Gina Rossini
Gina Rossini LCSW, Certified MBCT Instructor

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) 8-Week Course

An 8-Week Program for Lasting Change

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy is an evidence-based, structured program designed to help people develop a different relationship with their thoughts, emotions, and patterns of stress. It is particularly helpful for those who experience recurring depression, anxiety, or emotional reactivity, and for anyone interested in building greater resilience and wellbeing.

Supported by over 30 years of research, MBCT has shown to cut depressive relapse in half, being as effective as antidepressant maintenance medication. MBCT has also been proven to significantly reduce anxiety, stress, chronic pain, and negative rumination patterns. Participants learn to develop a different relationship with thoughts, emotions, and physical sensation shifting from a problem solving "doing mode" to a present aware "being mode". Research shows MBCT participants foster increased self acceptance, resilience, cognitive control, focus, memory functioning and wellbeing.

MBCT is an eight week course, 2.5 hours per week, and combines guided mindfulness practices and inquiry with elements of cognitive behavioral therapy. Each session includes meditation, gentle movement, group discussion, and practical exercises that explore how patterns of thinking and behavior affect mood. Participants are supported to notice negative patterns earlier and to respond with more awareness and choice.

Between sessions, participants are invited to practice mindfulness at home using guided recordings. This ongoing practice is an essential part of the course and helps bring the learning into everyday life.

MBCT does not aim to eliminate difficult thoughts or feelings. Instead, it helps people learn how to recognize them, relate to them differently, and reduce the likelihood of getting caught in unhelpful cycles such as rumination or self-criticism. Over time, many people find this leads to greater stability, self-compassion, and confidence in managing challenges as they arise.

Upcoming Course Dates

Course dates will be posted here. Please check back or contact us to be notified when new dates are available.

How MBCT Works

The Full Bloom Center 8-week MBCT program is evidence-based and experiential, designed to help participants step away from patterns that contribute to repeated and prolonged episodes of depression and anxiety.

  • Mindfulness helps you notice your mental patterns more clearly — and spot early signs of a low mood so you can respond sooner
  • It breaks the automatic loop — between negative mood, negative thoughts, and physical symptoms like fatigue and sluggishness
  • It helps you shift — out of a critical, judgment-driven mindset into a more direct, present, and non-judgmental way of experiencing life
  • It gives you a different, more skillful way — to work with difficult emotions and moods
  • It teaches you to hold challenging thoughts and feelings in awareness — and see them from a more compassionate, balanced perspective
  • It supports being present in daily life — helping you reconnect with yourself and appreciate simple, everyday moments

Who Can Benefit from MBCT

  • People who have experienced recurring episodes of depression and anxiety
  • Those advised to stay on long-term antidepressant medication to prevent relapse and who are exploring alternative supports
  • Individuals who want to learn new ways to relate to difficult thoughts and feelings with greater intention
  • Those interested in pursuing training to become MBCT teachers or to better understand MBCT

MBCT in Practice

An introduction to mindfulness — Jon Kabat-Zinn

How MBCT Evolved

Cognitive therapy has been revolutionary in the treatment of depression and anxiety. Research has shown, however, that there can still be high levels of relapse after treatment. MBCT was developed by Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Depression experts Dr. Zindel Segal, Dr. John Teasdale, Dr. Mark Williams, and Mindfulness guru Jon Kabat-Zinn to address this gap. Researchers learned that, while cognitive therapy can help us understand and shift our thought pattern, shifting our relationship with our thoughts and bodies is essential to create long-lasting recovery from depression and anxiety.

MBCT teaches people how to relate to thoughts as mental events of the mind that they have agency over versus determinants of identity or behavior from which they are powerless. MBCT combines the evidence-based tools of mindfulness, such as decentering and deep connection, with the here and now of our physical experience with the evidence-based relapse prevention tools of cognitive therapy. Decades of clinical research has shown MBCT to be as effective as long-term medication management for prevention of depressive relapse and reducing core depressive symptoms. MBCT has also been proven to enhance cognitive functions and emotional regulation and is effective in reducing rumination, anxiety, and stress. MBCT significantly improves mindfulness skills and self-compassion in patients with depressive disorders.

Research & Evidence

Peer-reviewed studies supporting the clinical efficacy of mindfulness-based interventions.

Research studies on mindfulness efficacy

[1] Kuyken W, Warren FC, Taylor RS, et al. Efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy in Prevention of Depressive Relapse: An Individual Patient Data Meta-analysis From Randomized Trials. JAMA Psychiatry. 2016;73(6):565–74.
doi: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2016.0076
[2] Barnhofer T, Dunn BD, Strauss C, et al. Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy versus treatment as usual after non-remission with NHS Talking Therapies high-intensity psychological therapy for depression. Lancet Psychiatry. 2025;12(6):433–446.
doi: 10.1016/S2215-0366(25)00105-1
[3] Strauss C, Bibby-Jones AM, Jones F, et al. Clinical Effectiveness and Cost-Effectiveness of Supported Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy Self-help Compared With Supported Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Self-help for Adults Experiencing Depression: The LIGHTMind Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Psychiatry. 2023;80(5):415–424.
doi: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2023.0222

Research studies on neural changes

[4] Farb NAS, Desormeau P, Anderson AK, Segal ZV. Static and treatment-responsive brain biomarkers of depression relapse vulnerability following prophylactic psychotherapy: Evidence from a randomized control trial. Neuroimage Clin. 2022;34:102969.
doi: 10.1016/j.nicl.2022.102969
[5] Farb NA, Anderson AK, Mayberg H, Bean J, McKeon D, Segal ZV. Minding one’s emotions: mindfulness training alters the neural expression of sadness. Emotion. 2010;10(1):25–33.
doi: 10.1037/a0017151
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