YMCA Mindfulness Group Flashcards
What are some criteria for screening out people from the group?
OCD behaviours like compulsions, physical behaviours, distractions Recent trauma Personality disorder Chaotic lives Ongoing, frequent panic attacks High suicidality Substance abuse
What are important criteria for screening in?
Can attend all sessions and willing to commit
Enthusiastic about attendance
Some indication of effort to make outward social contact
What is the acronym for Doug Cave’s group guidelines and what do they mean?
Confidentiality (Standard limits)
Equal air time (No side conversations)
Non-judgmental listening (Focus on own experience)
Timeliness (Participants arrive on time, facilitators end on time)
Right to pass
Engagement (Engaged as possible, within reason)
What are some useful mindfulness skills / interventions that you’ve taught?
The triangle of awareness: balancing awareness of thoughts, emotions, sensations The CBT triangle: Thoughts, feelings, behaviours Stress physiology Amygdala hijack - siegal's brain hand Body scan Cognitive diffusion Exploring definitions of mindfulness Diaphramatic breathing / radiant breath Bi-lateral breathing / awareness Ball passing exercise Back body breathing / leaning Personal boundary exercise (move closer, direct them, try facing, try facing away, try with their eyes closed, try with them a step inside the boundary, a step outside the boundary, how do you know it's to close or too far? What sensations tell you that?
What information should be gathered in a suicide assessment?
Plan: Do they have a plan and the means?
Previous attempt: Have they attempted before? What was the plan then? Have they lost anyone to suicide?
Protective factors: What, who keeps them going? What prevents them from acting on suicidal thoughts?
Pain: What is their level of physical / emotional pain?
Present Acute state: Agitated and impulsive, and very happy, relieved both could be risk factors
What is the suicide warning sign acronym?
IS PATH WARM
Ideation
Substance use
Purposelessness
Anxiety
Trapped
Hopeless/helpless
Withdrawal
Anger
Recklessness
Mood change
What are the standard 5 mental health first aid steps?
Assess suicide / harm risk Listen non-judgmentally Give reassurance Encourage professional support Encourage other supports
1) Approach the person and assist with any crisis
2) Listen non-judgmentally
3) Give support and information
4) Encourage and support the person to get professional help
5) Encourage other supports
What are some mindfulness group strategies?
- personal boundaries - physical sensations
- body scan
- mindful eating
- watch your thoughts (diffusion; meta-cognitive awareness)
- mindful movement
- being vs doing
- mindful communication (scenarios in partners)
- sitting very still
- stress effect on the body
- stay spontaneous with group, embody what you are teaching, be willing to stray from the plan
- Talk a bit about group process - changing levels of anxiety as people speak, as we move closer or apart
What are some examples of difficult anxiety situations you have dealt with?
In a group setting, a client came in late, appeared anxious. I invited her to introduce herself, and she indicated she had heavy social anxiety. Can anyone relate to that? Yes, right away people jump in to reassure. Is everyone okay with doing a quick
What are some examples of difficult group situations you have dealt with?
- I ran a UBC program, and trained facilitators in a peer led program dealing with challenging group scenarios, which included how to deal with different types of challenging group members. For example, a dominator, a withdrawer,
- Balance processing with education and working/learning
How would you teach coping skills?
First step is awareness.
- What are your current coping skills? We all have them. They can range from having a drink, talking with friends, exercising, to self-harm, disordered eating, etc. Avoidance. They are all ways to deal with stress, and in some sense are adaptive. We wouldn’t use them if they didn’t help somewhat.
- Every coping approach can have a downside, in the extreme.
- Types of coping: Diversion; Social; Cognitive; Physical tension
How would you take a strengths based approach, and encourage members to change?
Emphasize that defenses are adaptive to a point, and that perhaps instead of trying to change the defence, work on cultivating its opposite
- Have members brainstorm resources in the practical, physical, psychological, social,
- Have everyone list every resource, thing they have going for them, and list everything they have going against them. Choose one list to focus on in the morning, and one list to read once a month to check up on.
- Talk about shame, worthiness, belonging (Brene Brown)
- Get them working with each other, pair and small group work
- Create a dynamic in the group where they normalize each others struggles and encourage each other
How do you define mindfulness?
Mindfulness is a broad psychological construct with varying definitions; Jon Kabat Zinn’s famous, perhaps oversimplified definition is “Paying attention to one’s present moment experience on purpose, with an attitude of non-judgment.” It is based on so-called Eastern contemplative principles, and overlaps significantly with meditation, conscious awareness, equanimity, and adaptive detachment. There is good evidence to suggest mindfulness helps with anxiety, depression, physical pain, and sleep disorders. And evidence to suggest mindful movement may be even more effective. Mindfulness is an area of debate in the literature right now, especially in relation to its de-contextualization ethical principles in clinical practice.
To youth: being present, on purpose, to present moment awareness, non-judgmentally
I invite you to stand up, stretch, shake your limbs. Feel your feet, move your awareness. Would anyone care to share something they are aware of? Heat. Nice. And is heat a good thing, or a bad thing? Is it comfortable, or uncomfortable? Now, what if I asked you to imagine that sensation of heat didn’t have a name, and that there is no word for good and bad, and just asked you to pay attention to that feeling, the shape of it, the strangeness of it, just the pure sensation. There, that’s mindfulness.
Mindfulness is experiential, so definition will vary from person to person, but let me provide you with an example. If you like, stand up. Look at the window, look at the floor, notice that you can direct your attention. Now pay attention to the temperature of the room. Now to the feeling of the soles of your feet on the floor. Notice how much control you have over your attention, both externally and internally. Now really feel your feet, perhaps rocking back and forth to really feel them. Notice your breathing. Are you holding your breath? Breathing shallow? Get steady. There will be thoughts, always thoughts often with a judgment. Am I doing this right? I’m doing this so well. I like this facilitator, or I hate this facilitator. Can you notice those thoughts? Can you observe all of that with out making it right or wrong? Is everyone with me? That’s mindfulness.
If you like, stand up. Look down, look up. Feel the temperature of the room, feel whether you are hungry or not. Notice how you can direct your attention. Now, when you are ready, and no rush, start to feel your feet, in your shoes. Maybe the temperature, or pressure on the floor. Perhaps shifting your weight forward and back to really feel them. Once you’ve gotten a sense of your feet, move your attention up to your abdomen and chest and notice the feeling of your breathing. Let’s take a deep breath in together, and exhale. Did you have a judgment about your own breath? Like, I’m not breathing, I’m breathing to quick, or to shallow, or too, slow. Or, I don’t like the sound of this guys voice. Or, this guy is bloody genius; I’m already relaxed. And taking a few more at your own pace, noticing the shape change of your abdomen and chest cavity, but this time, suspending any idea of right or wrong, and just breathing. There, that’s mindfulness.
Did anyone experience at least a moment, or a few moments of just being aware of their own thoughts, the feeling of their feet, the sound of my voice? That’s mindfulness. It’s pretty simple really.
What do you know about this mindfulness program?
13-30 year olds Coping skills, run by counsellors Connect with others Learn about anxiety and mental health Evidence-based mindfulness practice Intro to ACT A gym membership runs concurrently You screen youth
What do you know about the YMCA mission, vision, strategic outcomes, and 4 values?
Charity to help community, by helping children and families thrive; promoting healthy living; and fostering belonging and connection. Help people reach their full potential.
Values:
1) Do the right thing
We are caring, respectful, honest and responsible in all we do.
2) Put people first
We believe in each other—our strengths, perspectives and passion.
3) Keep our promises
We do what we say we will do.
4) Lead by example
We are courageous, speak with conviction, listen attentively and collaborate.
