Using Mindfulness, Compassion and Positive Psychology Tools to Propel Habit Change in treatment
Biofeedback is an efficacious treatment option for challenging health conditions such as in chronic pain, uncontrolled blood pressure, and anxiety. However, during the natural course of treatment biofeedback training and overall progress can plateau, much like with other therapies. This can leave the client and the therapist feeling frustrated, unsure of how to proceed, and digging deeper for symptoms and further diagnoses. Under the premise of positive psychology, clients are taught to shift their perception from one that is problem-focused to one that considers situations and people as having normal variation consistent with human nature. A greater understanding of the process of habit change and using mindfulness and compassion-based strategies can provide biofeedback practitioners tools to move clients from a state of vigilance in evaluating, reacting to, and trying to fix problems to viewing their situation with less judgement and greater self-compassion. Under the latter system, successful treatment becomes less reliant on external factors and outcomes. Short-lived self-esteem is traded for self-compassion which has a longer lasting benefit. This symposium will review most commonly encountered challenges in biofeedback treatment and present ways to work through these challenges using empirically supported techniques from the fields of positive psychology, mindfulness, and compassion.
About Dr. Klich
Dr. Urszula Klich is a clinical psychologist, speaker, and author who teaches self-regulation to maximize physical and emotional health. She is a certified meditation teacher in Cognitively-Based Compassion Training (CBCT) through Emory University and has served on various medical teams. She is board certified in biofeedback and is the president of the Southeast Biofeedback and Clinical Neuroscience Association. Her specialized program of Mindfulness-Based Biofeedback (MBB) has been published and widely applied from hospitals to classrooms based on the premise that integrating mindfulness and compassion-informed treatment with psychology fosters individuals’ healing power to improve physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being. Living mindfully is advantageous and accessible to anyone who recognizes a need for a shift in their life and sets an intention to move forward. She is a sought-after workshop leader and internationally recognized speaker in health and wellness.
