Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction for Your Health

Breast cancer survivors who practice a specific meditation technique known as Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) have improved their health and emotional well-being.

Researchers at the University of Missouri’s Sinclair School of Nursing say that MBSR – a technique combining of yoga, meditation, and physical awareness – can give cancer survivors the tools they need to regain a sense of control over their lives. And that has huge implications for the rest of us.

Breast cancer survival rates have improved in recent years, according to the American Cancer Society, and yet as many as half of survivors suffer from depression. The disease and treatment take their toll, with patients reporting lingering anxiety, fatigue, cognitive problems, lower self-confidence, and poor self-image.

The researchers found that those former cancer patients who learned MBSR lowered their blood pressure, heart rate and respiratory rate. In addition, participants’ mood improved, and their level of mindfulness increased after taking the class.

The researchers’ report, published in the Western Journal of Nursing Research, is just one of many studies that support the wide-ranging benefits of MBSR. The program has gained popularity among mainstream physicians as well as alternative-health practitioners.

What is MBSR?

MBSR was developed in 1979 by Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn at the University of Massachusetts Center for Mindfulness. The technique has been featured in the Bill Moyers’ PBS documentary Healing and The Mind, on Dateline NBC, on ABC’s Chronicle and in various national print media and is the subject of Jon Kabat-Zinn’s best-selling book, “Full Catastrophe Living” and Saki Santorelli’s book, “Heal Thy Self.”

Since its inception, more than 18,000 people have completed the Center’s MBSR program and learned how to use their innate resources and abilities to respond more effectively to stress, pain, and illness.

MBSR instruction programs are available worldwide. The program consists of group sessions throughout a period of eight to 10 weeks. Participants practice meditation skills, discuss how their bodies respond to stress and learn coping techniques.

Some participants are referred to MBSR programs by their doctors; others seek out instruction on their own.  Some are dealing with chronic diseases, while others are in recovery from an illness or are just “stressed out.” According to the Center for Mindfulness, some common reasons for signing up are:

• Stress — job, family or financial
• Chronic pain and illness
• Anxiety and panic
• GI distress
• Sleep disturbances
• Fatigue
• High blood pressure
• Headaches

Participants are advised to continue to practice MBSR techniques after the class ends to maintain the positive effects.

Benefits for mind and body

According to the Center’s website, two decades of published research indicates that the majority of people who complete the MBSR course report:

• Lasting decreases in physical and psychological symptoms
• An increased ability to relax
• Reductions in pain levels and an enhanced ability to cope with pain that may not go away
• Greater energy and enthusiasm for life
• Improved self-esteem
• An ability to cope more effectively with both short and long-term stressful situations.

Interested in learning more about MBSR? For program information, contact:

Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society
University of Massachusetts Medical School
55 Lake Avenue North
Worcester, MA 01655

Phone:  508-856-2656
E-mail:  mindfulness@umassmed.edu

Find a program in your area: http://w3.umassmed.edu/MBSR/public/searchmember.aspx