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    NJCTS > Webinars > Mindfulness and Self-Compassion: How Grounding in the Present Can Help Enrich the Future

Mindfulness and Self-Compassion: How Grounding in the Present Can Help Enrich the Future

May 25, 2016

Presenter: Janice Autera, Psy.D.
View the webinar’s corresponding slide presentation here
View this webinar »
Dr. Autera spoke about what mindfulness is and how self-compassion can improve quality of life.  She explains the exercises and how to not get frustrated with your mind wandering.

Comments(4)

  1. NJCTS says:
    May 26, 2016 at 12:42 pm

    How can mindfulness specifically help children who have Tourette Syndrome?

    • Dr.Autera says:
      May 27, 2016 at 10:27 am

      Mindfulness can be very helpful to children with Tourette Syndrome as it fosters greater awareness to the present moment. One of the major components to the Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention for Tics (CBIT) is awareness training in which the individual is trained to become more aware of the premonitory urge, or the signal that arises prior to the tic. As mindfulness promotes present-moment focus, it will allow the child to develop greater awareness to all internal stimuli, such as thoughts, emotions, and urges. Mindfulness can also be helpful for children with Tourette Syndrome who may have a great deal of negative thoughts about their TS that is significantly impacting their daily functioning. There are a number of exercises that focus on observing thoughts simply for what they are to allow for a healthy disconnect from those negative thoughts that a child may be very connected with or fused to.

  2. NJCTS says:
    May 26, 2016 at 12:43 pm

    You had mentioned the importance of getting children engaged in mindfulness, can you talk a little bit more on how to go about explaining mindfulness to children?

    • Dr.Autera says:
      May 27, 2016 at 10:41 am

      In explaining mindfulness to children, it is important to first get them interested by relating it to something that they enjoy. For example, if the child enjoys arts and crafts, you might say that you would like to try some arts activities where you are practicing focusing on how you feel as you are creating the art or noticing your thoughts during the art project. If the child is older, I might explain the benefits in greater detail as reviewed during the webinar. However, if the child is younger I might simply state that these activities may not only help improve their art and enable them to enjoy the experience of creating the art, but they will help to notice how you are feeling and what you are thinking. This also allows for a conversation about the importance of knowing what are bodies are telling us about how we feel.