Working with a therapist is a powerful way to positively transform your mental health. There are many reasons to seek out the guidance of a mental health professional, such as integrating past experiences, navigating the complexities of grief, or tackling a major life transition. Therapy and meditation together can offer a well-rounded approach, helping individuals process emotions while building daily habits that support healing.
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Just like you would go to a Physical Therapist if you hurt your knee, therapy provides a place to work through challenges that need outside perspective and support. Meditation alone isn’t enough to heal clinical mental health challenges, but the physiological effects and skills it encourages can make time in therapy more effective. Much like you would continue to exercise in between visits to a physical therapist, meditation can be used to support your progress in therapy.
In fact, some therapy styles like Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) use mindfulness practices as part of their sessions.
Now, let’s talk about the differences between mental fitness and mental health, and how that relates to integrating meditation into therapy.
The Difference between Meditation and Therapy
No matter what your emotional state is, there are many psychological and physical benefits to meditation. Just like daily exercise keeps you physically fit, meditation and mindfulness help improve mental fitness.
Meditation and mindfulness does more than relieve stress. A regular meditation practice can help increase your empathy, enhance your self-esteem, improve your emotional regulation, and even help you find the emotional fortitude to push through a challenging work out.
Meditation is an internal practice. Even if you were to attend an in person retreat, meditation instructors do not have the extensive tool box that a therapist has to help you change your behavior or negative beliefs.
Therapy, on the other hand, is often a mental health intervention. A therapist has a variety of skills to help you not only change the way you think about your life, but how you behave in it. Therapy can provide you with tools to manage your unique mind, help you access insights you wouldn’t otherwise be able to access, and provide a safe space to face fears and release past events. When thoughtfully combined, therapy and meditation can deepen self-awareness and reinforce the insights gained in each session.
A therapist encourages you to share and process your inner experience so that you can make adjustments to your thinking or behavior. Integrating meditation into therapy can strengthen this process by helping you notice your thoughts and emotions more clearly between sessions.
Can Meditation Enhance the Effectiveness of Psychotherapy?
Meditation can help you develop skills, like emotional awareness, that make time with your therapist more effective. Meditation is also always available, while therapy is scheduled. Sessions are often once a week, leaving a lot of time for different challenges to arise. Meditation supports the progress that you’ve made during therapy visits and helps you move through smaller challenges that arise between appointments.
That’s why many people are now exploring the benefits of integrating meditation into therapy as a way to stay grounded and build emotional resilience throughout the week.
What are the Benefits of Combining Meditation and Therapy
Increase Emotional Awareness
A regular mindfulness practice can help you become more aware of how your emotions affect you, and what behavior patterns you fall when you are anxious or stressed. A therapist can help you create personalized strategies to respond in a healthier manner to your emotions.
This is one of the many benefits of combining meditation and counseling, where mindfulness builds awareness and therapy offers tools to respond with intention.
Improve Emotional Regulation
As you become more aware of your emotions in real time, it becomes easier to find positive outlets for your feelings. Sometimes just acknowledging the existence of an emotion is enough to regulate it. This can help you stay more present in therapy as strong emotions arise. And when you’re incorporating mindfulness into counseling, it’s like giving yourself a moment to breathe—so you’re not just reacting, but really choosing how you want to show up in that moment.
Relieve Stress
The act of meditation, especially mindful meditation, helps reduce cortisol in the body. A body scan meditation can help you become aware of places you are tensing or storing stress so that you can relax – signaling to your subconscious brain that it doesn’t need to continue pumping adrenaline through your system. This can be helpful between sessions or even immediately before.
Improve Communication
Mindfulness increases awareness of your present state so that you can respond in an empowered way rather than reacting. As you become more aware of what drives your emotions and behaviors, it’s easier to communicate that information to your therapist. This helps them create personalized strategies to navigate challenges or relationship dynamics that affect you. That’s the real value of combining meditation and counseling—you show up with more clarity, making each session feel more focused and impactful.
You can also read “Best Spring Meditation Techniques for Seasonal Renewal and Mindfulness“
Boost Clarity and Focus
Improved clarity and focus can help you create actionable goals with your therapist and stay more present during therapy sessions. Many people find that integrating meditation into therapy naturally boosts this clarity—helping them show up with a calmer mind and a clearer sense of purpose.
Expand Empathy
By building self-compassion, you increase your ability to relate to others’ challenges and shortcomings. This can lead to stronger relationships and a more fulfilling life. Greater empathy is especially helpful if you are receiving guidance around interpersonal struggles.
How Does Mindfulness Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (MBCT) Help With Depression and Anxiety
Mindfulness meditation has been shown to decrease symptoms of depression and anxiety, especially as part of Mindfulness Based Cognitive therapy. This works by shifting the focus to the present and disrupting patterns of negative rumination and worry[1].
Therapists use tools like body scans, mindful breathing, and meditation during their sessions and then apply cognitive exercises to challenge negative thinking. Teaching mindfulness for personal use is also an element of this this psychotherapy method. This blend of approaches is what makes mindfulness-based cognitive therapyso effective—it encourages both awareness and action, inside and outside the therapy room.
5 Strategies for Integrating Meditation with Therapy
- Use meditation to manage stressful or triggering events between visits
Meditation can help you become aware of emotions before you react to them. This makes it easier to respond intentionally and to apply skills you’ve learned in therapy. - Use mindfulness meditation to become more aware of thoughts
A regular mindfulness practice brings awareness to patterns of rumination or anxiety. Once you are aware of repeating disempowering thoughts, you can work with a therapist to challenge those thoughts or create a counter-narrative. Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy encourages increased awareness so that thought patterns and behaviors contributing to depression and anxiety can be disrupted and changed.[2] - Use meditation to prepare for a psychotherapy session
Meditating before a session can be especially helpful for EMDR therapy, which is designed to treat post-traumatic stress disorder. Acceptance and self-compassion are essential skills for preparing for the potentially intense EMDR process. - Use gratitude meditation to shift your focus to the progress you’ve made
Seeing results from therapy can take time, leading to discouragement. Practicing gratitude meditation regularly highlights progress and strengthens neural pathways associated with happiness and contentment, enhancing therapy effectiveness. That’s why so many people are turning to therapy and meditation together—to stay hopeful, present, and connected to the small wins along the way. - Use loving-kindness meditation to prepare for a productive couple or family therapy session
Family or couple’s therapy can address unhealthy dynamics or dissatisfaction. Loving-Kindness meditation increases empathy and understanding, making it easier to see things from another perspective without feeling defensive.
Meditation Is Not A Replacement for Psychotherapy
Mindfulness and a regular meditation practice offer many benefits regardless of your mental needs. However, for any mental health issues that are negatively impacting your life on a consistent basis it is best to seek out the support of a professional therapist or counselor.
If you’ve already made the commitment to work with a therapist, practicing meditation regularly can help you get even more out of your psychotherapy sessions. Even 5 minutes of daily practice can make a difference. Siddha makes it easy to make meditation a habit, with expert-designed guided sessions that help you navigate the highs and lows of your busy life.
By incorporating mindfulness into counseling, you’re not just supporting your mental health—you’re building daily skills that deepen your healing. Whether you’re just starting out or exploring therapy and meditation together, small moments of awareness can lead to meaningful transformation.
FAQs about Therapy and Meditation
1. Can meditation replace therapy?
While meditation offers numerous mental health benefits, such as enhancing emotional regulation and reducing stress, it is not a substitute for professional therapy. Therapy provides structured interventions tailored to individual needs, addressing underlying issues that meditation alone may not resolve. However, integrating meditation into therapy can complement the therapeutic process, enhancing self-awareness and supporting mental well-being between sessions.
2. How does mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) help with depression and anxiety?
Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) combines cognitive behavioral techniques with mindfulness practices to address patterns of negative thinking associated with depression and anxiety. By fostering present-moment awareness, MBCT helps individuals recognize and disengage from automatic negative thought patterns, reducing rumination and preventing relapse. Incorporating mindfulness into counseling sessions can enhance emotional resilience and promote long-term mental health.
3. What are the benefits of combining meditation and counseling?
Combining meditation and counseling can lead to improved emotional awareness, better stress management, and enhanced communication skills. Meditation practices, such as mindfulness meditation, can help individuals become more attuned to their thoughts and feelings, facilitating deeper insights during counseling sessions. This integration supports a holistic approach to mental health, promoting overall well-being.
4. How can I incorporate mindfulness into my therapy sessions?
Incorporating mindfulness into therapy sessions can be achieved by practicing mindfulness exercises, such as deep breathing or body scans, before or during sessions to enhance focus and presence. Discussing with your therapist about integrating mindfulness-based techniques can tailor the approach to your specific needs. Regular mindfulness practice outside of therapy can also reinforce the skills learned during sessions, supporting ongoing mental health.
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