What Mindfulness can learn about Dissociation and what Dissociation can learn from Mindfulness.

Mindfulness based psychotherapeutic interventions have shown to be an effective intervention for quite some time now. These intervention, however, have not been that successful with individuals who experience dissociative disorders. There is a very clear disconnect between these two fields. In an attempt to close the gap, reviewing what mindfulness might be from an attachment and human developed lens, one can learn that there is a lot more occurring in a mindful state other than relaxation. There is a level of human developmental achievement comes from a regular mindfulness practice that seems to play a role in raising our young and being part of a complex social group. Evidence suggests that the end product of mindfulness is likely deeply connected human relationships and balanced care-giving abilities. In knowing the benefits from a relational perspective of mindfulness those in the dissociative world can utilize adaptations of mindfulness so that their clients can eventually learn to developed mindfulness and, in turn, have the same deeply connected relationship that they often missed. Conversely those in the mindfulness based therapeutic world can learn a lot about dissociation and harmed people by understanding the real difficulties that individuals with dissociative disorders have in experiencing a mindful state. The can learn to understand the need to adapt mindfulness based practices to accommodate individuals who have a system that is phobic of awareness, terrified of being calm and who have no concept of what non-judgement means. Both fields would benefit greatly by knowing more about the other.

KEYWORDS: Dissociation; attachment; childhood trauma; mindfulness

PMID: 30095378 DOI: 10.1080/15299732.2018.1502568