Dan Siegel knows that nobody—especially an angst-filled teenager—likes being told what to do. That’s why he takes a more roundabout approach to connect with younger clients. He claims the first thing you should ask is “Would you like to know more about your brain?”
By taking the emphasis off of “talking about feelings” and placing it on science, Dan creates a space that can lead to action-oriented solutions and positive growth. See how it’s done.
As Siegel notes, blending the disciplines of brain science and mindfulness had a profound effect on his clients. Introducing this blend is a unique way of piquing your young clients’ curiosity, bolstering the therapeutic alliance, and helping them regain control in an increasingly anxiety-ridden stage of life.
“Teaching mindfulness has taken on a new dimension with my patients,” Siegel says in his Networker article. “There’s a sense of a central ‘hub’ within my mind that holds more of the moment of being between us… The simplicity of attuning to our breath, to ourselves, perhaps permits us to gain access to a deeper self that’s the common ground that we can share.”
Rich Simon
Richard Simon, PhD, founded Psychotherapy Networker and served as the editor for more than 40 years. He received every major magazine industry honor, including the National Magazine Award. Rich passed away November 2020, and we honor his memory and contributions to the field every day.
Dan Siegel
Dan Siegel, MD, is the founder and director of education of the Mindsight Institute and founding codirector of the Mindful Awareness Research Center at UCLA, where he was also coprincipal Investigator of the Center for Culture, Brain and Development and clinical professor of psychiatry at the School of Medicine. An award-winning educator, he’s the author of five New York Times bestsellers and over 15 other books, which have been translated into over 40 languages. As the founding editor of the Norton Professional Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology (IPNB), he’s overseen the publication of over 100 books in the transdisciplinary IPNB framework, which focuses on the mind and mental health. A graduate of Harvard Medical School, Dan completed his postgraduate training at UCLA specializing in pediatrics, and adult, adolescent, and child psychiatry. He was trained in attachment research and narrative analysis through a National Institute of Mental Health research training fellowship focusing on how relationships shape our autobiographical ways of making sense of our lives and influence our development across the lifespan.
