The Mindful Way through Depression: Freeing Yourself from Chronic Unhappiness (Paperback)

~ Mark Williams (Author), John Teasdale (Author), Zindel Segal (Author), Jon Kabat-Zinn (Author)
Key Phrases: mindful yoga, doing mode, mindfulness program, Everyday Life, Our Feelings, The Healing Power of Awareness (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Using mindfulness training to prevent and treat depression is a novel strategy in the West, though it is a traditional application of Eastern meditation practice. Whether you struggle with depression or simply want to understand your mind and emotions better, you will find this book accessible and useful. Depression is epidemic in our society, and I would love to see this sensible treatment approach gain ground." –Andrew Weil, MD, author of 8 Weeks to Optimum Health and Healthy Aging

 

"A revolutionary treatment approach. For depression sufferers, this is a truly useful guide to achieving emotional balance. For mental health professionals, it should be mandatory reading. I recommend this book and companion CD most highly." –Daniel Goleman, PhD, author of Emotional Intelligence

 

"An invaluable resource not only for those who suffer from depression, but for anyone familiar with the downward spiral of negative thinking and self-doubt. The authors of this book explore the reasons for depression and give us guidance and support, along with useful tools to find a way through it." --Sharon Salzberg, author of Lovingkindness

 

"If I could select one group of individuals for people to really pay attention to when grappling with chronic unhappiness, I could not think of a better group than these authors. Not only are they consummate scientists, but they are each personally immersed in the moment-to-moment mindfulness that they teach. This book brings together the practices of both science and insight meditation in an effective fashion that is understandable to the ordinary person--no esoteric practice or mental health background is necessary. Read it and see for yourself!" –Marsha M. Linehan, PhD, University of Washington

 

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"With the emergence of The Mindful Way Through Depression, those with chronic unhappiness now have a text that speaks poignantly to their experience....Overall the text is a personal and easy to read narrative that still manages to include most of the difficult concepts of mindfulness....The reader is left feeling hopeful and excited about the possibility of being truly free from chronic unhappiness and fully alive."--Canadian Psychology

"Very easy to read and is a useful guide to those wishing to use just one aid from the vast number available to those in the practice."--Journal of the Buddhist Society

"Every word in this affordable paperback seems to embody the gentleness and the spirit of openness that one brings to the practice of MBCT. It is therefore an ideal tool for guided self-help....Invaluable for all non-professionals and therapist alike, The Mindful Way through Depression takes the reader step by step on a journey of exploration....Just get the book, get your bottom on the cushion and read it."--British Journal of Psychiatry

 

"A practical, thoughtful approach to the treatment of depression, combining classic cognitive techniques with the use of mindfulness, or a sense of non-judgmental awareness of and attention to the present moment....I would definitely recommend The Mindful Way Through Depression to therapists wanting to incorporate the use of mindfulness techniques with their clients, and I also believe that it would be appropriate self-help reading for depression sufferers who have an interest in meditation techniques and/or who are looking for a fresh perspective to assist with managing their depression."--Metapsychology Online Reviews

"This is a helpful book for readers interested in mindfulness and meditation approaches to treating depression….This can be a good resource for individuals wishing to embark on a self-therapy voyage."--Doody's Review Service

"Composed by a star-studded team of scientists and practitioners, this powerful book is the best self-help title to arrive since David Burns’s seminal Feeling Good. Williams, Teasdale, and Segal previously collaborated on Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression,a well-received text for mental health professionals. Add to the mix Jon Kabat-Zinn, a luminary in his own right, and the result is a useful lay reader’s guide to incorporating mindfulness techniques in everyday life. Providing a realistic 8-week program, this wonderful guide and its accompanying CD offer invaluable practical strategies for banishing depression and regaining one’s life. Highly recommended. (starred review)"--Library Journal

"The book is well written and easy to read....People who are prone to depression, dysthymia, or general unhappiness will find this a helpful new way to reframe their thinking about their issues, and practitioners may also find it a useful basis for counseling."--Drug and Alcohol Review

Product Description

If you’ve ever struggled with depression, take heart. Mindfulness, a simple yet powerful way of paying attention to your most difficult emotions and life experiences, can help you break the cycle of chronic unhappiness once and for all. In The Mindful Way through Depression, four uniquely qualified experts explain why our usual attempts to “think” our way out of a bad mood or just “snap out of it” lead us deeper into the downward spiral. Through insightful lessons drawn from both Eastern meditative traditions and cognitive therapy, they demonstrate how to sidestep the mental habits that lead to despair, including rumination and self-blame, so you can face life’s challenges with greater resilience. Jon Kabat-Zinn gently and encouragingly narrates the accompanying CD of guided meditations, making this a complete package for anyone seeking to regain a sense of hope and well-being.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 273 pages
• Publisher: The Guilford Press (June 2, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1593851286
• ISBN-13: 978-1593851286
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (56 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,003 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

126 of 128 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you ever get depressed or get caught up in negative thinking, , you need to read this!, January 10, 2008

By	KV Trout ""Yesterday is history. Tomorrow... (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This is truly an excellent method of working to accept and overcome the problems of depression.

I have read some of the classic books on depression and cognitive therapy such as David Burns' "Feeling Good", and this is a much more comprehensive approach, based on the principles of cognitive therapy but with the addition of mindfulness.

This approach is also good for people who aren't really clinically depressed but who get caught up in negative thinking patterns and low self esteem: "Why me?" "I'm a loser", "I'll never get ahead", etc...

The book has a great cd with it to teach you exactly how to practice the mindfulness exercises. I hesitate to use the term meditation because people tend to start thinking things like "I can't meditate", "It's too hard", etc... By the time you read the book, you will understand that meditation is not hard at all, it's just a matter of doing it, and it can be done in as little as 3-5 minutes and still be worthwhile. It's not a matter of "contemplating your navel" but rather just learning to BE in the present moment, to watch one's thoughts arise and fall away, to slow down, to look at what is happening in one's body and in one's mind. Nothing at all difficult about it. You can do it. And you will find it worthwhile if you do it for a few weeks.

I highly recommend this book to people suffering from depression.

Another very good book for certain types of depression and anxiety that I highly recommend is "Emotional Blackmail" by Susan Forward, which helped me a great deal.

One more book I will recommend not so much specifically for depression but because it teaches the value and technique of "mindfulness", is Jon Kabat-Zinn's "Wherever You Go, There You Are".

The last thing I will say is that just reading any of these books is not enough! You MUST do the exercises and put mindfulness into practice! You will be glad you did!

232 of 243 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Mindful Way through Depression, September 3, 2007

By	Gary G. Miles "slow reader" (Nashville, TN) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I highly recommend this book. I have suffered from depressed for a long time, and I am always looking for new ways to cope with my depression. I found this book to be most helpful in describing useful techniques to deal with my depression. The book is written in very layman language and is easily understandable. To my knowledge the four professionals who wrote this book collaborated their ideas, and came up with a scheme that was relatively easy to follow. I take anti-depressant medications that enable me to get up to "base line", but after that, if I do not have some way of facing every day problems, I find myself in the dump of depression again.

This book helps me to stay up, and not slip back too far into depression. Medications are very helpful, but by themselves, they can not keep one at base line (or what some people call "normal.") Once we reach base line, we depressed persons, need help in staying at that level. The teachings of this book definitely has helped me in this endeavor.

I do not say this book totally cured me of depression (I don't think anything ever will.) However, the information in the book has been a big help to me, and I can cope with depression much better than I did before I read the book.

113 of 118 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Groundbreaking approach, October 9, 2007

By	David Fahrland "Bald Eagle" (Northeastern Ohio) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a ground-breaking method in the treatment of depression by combining C.B.T. with Buddhist mindfulness practice. The descriptions and exercises for meditating have helped me to overcome my resistance(s) to practice. I also have discovered "moving meditation" that can be done with walking, swimming, whatever to reach a result that is even more enlightening than classic sitting meditation practice.

I also realize from my past deep depressions that any practice seems hard because it is extremely difficult to overcome "inertia" and cut through the cognitive "fog" symptoms that accompany the disease. Hopefully, the moving meditation practice and some simple cognitive practices described here could be effective even under the duress of a full blown relapse.

This book is also very well written and clearly readable.