Meditation and Yoga in Psychotherapy: Techniques for Clinical Practice

303 Pages·2010·5.5 MB·English

by  Annellen M. Simpkins

Meditation and Yoga in
Psychotherapy
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Meditation and Yoga in
Psychotherapy
Techniques for Clinical Practice
Annellen M. Simpkins
C. Alexander Simpkins
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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This book is printed on acid-free paper. o
Copyright © 2011 by Annellen M. Simpkins and C. Alexander Simpkins. All rights reserved.
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.
Published simultaneously in Canada.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Simpkins, Annellen M.
Meditation and yoga in psychotherapy : techniques for clinical practice / Annellen M. Simpkins,
C. Alexander Simpkins.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 978-0-470-56241-3 (pbk.); ISBN 978-0-470-92055-8 (ebk); ISBN 978-0-470-92056-5 (ebk);
ISBN 978-0-470-92057-2 (ebk)
1. Meditation—Therapeutic use. 2. Yoga—Therapeutic use.
I. Simpkins, C. Alexander. II. Title.
RC489.M43S557 2010
616.89’165—dc22
2010023271
Printed in the United States of America
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We dedicate this book to our family:
Alura, Anthony, Kira, and Kaia Aguilera,
C. Alexander Simpkins Jr., and
R. Joanne Jao who helped us
bring these methods to you.
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Contents
Preface xi
How Yoga Can Help the Th erapeutic Process xii
Yoga’s Popularity xiv
About Th is Book xiv
Part I: Effi cacy and Neuroscience Research 1
1 ◆ Effi cacy 3
Effi cacy Studies Overview 6
Effi cacy Studies for Specifi c Problems 10
Factors of Healing 17
Conclusion 21
2 ◆ Yoga and the Brain 23
Th e Relationship Between Mind and Brain 23
Overview of How Yoga Aff ects the Brain 25
Th e Neuroanatomy of Yoga 26
From Mind to Brain: Neuroplasticity and Neurogenesis 32
Conclusion 41
Part II: What Is Yoga? 43
3 ◆ Traditions 45
Tracing Yoga’s Roots in Ancient Texts 46
Diff erent Forms of Yoga 49
Introduction to the West Th rough Great Teachers 58
Conclusion 71
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viii CONTENTS
4 ◆ Philosophy 73
From Samkhya to Yoga: Integration of Mind and Matter 74
Th e Eight Limbs of Yoga 75
Integration 85
Conclusion 86
5 ◆ Practices 87
Integrating Yamas and Niyamas as a Th erapeutic Tool 88
Asana Postures 89
Pranayama Breathing 100
Meditation 105
Conclusion 111
Part III: Applications 113
6 ◆ Overcoming Stress With the Eight Limbs of Th erapy 115
Background and Th eory 115
Taking Yoga From Th eory to Practice 120
Using the Yamas and Niyamas 121
Pratyahara: Withdrawing 123
Dharana: Narrowing the Focus 124
Dhyana: Opening the Focus 129
Fostering Relaxation 129
Conclusion 132
7 ◆ Transcending Anxiety 133
Th e Anxious Mind, Brain, Body, and Spirit 133
Categories of Anxiety 135
Yoga Treatments 136
Overcoming Anxiety Actively 139
Dynamic Work on the Anxious Mind-Body-Brain System 148
Working With Panic Disorder 149
Treatments for PTSD 151
Treatment for OCD: Trading Rituals 154
Conclusion 155
8 ◆ Freedom From Depression’s Grip 157
Th eories of Depression and Th eir Integration 157
Working With Depression Integratively 160
Altering the Neurochemical Balance 162
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Contents ix
Fostering Cognitive Change 170
Improving Social Interactions 174
Conclusion 178
9 ◆ Addiction: Five Steps to Lasting Release 179
Defi nitions 180
Neurobiology of Addiction 181
A Five-Step Method for Treating Addiction 182
Conclusion 194
10 ◆ Adapting Yoga for Children 195
ADHD: Discovering Steady Attention 196
Overcoming Anxiety and Stress 203
Aggressive Behavior 207
Some Special Variations for Children 210
Learning and Memory: Using Wisdom to Gain Knowledge 211
Conclusion 216
11 ◆ Healthy Aging 217
Th e Aging Mind, Brain, and Body 217
Uncovering the Value of Aging 222
Enhancing Vitality, Flexibility, and Strength: Chair-Sitting Yoga 223
Working With Memory 231
Pain Control 236
Conclusion 239
12 ◆ Freedom: Living From the Soul for Clients and Th erapists 241
What Is the Soul? 241
Soul of the Client: Fostering the Best 244
Drawing on the Soul of the Th erapist 248
Attainment of Freedom 250
Appendix I: Warming Up for Supplemental Practice 253
Appendix II: A Quick Tour Th rough the Brain 257
References 269
Index 285
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Preface
We can have cognitions about our emotions and have emotions about our
cognitions, but to exert control over either of these requires an additional
set of capacities—those that enable self-direction.
(McCloskey, Hewitt, Henzel, & Eusebio, 2009, p. 73)
W
e live in challenging times. Powerful forces swirl about,
pushing against the fabric of the world, changing it. Blown by these winds,
we are hurled into an unknown future. We often feel that our lives are be-
yond our control, that all we can do is suff er the pushes and pulls of fate.
Yoga off ers hope. Th ere is a way to take hold of and defi ne our direction,
and it is open to everyone. Th ough at times the path may be uncertain, lost
in the ever-changing chaotic world, our way can be clear, anchored in the
internal world. We can gain freedom and wisdom through training our con-
sciousness, and with its development, we shape our destiny.
Many people think of yoga as simply being a set of postures, but the
tradition includes much more. It off ers a long-lived method to overcome
suff ering and reach higher consciousness developed through the body (the
temple of the soul), the breath (the lord of the mind), and the mind (the
lord of the senses) (Iyengar, 2001). Yoga uses each of these tools, and
through their practice improves regulation of the mind-brain-body system.
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xii PREFACE
It enhances self-direction through self-awareness. Th e result is an accessible
set of invaluable interventions for overcoming psychological problems.
HOW YOGA CAN HELP THE THERAPEUTIC PROCESS
Th erapists go through extensive training, and, as a result, they usually know
what clients need. Th ey are fully capable of sensitively guiding their clients
through procedures that should help them resolve problems and grow. But
sometimes even the experienced therapist using the most appropriate tech-
nique fi nds the intervention does not work. Th e client may sincerely try
to comply, but simply cannot. Th is problem may stem from the fact that
the client, who is untrained in psychological matters, is often out of touch
with deeper emotions and doesn’t know how to access them. Ask the simple
question, “What are you feeling right now?” Most people will respond with
a judgment such as “I’m good” or “I feel lousy.” And they have no idea that
this response is an abstraction from what is actually going on in their emo-
tions at that moment.
Clients often lack the tools they need to link their attention to their
thoughts, emotions, behaviors, and sensations, and yet, we frequently ask
them to do so as part of therapy. Furthermore, they lack objectivity. When
people are disturbed by confl icts, they have increased diffi culty in focusing
their attention, let alone holding it steady and observing what is there. Th e
mental skills they lack are the very tools they need to overcome their prob-
lem and end their suff ering.
We would not expect someone to be able to read if they didn’t know the
alphabet, understand how words are formed, or recognize the connection
between words and meanings. Similarly, we will better help clients by teach-
ing them to notice the signs they receive from their sensations and thoughts,
to understand how these signs form patterns, and to read the meaningful
connection between patterns and confl icts.
Yoga off ers distinctive methods to address these defi cits and build fun-
damental skills. Each step of yoga practice dispels illusions and resolves
problems. Specifi c mental techniques begin with the simplest skills for
paying attention, moving the body, and noticing breathing. Included are
diverse meditative methods for cognition and emotions that develop a
refl ective ability, where consciousness becomes capable of observing itself
objectively.
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Preface xiii
Facilitating Mind-Brain Change
Th e brain can be mobilized for healing as well. Contemporary neurosci-
ence research has found that patterns of brain functioning, beginning with
neuronal connections at the synapses are intimately involved in conscious
experience. Th e brain responds to experience all the way down to the neu-
ron. Many parts of the brain play a role, with multiple systems working to-
gether to facilitate control and regulate functions. Imbalances in any of these
systems can lead to psychological problems. Yoga methods off er experiences
to foster the healthy, natural rebalancing of the mind-brain system that cli-
ents need to alter psychological disturbance. Th e yoga framework integrates
seamlessly with traditional therapeutic techniques by activating the mind
and brain to undergo healthy change.
Fostering Human Potential
Clients develop the tools they need to succeed in treatment and make the
best use possible of therapeutic interventions. When yoga methods are in-
tegrated into psychotherapeutic treatments, clients increase awareness and
self-control, but what they gain goes far beyond rudimentary skills. Th e
ultimate goal of yoga is more than just resolving problems: It seeks optimal
functioning, higher consciousness, and spiritual enlightenment. Yoga’s re-
fi ned methods activate the natural abilities within for truly knowing oneself
deeply. With self-knowledge comes a broader perspective that transcends
problems as it develops attuned wisdom. And as skills improve, there comes
a point when the mental processes are freed. Spontaneous meditation at the
highest levels leads to happiness and bliss—what the ancients call Samadhi,
enlightenment.
Th rough yoga practice, clients galvanize their intuition. Th ey generate
positive unconscious processes and make them available for conscious direc-
tion. Th ey tap into the reservoir of inner truth, long extolled by the ancients
as the means to revealing nature’s deepest secrets. Th ese time-honored and
well-researched techniques will help clients gain mastery of their mental
and physical well-being as they express their human potential in meaningful
lifeworks and relationships.
For the purposes of psychotherapy, deliberate focused practice leads to
eff ortless actualizing of potential. Positive psychology encourages directing
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