Abstract

Mindfulness (focused awareness) pertains to a state of mind in which attention is focused to one’s own experiences (physical sensations, thoughts, emotions) or enviroment (sounds, smells) in the present moment with an accepting and nonjudgmental attitude. Although mindfulness had been present in the tradition of religions of both the East and West for more than 2500 years, mindfulness based therapy (MBT) was brought into modern medical practice in the late 1970s. Studies have shown that mindfulness has positive effects in children on symptoms of depression, anxiety, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, impulsivity, eating disorders, addicition.


Mindfulness has been incorporated in the comprehensive therapy program at the closed psychiatric ward (ages 7 to 14) since 2015 of the Psychiatric Hospital for Children and Adolescents, Zagreb, Croatia. It is applied in group sessions with children with various mental health disorders combined with other cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) techniques every work day in the duration of approx. 20 minutes. Mindfulness techniques include sensory exercises (smell, taste), breathing exercises, body examination, guided imagination, movement exercises, standing yoga, listening meditation. When applying mindfulness in children it is necessary to shorten the duration of the exercises, as well as adjust them by incorporating elements of play. Mindfulness exercises are gladly accepted by the children and have lead to a reduction in internalised and externalised problems.


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Mindfulness (usredotočena svjesnost) odnosi se na stanje svijesti s pažnjom usmjerenom prema vlastitim iskustvima (tjelesne senzacije, misli, osjećaji) ili okolini (zvukovi, mirisi) u sadašnjem trenutku sa stavom prihvaćanja i neprosuđivanja. Iako je mindfulness prisutan u tradiciji religija Istoka i Zapada već više od 2500 godina, terapije bazirane na usredotočenoj svjesnosti (eng. mindfulness based therapy – MBT) uvedene su u suvremenu medicinsku primjenu tek krajem 1970-tih godina. Istraživanja potvrđuju da mindfulness ima pozitivne učinke u djece na simptome depresije, anksioznosti, poremećaja pažnje i koncentracije te hiperaktivnosti, impulzivnosti, poremećaji hranjenja, ovisnosti. 


Mindfulness je uključen u sveobuhvatni terapijski program na zatvorenom psihijatrijskom odjelu Psihijatrijske bolnice za djecu (dob 7 do 14 godina) od 2015. godine. Primjenjuje se u grupnom radu kod djece s različitim poremećajima mentalnog zdravlja kombiniran s drugim tehnikama kognitivno-bihevioralne terapije (KBT) svakog radnog dana u trajanju oko 20 min. Mindfulness tehnike uključuju senzorne vježbe (miris, okus), vježbe disanja, pregled tijela, vođenu imaginaciju, vježbe kretanje, stojeća joga, meditacije slušanja. Kod primjene mindfulnessa u djece potrebno je skratiti vrijeme trajanja vježbi te ih prilagoditi djece unoseći elemente igre. Mindfulness vježbe rado su prihvaćene od strane djece te rezultiraju smanjenjem internaliziranih i eksternaliziranih problema.