Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy for Life (MBCT-L)

The MBCT-L programme is broadly structured as follows:

• The earlier parts of the programme focus on developing mindfulness skills through a range of practices intended both to enhance attentional control as well as develop an friendly awareness flavoured with attitudinal qualities of curiosity, care, patience, kindness and equanimity brought to experiences whether they are pleasant, neutral or unpleasant.

• Throughout there is emphasis on developing understanding and insight into the creation and maintenance of human distress, and how this can be addressed by mindfulness training. This is based on both cognitive science and foundational traditions. Participants learn that that habitual reactive patterns such as fear, denial and discrepancy thinking create and re-create distress. They learn that ruminating on or pushing away difficult experiences can maintain distress and through practice learn skilful ways of relating to experience. The theme of responding compassionately and mindfully in place of unhelpful reactivity is at the core.

• In the later parts of the programme, there is a growing emphasis on applying this learning to everyday life - whether in working with distress and difficulties or savouring the positive, realising potential and flourishing.

There is a lot of evidence for MBCT though less specifically for MBCT-L:

• Evaluation of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for life and a cognitive behavioural therapy stress-management workshop to improve healthcare staff stress: study protocol for two randomised controlled trials

• Can Mindfulness Training and Practice Reduce Stress and Increase Levels of Well-Being and Self-Compassion for Secondary School Staff

• Reducing stress and promoting well-being in healthcare workers using mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for life