Mindfulness
Content Area 1
What is Mindfulness?
• Mindfulness is about being in the here and
now most of the time. When individuals
use mindfulness in their lives, they are
able to stay in balance, remain
nonjudgmental and be as effective as
possible.
Taking Hold of Your Mind
• In DBT there are three states of mind:
Emotional Mind
Reasonable Mind
Wise Mind
Reasonable Mind
• This is the logical part of you brain. The part that
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thinks, plans and evaluates what is happening
around you.
Sometimes our emotions can get in the way of how
well we do things. Whether we are in physical pain
or emotional pain or any other kind of pain, it makes
it harder to plan and think and organize every day
activities we take for granted.
– Getting ready in the morning: drinking a cup of coffee,
morning routine, taking kids to school etc.
– Building a house
– Following instructions
– Planning a vacation
– Doing math
– Driving
Emotional Mind
• This is when your present emotional state controls most of your thinking and
behavior.
– Anger-can spur and argument
– Love- you might sacrifice yourself for your children
– Anxiety-you might rush or be unable to concentrate
• When we as people are in a state of emotional reactivity our minds are often
spinning with so many thoughts it is hard to find the off switch.
• Whether we are reacting to emotional pain, physical pain, physical or mental
over load or any other emotionally heightened situation we are more prone
to stress.
Wise Mind
• This part of our mind is a little more difficult to grasp.
• It is the integration of the reasonable mind and the emotional
mind-this does not mean the ability to flip back and forth
between the two or see both sides of coin.
• Additionally, you usually cannot evoke emotions through
reason, and you usually cannot overcome emotions with
reason.
Wise Mind
• It is the part of the mind that gives you peace, and knows and
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experiences truth.
Some people consider this to be the intuitive part of the brain.
It integrates all ways of knowing including all of the senseshearing, seeing, smelling etc.
You will not always be in the wise mind, this doesn’t mean it is not
there!
– Consider: when you have a hard decision to make, and after your choice
your whole body feels confident, sure and relaxed, that you took the right
course of action. (even if there might be consequences.)
States of Mind Diagram
Reasonable Mind
Wise Mind
Emotional Mind
Example
Practicing Mindfully
• The skills include:
Observing
 Describing
 Participating
 Being non-judmental
 Being one mindful
 Being effective

• There are six different skills or ways to practice
being mindful. This next portion of presentation
is designed to be interactive- some of that will
be lost in the lack of human contact- but let’s
see how it goes.
Classic DBT
• Observe
• Describe
• Participate
• Non-judmental
• One-mindfully
• Effectively
• Wise Mind
Innovative DBT
• Moment to Pause
• Square Breathing
• Mindful Eating
• ONE MIND
• Body Scan
• Be Mindful
• Turtling
PRACTICE EXAMPLE