I was inspired to write this Blog after talking with Joanna, another Counsellor who was also giving information and advice about the counselling she offered, as part of our Complementary Therapies Open Day at Prospect House Clinic, Bingley.

As we were talking over break time, our conversation touched on our respective ways of working. We realised that we both knew of exercises and activities that are associated with what we, in the counselling world, call ‘mindfulness’.

Joanna went on to say that she was looking to get some further training in mindfulness in order to add it in to her practice, knowing that her religious faith had already informed her life as a person and her counselling practice – as an inseparable part of her. I wondered, for my part, what influence my own religious faith had had on my practice.

It was clear to me that I already knew about mindfulness whose origins lay in a 2000- year old Buddhist philosophy and practice.

It was clear to me, too, that I was already drawing on mindfulness exercises – offering these to my clients as methods to practice in order to develop awareness of themselves, as well as of their relationships. These exercises include tools such as: breathing exercises, body scans and creating their own compassionate images.

I know from research that mindfulness exercises, if introduced and practised with a professional counsellor, can be especially effective for those with stress, anxiety and depression issues.

It was not so immediately clear, though, what influence my religious faith had on my practice – a question that was for me a lot harder to answer!

Having slept on this I awoke with some answers. I recalled how on several occasions after finishing a client session I had caught myself being mindful of their pain, hurt and fear – in effect praying for them. Then, considering my own role in this, I felt that I was offering myself as best I could to uncover and digest their wounds. Knowing that when the time was right, I would be ready to support them to dive deeper, should they want to go further in their counselling journey – exploring themselves, beyond their current problems and difficulties – to finally heal and grow

Mindfulness – Does it really matter?

Anthony Woods

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