Perceptions of the Long-Term Influence of Mindfulness Training on Counselors and Psychotherapists

Abstract

Although self-care is often touted as being important to counselors and psychotherapists, historically little has been done within graduate school to provide future therapists with self-care strategies. This article proposes that mindfulness training offers a promising approach to therapist self-care and introduces qualitative research on the long-term impact of mindfulness training to substantiate this claim. Sixteen former students who are now practicing counselors were interviewed. Thirteen of them reported continuing to practice mindfulness techniques. Participants indicated that mindfulness continued to influence both their personal lives and self-care practices leading to positive influences in physical, emotional, cognitive, and interpersonal well-being. In their professional lives, participants described ways of incorporating mindfulness into their way of being a therapist, their interventions, and how they conceptualize their clients’ issues.