Mindfulness and Embodiment in Family Therapy: Overview, Nuances, and Clinical Applications in Poststructural...

This paper discusses the inclusion of ideas from mindfulness, embodiment, and associated brain research in poststructural family therapies. Connecting research and practice across diverse fields is presented as enriching therapeutic work, increasing clinical effectiveness, and broadening options for families seeking our assistance. Ways of incorporating mindfulness and embodiment are described and offer distinctively novel practices not typically used in traditional forms of poststructural therapies. These innovative practices are illustrated by clinical work with a mother and her five-year- daughter who survived a dangerous health crisis and an extremely painful hospitalization. Therapeutic work with this family exemplifies how traumatic experiences are not always accessible through linguistic means alone. Working with interpersonal mind-body practices can uniquely contribute to relaxing the sympathetic nervous system and activating the social engagement branch of the parasympathetic nervous system. The inclusion of such practices can provide valuable opportunities to facilitate the emergence of preferred experiences of self for all family members.