Mindfulness therapy works as well as antidepressant drugs, say experts

Patients who practised mindfulness therapy were 31 per cent less likely to become depressed again within 60 weeks
Meditation
Rex
Liz Connor28 April 2016

People who suffer from depression might be able to stave off a relapse just as effectively by practising mindfulness therapy as they would be by taking anti-depressant drugs.

A meta-analysis into the effectiveness of the treatment, conducted by Oxford University, has found that Mindfulness Based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (MCBT) can control depression as well as mood-boosting drugs.

MCBT combines the ideas of cognitive therapy with mindfulness inspired in part by Buddhist philosophy, using techniques such as meditation and yoga.

According to the study, patients who practised mindfulness therapy were 31 per cent less likely to become depressed again within 60 weeks even if they stopped taking their medication, compared to those who continued taking anti-depressants.

The analysis looked at nine trials conducted in the UK, Belgium, Canada, the Netherlands and Switzerland and the findings were published in a paper in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.

Professor Willem Kuyken, the lead author of the paper, said: “This new evidence for mindfulness-based cognitive therapy… is very heartening.

“While MBCT is not a panacea, it does clearly offer those with a substantial history of depression a new approach to learning skills to stay well in the long-term.”

Previous studies have claimed mindfulness techniques can bring on panic attacks and lead to paranoia, delusions or depression.

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However the new study – the largest-ever analysis of research on the subject - found mindfulness-based cognitive therapy did not have any evidence of harmful effects.

Professor Kuyken went on to stress that mindfulness should be viewed as one option alongside drugs and other forms of therapy - rather than a one-size fits all solution.

What is mindfulness?

Mindfulness is a Buddhist discipline which encourages focusing on the moment rather than being consumed by the pain of the past or anxiety over the future, a mental state achieved via regular meditation. It's used in western culture as a therapeutic technique to reduce stress, pain and depression.

“We need to do more research, however, to get recovery rates closer to 100 per cent and to help prevent the first onset of depression, earlier in life,” he said.

“These are programmes of work we are pursuing at the University of Oxford and with our collaborators around the world.”

Sir Simon Wessley, professor of psychological medicine at the Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London said: “We already know that the best treatments for depression involve talking therapies and antidepressants.

“This study confirms that mindfulness is an effective talking therapy, probably about the same as antidepressants, and that both together reduces relapse. If I got depressed I would continue to want a talking treatment and an antidepressant. “

Mindfulness as a practice has been backed by the NHS advisory body, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice), and the Mental Health Foundation research charity.

Robert Flaherty, a welldoing.org counsellor regularly uses mindfulness techniques in his practice to treat those suffering with depression.

He says: “I find mindfulness a great addition in the therapy room, it can deepen the therpeutic relationship and it can be a powerful tool to increase our tolerance of painful emotions.

"It is not always the answer and there is a need for some caution to be aware of in the use of mindfulness with certain issues but lots of my clients have found it very useful.”

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