, distortion, or by denial. The symptoms of depression and the attendant absence of self-worth are dominantly the outcome of “repressed” feelings such as hatred, sadness, anger, or sexual fantasies, which cannot be expressed since they are not acceptable to self or society. The person-centred therapy draws from the notion that individuals bear the capacity to comprehend the origin of their pain devoid of reference to an “expert.” The client attends the therapy as an independent individual in a state of incongruence, rather than a sick patient in need of treatment. The significance of equal and non-expert association forms the bedrock of person-centred approach, in which the therapist embraces the absolute validity of the client’s individual experience and means of viewing their difficulties (Barker, Vossler, & Langdridge, 2010 p.112. Chapter 5.). For a client who is experiencing sadness and fear, the therapist’s main focus centres on aiding the client explore his/her fears rather than banishing the thoughts. To start with, there is no question of diagnosis or goal-setting before the launch of the therapy since this is incompatible with trusting the client to select the direction and focus of the therapy. Mindfulness: Fear, and Sadness In this approach, the psychotherapist might work directly with clients to help them through the mindfulness practice. Mindfulness is also helpful to therapists, especially when the therapist is just about seeing the client as it may aid the therapist to cope with any difficulties that arise; nevertheless, therapists should be aware of their limitations and pay attention to establishing an effective therapeutic alliance (Barker, Vossler, & Langdridge, 2010 p.179. Chapter 8.). Mindfulness does not highlight significant distinctions between diverse emotional states; instead it understands them all under the overall Buddhist notion of “suffering.” The first element of mindfulness details “acceptance” whereby experiences of depression and anxiety frequently incorporate processes in which the individual feels sad about feeling sad, or feeling frightened, and feeling threatened. This involves a focus on the bridge between how people are, and how they desire to be, and attempt to close it; however, the contrary happens as the gap widen rather than narrowing and people increasingly fall into deeper anguish (Barker, Vossler, & Langdridge, 2010 p.173. Chapter 8.). This process can sometimes be referred to as “psychological quick stand,” whereby, the more individuals struggle and attempt to change the situation, the deeper they sink and the worse they feel. When individuals fail to settle the tough feelings, they often resort to avoidance or distraction in an attempt to drown the feelings out; nevertheless, this strategy is only temporary. As a result of the fixed and/or frozen state, individuals start to identify with feelings of depression and anxiety. Mindfulness approach suggests a substitute to the frequent strategies of attempting to desperately figuring out or circumventing feelings of depression and anxiety and getting stuck in the feelings. Instead of individuals attempting to control the difficulty feelings, mindfulness approach implies that individuals should let and just embrace the feelings that individuals have (Barker, Vossler, & Langdridge, 2010 p.174. Chapter 8.). Hence, the alternative to trying to eliminate difficult feelings, averting them, or identifying with them lies in simply embracing them and be with them as part and parcel of the experience that the client is going through, but entirely the whole of their experience. Conclusion In conclusion, it seems that personal centred approach is more appropriate and potent approach to psychotherapy. One of the overriding principles of the person-centred approach centres on conveying unconditional positive regard for the client. In making a connection, the therapist should help the clients feel accepted and important. In person-centred approach, the client and the therapist do not concentrate their shared efforts on how to apply methods, but rather their experiences and the experiencing of the client are in the focus of their shared attention. The attitudes and relationship avail in person-centred psychotherapy and are considered as pertinent and adequate conditions for constructive processes of change. Mindfulness and acceptance within behavioural therapy indicates that both approaches stimulate people to direct their attention to the internal experiencing-bodily experiencing, thoughts and emotions that emerge during therapy. References Barker, M., Vossler, A., & Langdridge, D. (2010). Understanding counseling and psychotherapy. London, UK: SAGE. Self Reflection In the assignment, I found the concepts expressed in person centred approach to be very interesting, especially in the manner in which it understands fear and sadness; However, I found drawing the comparisons between the two approaches to be particularly difficult owing to sharing of some concepts such as "present." Read More