Mind-Body Medicine – A Journey Beyond the Helplessness Barrier

by Frauke Musial¹

¹Professor of Healthcare Research – Alternative Treatment, National Research Center in Complementary and Alternative Medicine, NAFKAM, Department of Community Medicine, UiT, The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway

Growing up and Waking up - New Perspectives in Mind-Body Medicine Illustrated by the Model of Meditation-Based Lifestyle Modification (MBLM)

by Holger Carl Bringmann^1,2

¹Institute of Social Medicine, Epidemiology, and Health Economics, Charite´-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany (Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany)

² Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, Krankenhaus Spremberg, Spremberg, Germany

Viral Targeting of Mitochondria May Alter Cognition and Enhance Viral Transmission

by George Stefano¹

¹Department of Psychiatry, First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University and General University Hospital in Prague, 120 00 Prague, Czech Republic

Mind-Body Medicine: A Funder´s Perspective

by Rainer Lüdtke¹

¹EDEN Stiftung, Essen, Gerrmany

Quo vadis students’ health? Introducing a Mind-Body Medicine (MBM) Health Promotion-Intervention for Selfcare, Sustainable Studying and Resilience in Academic Learning Life

by Miriam Thye^1,2 and Charlotte Knoblauch¹

¹Institute for Integrative Health Care and Health Promotion, School of Medicine, Witten/Herdecke University, 58455 Witten, Germany

²School of Psychology and Psychotherapy, Witten/Herdecke University, 58455 Witten, Germany

Mind-Body Exercise Corner

Self-compassion Focused Writing

by Miriam Onescheit¹

¹Institute for Integrative Health Care and Health Promotion, School of Medicine, Witten/Herdecke University, 58455 Witten, Germany

Self-compassion based interventions, including selfcompassion focused writing, have shown to have beneficial effects on psychological and physical variables (Aydoğdu and Dirik, 2022; Kirby et al., 2017; Swee et al., 2023; Wakelin et al., 2022). The following exercise describes one way to help you practice self-compassion today and in future situations. Find a quiet place where you will not be disturbed. Prepare to take a pen and a paper and follow through the next steps. Close your eyes, if you like. Now, think of a recent situation that made you feel bad but is not too intense. To make sure you can handle arising sensations, choose something that causes only mild undesired feelings. You might have felt not good enough, anxious, depressed, ashamed or distressed. Take some time to reflect on the situation: What happend? How exactly did you feel and why? Where in the body can you sense it? Which thoughts are linked to it and are these feelings familiar to you from other situations? The exercise will now be to write a letter to yourself, changing your judgemental view on the situation by directing expressions of understanding, acceptance and compassion to yourself. The following guidelines will help you doing so: Imagine a good friend of yours has experienced the very same situation. How would you comfort him/her? What would you say and what is your tone of voice? Think of yourself sitting inmidst a group of people in a benevolent and trusting atmosphere. Every one of them contributes the description of similar circumstances, feelings or reactions as you have experienced. Remind yourself, that everybody has his or her own issues to struggle with. Imagine your future self, going through a similar situation. How could you be more self-compassionate? Can you see what the experienced feelings are offering you to understand about yourself? Close the letter with a compliment to yourself. Put your letter aside and re-read it whenever similar bad feelings arise in the future.

References

Aydoğdu, B. E. & Dirik, G. (2022). Self-compassion- focused writing practices: A systematic review. Psikiyatride Güncel Yaklaşımlar, 14(4), 526–544. https://doi.org/10.18863/pgy.1077952.

Kirby, J. N., Tellegen, C. L., & Steindl, S. R. (2017). A Meta-Analysis of Compassion-Based Interventions: Current State of Knowledge and Future Directions. Behavior Therapy, 48(6), 778–792. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2017.06.003.

Swee, M. B., Klein, K., Murray, S., & Heimberg, R. G. (2023). A Brief Self-Compassionate Letter-Writing Intervention for Individuals with High Shame. Mindfulness, 14(4), 854–867. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-023-02097-5.

Wakelin, K. E., Perman, G., & Simonds, L. M. (2022). Effectiveness of self-compassion-related interventions for reducing self-criticism: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy, 29(1), 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1002/cpp.2586.

Announcements

1st Scientific Conference on Mind-Body Medicine Research organized by the MBMRC

Join us on November 4th and 5th, 2024, online or in Witten, Germany, to explore the scientific field of Mind-Body Medicine! Delve with international experts from diverse fields into molecular mechanisms, neurobiological correlates, and integrative approaches to holistic health. Abstract submission for research presentation and practical MBM sessions is open until June 24th.  

Job opening

Efficacy of a mind-body-medicine-based health promotion course for patients with multiple sclerosis: A mixed-methods study with a randomized controlled trial

The Institute for Integrative Health Care and Health Promotion (IGVF) has received funding to conduct a mixed-methods study investigating if and to what degree participation in a mind-body-medicine-based health promotion course can improve health-related outcomes among patients with multiple sclerosis. For the upcoming qualitative investigation of stakeholders’ perspectives and a randomized controlled trial, we are currently hiring a German-speaking researcher. To submit an application, please click here.

New MBMRC members

We heartily welcome Pascal Büttiker, MSc, as a new member of the MBMRC. Pascal is a researcher and PhD candidate in the field of medical Psychology at the Department of Psychiatry, First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University and General University Hospital in Prague. He is a psychologist formally recognized by the Swiss confederation with an ongoing MAS in cognitive behavioral therapy and behavioral medicine. With a postgraduate degree in cognitive science and philosophy of mind, he specializes in perception generation with a distinct focus on the neurocognitive effects of virus infections and the underlying biological mechanisms. As a clinical practitioner at a psychiatric hospital, Pascal is eager to find ways to integrate novel scientific findings in the treatment of long COVID patients with neuropsychiatric symptoms.

The Mind-Body Medicine Research Council (MBMRC)

At the present time, the Council consists of the following members:

Tobias Esch, M.D. (Co-Chair)
George B. Stefano, Ph.D. (Co-Chair)

Maren M. Michaelsen, Dr. rer. oec. Dr. rer. medic. (Project Lead)
Radek Ptáček, Ph.D., MBA

Pascal Büttiker, MSc

How to become a member of MBMRC

As the MBMRC has been founded in 2022, and due to its dedication to rigorous contributions on the basic research foundations of Mind-Body Medicine, the number of members is yet small. In the future, the council aims to invite outstanding researchers in the field to become MBMRC members. Membership implies no fee.