Cognitive Behavior Therapy Institute and
TheraZen^®Center for Psychotherapy-Meditation Integration

"To be, or to attempt to be
an entire human being,
is difficult"
(Seth, Early Sessions, Book 2, p. 236)

"By giving up pride, one becomes lovable,
By giving up anger, one never experiences grief,
By giving up desire, one becomes wealthy,
By giving up avarice, one becomes happy"
(Yaksha Prasna, Mahabharata)

You Don't Have to Feel How You're Feeling
(unless you continue to think how you're thinking)
If you are reading this, you may be suffering from a heightened level of one of the common afflictions associated with being human: depression, stress/anxiety, worry, relationship problems, or simply a general dissatisfaction with where you are in life versus where you thought you would be or want to be. Though most people at some time in their life struggle with at least one of these difficulties in one form or another, the fact that you are on this site suggests that you have begun to realize that this is not the way life has to be. This realization is the first step, and probably the most important step, toward reaching your goals.  

Psychotherapy-Meditation Integration
The fact is that there exist ways of thinking and behaving that are very different from the constrictive patterns of relating to the world that are often taught, either explicitly or implicitly, by parents and society. The practices of psychotherapy and meditation have evolved over thousands of years to address this discrepancy which is the root cause of individual and societal suffering. After a period of differentiation and specialization, in which psychotherapy became a form of healthcare and meditation became a form of spirituality, it is now widely acknowledged that such a dichotomy is neither conceptually accurate nor practically helpful.

Indeed, psychotherapy-meditation integration is just one of a growing number of approaches introducing people to wisdom traditions and teachings on integration of body, little mind and Big Mind or "All That Is." To these ends, in addition to services provided by CBT Institute / TheraZen Center, clients are encouraged to identify and seek out additional resources specializing in other areas of personal growth.

TheraZen^®Training
TheraZen^® (Thera = therapy-related; Zen = the Japanese and English-adopted transliteration of the Chinese term chan, itself a transliteration of the Sanskrit term dhyana, which means meditation) is the term Dr. Seiden currently uses to characterize his personal integration of knowledge and techniques from the fields of cognitive behavior therapy and other psychotherapies; the philosophy and practice of yoga (including meditation, mindfulness, and prayer); and other disciplines involving training body and mind first to get out of their own way and, ultimately, out of the way of soul-guidance and realization of unity with Spirit.

TheraZen^® was chosen as a user-friendly description of Dr. Seiden's approach which has gradually evolved into a method of Transpersonal Cognitive Behavior Therapy that would perhaps more precisely (though certainly more clumsily) be termed "Entheo-Syntonic Transpersonal Cognitive-Behavioral Psychotherapy-Meditation Integration Yoga" (entheo = God containing/enabling; syntonic = consistent with; entheo-syntonic = consistent with a client's own religious, spiritual or scientific conceptions of God, the Universe or Ultimate Reality; yoga = simultaneous octo-arising of the eight limbs of yoga which are external behavior/purification, internal behavior/purification, settling the body, settling the breath, withdrawing attention from sensory stimuli, focusing attention, being aware of awareness -- jnana yoga or self-inquiry a la Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi and Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj -- and, finally, eventually, not whether but when, Being-Consciousness-Bliss).

The "Transpersonal" aspect of this approach refers to the explicit therapeutic focus on moving toward "ultimate human capacities and potentialities" rather than merely on figuring out ways to eliminate "problems" (though this is an important focus as well). Some such capacities might include, as contained in one definition of Transpersonal Psychology, ". . . ultimate values, unitive consciousness, peak experiences . . . ecstasy, mystical experience, awe, being, self-actualization, essence, bliss, wonder, ultimate meaning, transcendance of self, spirit, oneness, cosmic awareness . . . sacralization of everyday life, transcendental phenomena . . . and related concepts, experiences and activities." (Sutich, 1973)

While sharing aspects of what like-minded colleagues have labeled "Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction," "Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy," "Acceptance and Commitment Therapy," and "Dialectical Behavior Therapy," TheraZen's conceptual and technical transpersonal (transcendent experiential) emphases, as well as its practice of sitting meditation, both during and outside of sessions, warrant its explicit differentiation from these other methods to avoid confusion with their own particular philosophies and protocols.

Likewise, while integrating aspects of Ken Wilber's Integral Life Practice, Theosophy, the exploration of Science and Spirit in writings such as those of Mary Scott (Science and Subtle Bodies; The Kundalini Concept -- Its Origin and Value; The Incarnation of the Spirit), the journeys of Robert Monroe (Journeys out of the Body; Far Journeys; Ultimate Journey), the hemispheric synchronization technologies of the Monroe Institute (Hemi-Sync), Ericksonian Hypnotherapy, Jane Roberts' and Robert Butts' Seth Material, Carlos Casteneda's Art of Dreaming, Waldo Vieira's Projectiology, and Biofeedback, the strong emphasis on traditional empirically validated cognitive and behavioral techniques for specific cognitive, emotional and behavioral difficulties situates TheraZen^® among either the Third Wave contextual cognitive behavior therapies (with All-That-Is as the ultimate context), or arguably among the probable future Fourth Wave of transpersonal cognitive behavioral therapies.

Psychotherapeutically, TheraZen^® aims at helping people to overcome cognitive, emotional and physical distress; set and accomplish healthy goals; interact harmoniously with others; and lead a fulfilling life. To the more religious, spiritual, esoteric, mystical, and otherwise ultimate-reality oriented ends, clients are made aware of the vast literature of the Perennial Philosophy (the basis for all true spiritual and religious thought and practice -- See Aldous Huxley's book by this title for a breathtaking introduction and overview).

Although many people associate meditation and mindfulness with Hinduism and Buddhism, these practices are firmly rooted as well in ancient practices of the Biblical prophets. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all possess their own rich traditions of meditation. CBT Institute / TheraZen^® Center clients are encouraged to identify a meditational format that is "entheo-syntonic" or "God-containing/enabling" in accordance with their personal beliefs (See Huston Smith's (2003) preface to "Cleansing the Doors of Perception" for his discussion with Aldous Huxley regarding terminology).

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