mindfulness and acceptance for trichotillomania and dermatillomania

Mindfulness and Acceptance for Trichotillomania and Dermatillomania

~Elena Fasan, MSW

andLauren McMeikan, MA

~ OCD Center of Los Angeles

What is Mindfulness?

• Present moment awareness without judgment.• Meditation is not mindfulness – it is a means to

mindfulness.• Mindfulness is a way of relating to one’s

experience.• Third Wave Behavioral Therapies: ACT, DBT and

MBCBT

http://ocdla.com OCD Center of Los Angeles (310) 824-5200

• Thoughts • e.g., “This one has to go”

• Feelings• e.g., Anxiety, sadness, boredom• Sometimes feelings are informed by thoughts

• Sensations• e.g., An itch or a tingle

• Urges• e.g., A strong desire or impulse

Internal Experiences


Mindfulness

Challenges our perspective towards, and our reaction to, our thoughts, feelings, urges, and sensations, rather than the content of these

normal experienceshttp://ocdla.com OCD Center of Los Angeles (310) 824-5200

• Over-Attending

• Over-Valuing

• Over-Responding

We Get Into Trouble Three Ways


• Paying too much attention to something

• We Over-Attend to Negative Stimuli for Evolutionary Reasons

• We look for trouble and we find it.

Over-Attending


• Because we are over-attending to unwanted experiences, we tend to Over-Value them.

• Often our experiences are just mental “trash…not worth the gray matter they rode in on” (Jeffrey Schwartz)

Over-Valuing


• Our natural reaction to unwanted experiences is to try to reduce discomfort.

• A more effective response is to do nothing.

• Let our unwanted experiences exist without taking them so seriously or trying to modify them.

Over-Responding


• Over-attending, over-valuing, and over-responding to our experiences are the problem.

• Over-responding by trying to control or avoid uncomfortable thoughts, feelings, sensations, or urges is the problem.

• Over-responding by giving into urges is the problem

The Problem


• Old French: To take what is offered.• Not just tolerating an unwanted experience.• Allowing that experience to exist without bias,

judgment, or reaction.• To have the experience without the intention to

change it.• Embrace it – “Ask for more”.

Acceptance is the Solution


• Thoughts, feelings, sensations, and urges are neither good nor bad – they just “are”

• These experiences are transitory

• Goal: Peaceful co-existence with unwanted experiences

• Goal: To be able to have unwanted thoughts, feelings, sensations and urges without caring so much about them or doing anything about them

Acceptance


• Thoughts• Thoughts aren’t intrinsically important, meaningful or true

and don’t require a response• Feelings

• Sitting with feelings is more effective than fighting them• Sensations

• Accepting sensations is more effective than fighting them• Urges

• Surfing the urge

Applying Acceptance


• Kids naturally live more in the present moment than do adults

• However their abstract reasoning skills are far more limited than are adults (Metacognition)

• Must adjust mindfulness training to the child’s developmental age

• Kids respond well to rewards

Mindfulness for Kids


• Stop• Take some deep breaths• Observe • Proceed

STOP


• Present moment awareness without judgment

• Exercises:• 3x3• What do you see, hear and feel?• The Five Senses• Daily Mindfulness Activity

• e.g. Mindful Toothbrushing

Sensory Grounding


• Radical Acceptance by Tara Brach

• When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chödrön

• The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh

• The Happiness Trap by Russ Harris

• Get Out of Your Mind and Into Your Life by Steven Hayes

• Sitting Still Like a Frog by Eline Snel, Jon Kabat-Zinn, Myla Kabat-Zinn

Books


• Mindful Awareness Research Center (MARC) at UCLA• Guided meditations and mindfulness talks:

• Jack Kornfield• Trudy Goodman• Kristin Neff• Sharon Salzberg• Noah Levine

• TLC Foundation for BFRBs - bfrb.org• OCD Center of Los Angeles - ocdla.com

Resources


http://www.bfrb.org/

http://ocdla.com/trichotillomania-dermatillomania-skin-picking/

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ocdla.com/ebook

Free E-book

http://ocdla.com/ebook/

1ocdla.com/reflections

Free WeeklyE-class

http://ocdla.com/reflections

1ocdla.com

• Individual therapy• Online therapy via webcam• Group therapy

~ two weekly low-fee Dermatillomania / Trichotillomania groups• Intensive Outpatient Treatment Program• Four locations in Southern California • Brentwood

• Woodland Hills• Fullerton• Santa Barbara

OCD Center of Los Angeles

http://ocdla.com/trichotillomania-dermatillomania-skin-picking/

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This slide presentation was created for a webinar produced and presented by the TLC

Foundation for Body Focused Repetitive Behaviors (BFRBs).

If you would like to watch a recording of the entire one-hour webinar, you can join the TLC

Foundation on their website at:

bfrb.org

http://www.bfrb.org/

mindfulness and acceptance for trichotillomania and dermatillomania

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