When Kitsy Schoen teaches a class on mindfulness-based stress reduction at Oakland Kaiser, she finds it helpful to introduce the concept of “psychological homelessness.” In order to help people understand the benefits of mindfulness practice, she speaks of "how we are squeezed out of ourselves in a life that's too stressful and fast, and there is something inherently healing about coming back home to our bodies and the moment.”
The other important lesson of the class is "don't believe everything you think. We talk about how mindfulness gives us a little distance from our thinking, so that we can choose what thoughts we want to give attention and energy – as opposed to being run by our thoughts.”
Ms. Schoen is the head of the Mind Body Education Program at Oakland Kaiser. She is a Licensed Social Worker and a longtime Buddhist practitioner. She completed the Community Dharma Leader program at Spirit Rock and is a core teacher at the East Bay Meditation Center. She considers herself fortunate to have a job that allows her to bring the practices of Buddhism into mainstream culture.
Oakland Kaiser has the largest behavioral health program in Northern California and Ms. Schoen says there is greater demand for these classes than they are able to meet. She says that the chief of psychiatry of Northern California Kaiser told her "he would like more of the programs to model the intensive practice of skills similar to what is done in the mindfulness class."
Graduates of the mindfulness class have credited their new skills with many benefits. Some report a lessening of such symptoms as depression, insomnia, and migraines. Another said, "I feel like I have a much better understanding and appreciation of the mind-body connection. I have a more positive outlook for the future.”
The program is an example of what a colleague of Ms. Schoen calls "stealth Dharma"- the teaching of Buddhist practices without the Buddhist context. Many of the mindfulness instructors at Kaiser have a Buddhist background. It is also true that many of the people who graduate from the Kaiser Mind Body program go on to take Buddhist classes or join ongoing meditation groups.
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Stephen Colgan can be contacted at StephenColganMFT@sbcglobal.net
This webpage is dedicated to portraying the amazing diversity of Buddhist practice and culture in the Bay area. All suggestions are welcome.
Stephen Colgan also writes the Psychology and Spirituality Examiner page
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