Hello and welcome to another show on Mindfulness Plus.

My name is Thomas Mconki. I am your host.

Today we're going to talk about medicalized mindfulness. What on earth is that?

So this is a term I came across recently,

and it's describing this phenomenon where medical science is looking to home in on the precise techniques

that can deliver specific benefits to address particular

symptoms and health issues, right? So in theory, somebody who suffers from clinical depression

could do a certain mindfulness technique, whereas somebody who has

anxiety or some other issue may be compulsive eating and so forth, that they could do a different

technique that would render greater benefit and help address their health problem. So they are medicalizing mindfulness.

This is amazing. The 21st century technology and all of the ways that it can improve our lives.

And I want to say that I'm nervous about it.

And I want to talk in the show for just a moment about a potential issue I see with this push

to medicalize, to bring the scientific discipline and enterprise to mindfulness.

So what on earth could be wrong with this?

Well, historically, the way that mindfulness and meditative practice practices have been passed down

is through what is sometimes called in the Eastern Traditions Transmission.

It comes through a teacher, through the teacher's awareness, through their attainment.

They've come to embody what the practice is, and they manifest

these qualities to a student. So this learning that goes on, it's almost subliminal just by

hanging around the teacher and seeing their example, they start to absorb these qualities

that the path is pointing us to. Let me tell you

...