Inner Peace
Mental Health and Well-being

WHO | Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Emergencies

General information related to most emergencies
> who.int/mental_health/emergencies

Danish Center for Mindfulness

Our vision for improving mental health

Danish Center for Mindfulness
The Danish Center for Mindfulness offers free mindfulness sessions in Copenhagen and Aarhus. Here, in the beautiful Aarhus City Hall, designed by the famous Danish architects Arne Jacobsen and Erik Møller in 1941. Photo credit: Helle Arensbak Hansen

The Danish Center for Mindfulness has developed five goals for improving mental health. Our goals are based on the rapid development of mindfulness-based research and interventions – in healthcare, organizations, schools and businesses. They strongly support the UN Sustainable Development Goals, whereas goal 3 is: “Ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being at all ages.”

1) We need to improve mental health in children and youth
Just as schools offer physical education to children and young people, they should offer mindfulness. We are already involved in bringing mindfulness to hundreds of schools across Denmark.

* Kindness curriculum for younger children
* The dot-be “.b” program for older children

2) We need stronger prevention of mental illness in adults
Our public healthcare system should implement Mindfulness-based stress-reduction (MBSR) programs as prevention for mental illness in adults. The programs could be offered by healthcare centers after referral by primary-care physicians. This would reduce the economic burden of people becoming ill with stress, depression and anxiety – and prevent thousands of people from suffering from these debilitating diseases.

3) We should treat mental illness without medicine
Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) should be offered as a treatment option for people with depression and anxiety. Studies show that this is a cost-effective treatment with long-term results for patients. MBCT and/or MBSR should be offered as a treatment and rehabilitation option for patients with chronic illness, as well as people on sick leave and employees in the Danish Defence.

4) We should offer prevention to healthcare professionals and caregivers
Mindfulness-based programs can prevent healthcare professionals from burnout, and caregivers from becoming patients themselves. Healthcare centers and hospitals should offer MBSR and Compassion-cultivation training (CCT) programs to both groups.

5) We should help our leaders make wise decisions
By offering MBSR and CCT programs to public and private leaders, we can help them make wise, sustainable decisions for themselves, employees, organizations and society.

The Danish Center for Mindfulness, Aarhus University, is pleased to welcome participants to the 4th bi-annual International Conference on Mindfulness (ICM) 2020 to be held in Aarhus, Denmark, from June 24-26, 2020.
> mindfulness.au.dk