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“MBCT is a major achievement. Based on a coherent body of experimental work, the treatment has proven its worth in reducing the recurrence of depression and, as a consequence, changing the future prospects of numerous people whose lives are blighted by repeated episodes of this disabling condition. This second edition will be widely welcomed by practitioners; every chapter has been updated and numerous new practical aids have been added, including downloadable practice exercises and handouts. Thoroughly recommended.”

—David M. Clark, DPhil, Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, United Kingdom


“Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression is the gold standard for anyone who wants to learn this powerful approach. The second edition brings this classic up to date, making it the state-of-the-art guide for therapists and students alike.”

—Daniel Goleman, PhD, author of Emotional Intelligence


“I love this book. More than a book, actually, it is a trusted friend. If you are dedicated to helping vulnerable people stay well and protect themselves from future episodes of depression, you will find what you need here. The program is grounded in rigorous clinical research, sound theory, and an unwavering conviction about the possibility of learning to live each moment fully and wisely. The core building blocks from the first edition remain—step-by-step descriptions of each session, including transcripts, handouts, and rich case illustrations—but there are countless new treasures as well. The themes of many of the sessions have been refined in ways that bring the curriculum even closer to the lived experience of people struggling with recurrent depression. This book stands as an exemplar of how to integrate clinical innovation, science, and practice.”

—Sona Dimidjian, PhD, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder


“What began as a thoughtful new approach to treating depression over a decade ago has since changed the face of cognitive therapy. In this truly outstanding second edition, the authors offer crystal-clear instructions for teaching the MBCT program. Important new chapters have been added on embodying compassion and practicing inquiry in the teaching process. The authors review the impressive research on MBCT and offer reflections on how it actually works. Clinicians of all theoretical orientations and levels of experience will discover insights and practical skills that can have a vital impact on how they practice psychotherapy.”

—Christopher Germer, PhD, private practice, Arlington, Massachusetts


“Superb! The authors describe their evidence-based maintenance therapy for depression in great detail, while telling an engrossing (and well-referenced) story of how they developed their approach. Fascinating reading.”

—Ricardo F. Muñoz, PhD, Distinguished Professor of Clinical Psychology, Palo Alto University


“A defining resource in the burgeoning arena of mindfulness-based therapies. The second edition incorporates new evidence from both clinical trials and neuroscientific studies of the mind, continuing the story of discovery of the mindfulness path out of chronic depression. Presented is up-to-date conceptual and clinical material that reflects the experience and wisdom of the authors, their colleagues, and the many individuals who have benefited from MBCT. As a graduate textbook for a course on either major depression or psychotherapeutic uses of meditation, this volume illustrates the theory and application of mindfulness-based approaches in an elegant and always readable manner.”

—Jean L. Kristeller, PhD, Department of Psychology, Indiana State University


“Warmly written, accessible, and deeply insightful. This landmark book has played a key role in making mindfulness a central concern in clinical practice. The up-to-date second edition not only summarizes the extraordinary expansion of research evidence, but also is immensely practical and filled with clinical wisdom. Important, too, is its emphasis on compassion. A 'must' for all therapists interested in mindfulness.”

—Paul Gilbert, PhD, Centre for Compassion Research and Training, University of Derby, United Kingdom

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Table of Contents

Introduction

I. The Challenge of Depression

1. Depression Casts a Long Shadow

2. Why Do People Who Have Recovered from Depression Relapse?

3. Developing Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy

II. Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy

4. Doing and Being

5. The Eight-Session Program: How and Why

6. The Preclass Participant Interview

7. Awareness and Automatic Pilot: Session 1

8. Kindness and Self-Compassion in Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy

9. Living in Our Heads: Session 2

10. Gathering the Scattered Mind: Session 3

11. Recognizing Aversion: Session 4

12. Inquiring into Practice and Practicing Inquiry

13. Allowing/Letting Be: Session 5

14. Thoughts Are Not Facts: Session 6

15. A Day of Mindful Practice

16. "How Can I Best Take Care of Myself?": Session 7

17. Maintaining and Extending New Learning: Session 8

18. Reprise: The 3-Minute Breathing Space as the Spine of the Program

III. Evaluation and Dissemination

19. Does Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy Work?

20. How Does Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy Achieve Its Effects?

21. Moving the Program Off the Page and into the Clinic: Supports for Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy Instructors and Their Patients

Epilogue

Audio Downloads

1. Welcome and Introduction (0:30)

2. Raisin Exercise (9:13)

3. Body Scan (37:47)

4. 10-Minute Sitting Meditation—Mindfulness of the Breath (11:20)

5. Mindful Movement—Formal Practice (38:25)

6. Stretch and Breath Meditation (40:41)

7. Mindful Walking (32:24)

8. 3-Minute Breathing Space—Regular Version (4:08)

9. 3-Minute Breathing Space—Responsive Version (4:58)

10. 20-Minute Sitting Meditation (20:32)

11. Sitting Meditation (36:46)

12. Working with Difficulty Meditation (24:08)

13. Bells at 5 Minutes, 10 Minutes, 15 Minutes,and 30 Minutes (30:32)

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About the Authors

Zindel Segal, PhD, is Distinguished Professor of Psychology in Mood Disorders at the University of Toronto–Scarborough. He is Director of Clinical Training in the Clinical Psychological Science Program and is also Professor in the Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Segal has conducted influential research into the psychological processes that make certain people more vulnerable than others to developing depression and experiencing recurrent episodes. He actively advocates for the relevance of mindfulness-based clinical care in psychiatry and mental health. He collaborated with John Teasdale and Mark Williams in developing mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) to prevent relapse and recurrence in major depression; together, they coauthored Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression, Second Edition (for mental health professionals), as well as the self-help guides The Mindful Way Workbook and (with Jon Kabat-Zinn) The Mindful Way through Depression.

• Author's website
• All titles by Zindel Segal

Mark Williams, DPhil, is Emeritus Professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of Oxford, having been Wellcome Principal Research Fellow at Oxford from 2003 to 2012 and at Bangor University from 1991 to 2002. He collaborated with John Teasdale and Zindel Segal in developing mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) to prevent relapse and recurrence in major depression; together, they coauthored Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression, Second Edition (for mental health professionals), as well as the self-help guides The Mindful Way Workbook and (with Jon Kabat-Zinn) The Mindful Way through Depression. Dr. Williams is also coauthor of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy with People at Risk of Suicide (for mental health professionals). He is a Fellow of the British Psychological Society, the Academy of Medical Sciences and the British Academy. Now retired, he continues to live near Oxford, to teach mindfulness to teachers-in-training across the world, and to explore, with colleagues, how mindfulness might be used in evidence-based public policy.

• Author's website
• All titles by Mark Williams

John Teasdale, PhD, held a Special Scientific Appointment with the United Kingdom Medical Research Council’s Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit in Cambridge. He is a Fellow of the British Academy and the Academy of Medical Sciences. He collaborated with Mark Williams and Zindel Segal in developing mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) to prevent relapse and recurrence in major depression; together, they coauthored Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression, Second Edition (for mental health professionals), as well as the self-help guides The Mindful Way Workbook and (with Jon Kabat-Zinn) The Mindful Way through Depression. Since retiring, Dr. Teasdale has taught mindfulness and insight meditation internationally. He continues to explore and seek to understand the wider implications of mindfulness and meditation for enhancing our way of being.

• All titles by John Teasdale

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Audience

Mental health professionals, including clinical psychologists, clinical social workers, psychiatrists, and counselors.

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Course Use

May serve as a supplemental text in graduate-level courses.

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Special package offer: Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression, Second Edition, gives therapists the tools to implement the proven MBCT program with clients. The Mindful Way through Depression: Freeing Yourself from Chronic Unhappiness introduces clients or general readers to MBCT strategies in a self-help format, and The Mindful Way Workbook: An 8-Week Program to Free Yourself from Depression and Emotional Distress offers them further, explicit support for building a mindfulness practice step by step.

Order all 3 items for $71.95, instead of $95.90 if bought separately!

order package

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Previous editions published by Guilford:

First Edition, © 2002
ISBN: 9781572307063

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New to this edition:

• Incorporates a decade's worth of developments in MBCT clinical practice and training.
• Chapters on additional treatment components: the pre-course interview and optional full-day retreat.
• Chapters on self-compassion, the inquiry process, and the three-minute breathing space.
• Findings from multiple studies of MBCT's effectiveness and underlying mechanisms. Includes studies of adaptations for treating psychological and physical health problems other than depression.
• Audio files of the guided mindfulness practices, narrated by Dr. Segal, on two separate Web pages—one for professionals, together with the reproducibles, and one just for clients.