What should our ABSR courses be called in the future?

Wouldn't it have made more sense to find a "very own" name?

That question was asked in a Facebook post today:

„A question about the name of the course: The MBSR, the "Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction" method, has been around for over 20 years, which very successfully conveys elements of mindfulness / meditation. Wouldn't it have made more sense to find a "very own" name? Otherwise it gives the impression that you want to jump on a successful / well-known bandwagon.“

This is our answer - if you have any more thoughts, post them on the blog.

Hello Rainer. Yes, that is a very good question that we discuss again and again.

In the Eurythmy4you team we switch internally between the names anthroposophy-based and activity-based stress management. In English it is called Anthroposophy Based Stress Release or Activity Based Stress Release. Both can easily be abbreviated with ABSR.

Activity in everyday life and the associated eurythmy, that is the core aspect of the program. In contrast to the well-known mindfulness-based MBSR courses, the ABSR courses do not focus on meditation, but on attentively grasping, penetrating and playfully changing activities in everyday life as a means of permanent stress management on eight levels for seven forms of nervousness. The starting point and source of inspiration for this is Steiner's lecture „Nervous conditions in our time“.

Steiner's exercises on nervousness are, and this is not so well known, a practical application of the Eightfold Path which he valued highly. This reference to the Eightfold Path of the Buddha forms the bridge to the mindfulness-based MBSR stress management programs. The MBSR programs are based on Buddhist meditation practices and values. The so-called body scan is central. So the two programs have the same father and are, so to speak, siblings. That can (or should?) already be visible.

If you know another name that is fun, concise and well suited for communication, we would be happy, and I can well imagine switching at some point. At the moment we have defined and positioned ourselves in terms of content and consider ABSR to be appropriate. And it's nice that this stimulates content-related discussions like this one.

No! We are not interested in jumping on the MBSR's bandwagon, that would not be possible. Rather, it is about defining the borders between the two approaches and creating awareness of the difference. Just like we're doing with each other right now.

Yes! Succeeding and reaching 100,000’s of people like the MBSR programs, that is what we want Activity Based Stress Release to be. In view of the current social and individual challenges, we even consider this to be important.

We are in the process of evaluating and scientifically researching the ABSR programs. It could be very useful to run the MBSR programs, which also last eight weeks due to their relationship to Buddhism and the eightfold path, as a non-placebo comparison group in parallel. Not to see who is better, because MBSR is also proven to be very effective, but to better understand and communicate the mechanisms of self-development, self-discovery and self-management.

That is why we are looking for clinics, doctors, psychologists, therapists and self-help groups who offer the ABSR course as part of their programs either as an in-patient service or in aftercare and would wish to do research with us. Take a look at our research page, there you will find the first results of a non-guided ABSR group course from 2019.

Yes what do you think. What should the ABSR courses be called in the future?