Ever want to pull a Jason Segel in “Shrinking” and simply command clients to “Just stop ruminating!”. (Great show, by the way, if you haven’t seen it). Really though, we all know how little that would work. So how do we help clients find alternative methods for coping and learn how to stop ruminating?
Rumination comes on for many of us from time to time. But it often constantly grips clients who experience a range of mental health difficulties. It can even be a primary contributor to experiences like depression, generalized anxiety, PTSD, prolonged grief, and other difficulties.
Rumination appears to occur for multiple reasons. For example, some people believe that it helps solve a problem or for others it provides a sense of feeling prepared for catastrophe. All the while, the individual misses out on opportunities to actively affect situations for their benefit.
We cannot simply stop ruminating by will alone. So how do we help clients learn how to stop ruminating? A few approaches are promising. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), behavioral activation, and certain targeted mindfulness approaches have each shown promise for counteracting rumination.
Rumination-focused CBT (RF-CBT) appears to be effective by working with deep-seated inaccurate beliefs about the effectiveness of rumination. For example, “It helps me figure out how I can do things better in the future.” RF-CBT also helps build strategies to work with treatment resistance that often accompanies rumination. The good news is that the Beck Institute has a good continuing education course for training in RF-CBT!
Pros: This training from a foremost institute on CBT boasts a ton of research-support. It also provides strategies for working with common rumination-related treatment resistance. Its view of rumination as a transdiagostic process opens the gamut for training to work with a wide range of client experiences.
Cons: The cons appear minimal, as this training uses a strong research base to meet clients where they are at to address a widely detrimental process. Like all trainings, however, no training is perfect nor can assure perfect clinician execution of the approaches discussed.
Rumination can be a bear to tackle. Luckily, we don’t have to pull a Shrinking-style “just stop doing it”. Good training in specific and actionable methods for how to stop ruminating can help clients stop for themselves. They can then find impactful symptom reduction or a smoother path to relief.
