June 2, 2024 • 10 mins
Morita Therapy is an approach from Japanese Psychology that is now being used in the West. It's a natural approach to Mental Health that everyone can apply to their daily lives. On today's Mojo Monday, Coach Carly explains what Morita Therapy is and how it's positively impacted her own wellbeing.
If you would learn more about Morita Therapy, you can get in touch with Carly at www.carlytaylorcoaching.com.au.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:08):
Hey, everybody, welcome back to another episode of My Joe
Monday with me coach Khali. So today we're diving into
a fascinating and unique approach to mental health and well
being called Marita therapy, which is also something that I
am incredibly passionate about. And that is because since my
first introduction to Marita therapy back in twenty seventeen, it's
(00:33):
had an incredible positive impact on my own mental health
and well being, and it's also had such a positive
impact on many of my clients. So Marita therapy was
developed by a Japanese psychiatrist, Showma Marita in the early
twentieth century, and it's deeply rooted in Zen Buddhism. Marita
(00:55):
was a Zen Buddhist himself and he originally created it
to treat what is called shinkaitsu, which is a type
of anxiety neurosis. So many of his patients were suffering
from these neuroses. It was things like generalized anxiety disorder, phobias,
(01:16):
that sort of thing. And in saying that, over the years,
its principles have been adapted to help with a wide
range of emotional issues and to improve daily function, and
I think it's impacted me the most. It's been hugely
beneficial and understanding myself, understanding my thoughts, my emotions, and
(01:39):
my behaviors and approach these in a way that was
very different to how I had been living. So Marita
suggests that we have two conflicting agendas that he identifies
in human motivation. So according to Marita, we have two
opposing drives. So we have a desired live fully or
(02:01):
self actualize, which is living our full potential, and a
desire to maintain security and comfort. And I'm sure this
sounds familiar to many of you because it definitely I
can definitely relate to this. So think about it. When
you're pursuing something important like a career goal, or a
new relationship, or training for a half marathon, you're often
(02:24):
faced with doubt, discomfort, and insecurity, as well as excitement
and motivation to actually achieve these things. So that's where
these two opposing drives are. And what Marita noticed was
that the more we try to avoid the uncomfortable feelings,
the more they disrupted our lives. So it's like trying
(02:47):
to ignore as a mosquito bite, the more you scratch it,
the worse that it gets. And this brings us to
a key concept in Marita therapy called arugamama, which you
may have heard of because I talk about it a lot.
So Aragamama means accepting life as it is. It's all
about embracing the present moment without constantly comparing it to
(03:11):
this idealized version of how you think think things should be.
So often we are not happy with the way things
are in this moment, and we live in this state
of dissatisfaction of our current situation and thinking that once
we fix what's wrong, we'll finally be happy. And this
(03:32):
relates to our mental health. Is very much in the West,
where we feel that we need to get rid of symptoms.
We're very focused on symptoms and we need to get
rid of them before we can start to live a good,
meaningful life. But then when that future arrives, it's just
another present moment with its own set of challenges. So
Marita therapy teaches us to break free from this cycle
(03:56):
and find satisfaction in the present moment. So let's talk
now about the naturalness of feeling bad. So this may
be what you don't want to hear, but Marita observed
that it's perfectly normal to experience unpleasant thoughts and feelings
like anxiety or depression or self doubt, and the real
(04:19):
issue isn't these feelings themselves, but it's our attempts to
suppress or avoid them because they're so uncomfortable. So Marita
therapy helps us change our relationship with these feelings so
we accept them as a natural part of being human.
And this was a game change for me because my
(04:42):
life was so often dominated by trying to get rid
of my feelings or emotions if they were difficult, and
how I responded to this was often not aligned with
the person who I wanted to be or what I
stood for because I was so reactive to the emotion
and I would think or feel. I would just think,
(05:03):
and then I would feel, and then I would just act.
You know, I wouldn't even think about it. I wouldn't
even think that there was an option. So allowing emotions
to always dictate what we do often means that we
either are living in the past or we're living in
the future, and it takes away from who we are
right now. So Marita emphasized that we can't control our
(05:25):
internal experiences through sheer will and putting our attention and
our energy on unwanted thoughts and feelings often backfires on
us because making the what it does is it makes
them even more intense and more frequent, because what you
pay attention to is what grows. Or what I often
say is it's like you put attention on these thoughts
(05:47):
and the feelings, and it's like throwing fuel on the
fire it grows. So instead, Marita therapy focuses on what
we can control, which is our actions and our behaviors.
And just on a side note, this is very much
aligned with epictetis, with a stoic philosopher with the zones
of controls, and it's also very much aligned with act
(06:08):
which I often consider being a kind of a Western
version of Marita therapy. And in all of these actions
are controllable, unlike our automatic thoughts and emotions. Our automatic
thoughts and emotions are a part of our brain wiring
from our past experiences, so they're very hard, if not impossible,
(06:31):
to control. So an example of this would be, and
it's quite a light example, but you might not feel
like going for a run, or you might not feel
like getting out of bed, but you can do it
despite how you feel and often taking action can actually
change how you feel. So for example, you might gain
(06:52):
confidence after giving a few presentations, even if you were
anxious at the start. And Marita therapy encourage us encourages
us to accept our feelings and take purposeful action regardless
of how we feel. And then, as I said, quite
often our feelings will change, but that's not the primary
motive of doing it. And another important aspect of Marita
(07:16):
therapy is around self centered attention, which includes our suffering,
So paying attention to our suffering. When we become so
preoccupied with ourselves, which seems to be quite a normal
human trait, so we're talking our anxiety, our worry, our shame,
what our symptoms are. We often get trapped in this
(07:39):
cycle of suffering, and Marita teaches us to shift our
focus or shift our attention from ourselves and this self
centeredness to the outside world. So being present, getting in
touch with the world around us, especially the natural world
around us, it can really break us free from the
(08:04):
prison that we often create in our own minds. So
Marita therapy has taught me to be aware of and
accept the moment to moment fluctuations of my thoughts and
my feelings without struggling with them. And the point is
not to get rid of their discomfort, but it's about
living a purposeful and a meaningful life even in the
(08:27):
presence of it. And I would certainly say that it
is easy to say and often hard to do, but
this is a skill. It is a life skill, and
like all skills, the more you practice, the better you
get at us. And I am somebody who since twenty
seventeen has been practicing this stuff, and so I can
(08:50):
personally say that it has had a huge positive impact
on my life and my relationship with my own emotions
and my own things thoughts. So traditionally Marita therapy have
this strict sort of four stage protocol which he had
as an inpatient program, which I won't delve into now,
(09:13):
but it can certainly be used as an approach focused
on developing healthy living skills and learning to take control
of and manage our attention and taking action aligned with
our purpose in each moment. And that's why Marita therapy
is often referred to as the psychology of action. So
to wrap up, I want to leave you with a
(09:35):
quote from Showman Marita himself. Accept your feelings, know your purpose,
do what needs to be done. So next time you
find yourself struggling with uncomfortable thoughts and feelings, try to
accept those feelings as part of your humanness. Focus on
(09:56):
your actions, so where is your attention in this Redirect
that attention and focus on your actions and do what
needs to be done. And you may need to coexist
with those thoughts and feelings for a while, but when
you are focused on what needs to be done or
focused on the outside world, often though, the intensity of
(10:18):
those feelings will start to decrease. If you engage fully
in the present moment with whatever it is you are
doing over time, like me, you might just find that
life takes on a new perspective. So thanks for listening,
and I hope you've found today's episode on Marita Therapy
interesting and inspiring, and don't forget to subscribe and live
(10:43):
a review if you've enjoyed this episode, and I will
see you next week.
Hey, everybody, welcome back to another episode of My Joe
Monday with me coach Khali. So today we're diving into
a fascinating and unique approach to mental health and well
being called Marita therapy, which is also something that I
am incredibly passionate about. And that is because since my
first introduction to Marita therapy back in twenty seventeen, it's
(00:33):
had an incredible positive impact on my own mental health
and well being, and it's also had such a positive
impact on many of my clients. So Marita therapy was
developed by a Japanese psychiatrist, Showma Marita in the early
twentieth century, and it's deeply rooted in Zen Buddhism. Marita
(00:55):
was a Zen Buddhist himself and he originally created it
to treat what is called shinkaitsu, which is a type
of anxiety neurosis. So many of his patients were suffering
from these neuroses. It was things like generalized anxiety disorder, phobias,
(01:16):
that sort of thing. And in saying that, over the years,
its principles have been adapted to help with a wide
range of emotional issues and to improve daily function, and
I think it's impacted me the most. It's been hugely
beneficial and understanding myself, understanding my thoughts, my emotions, and
(01:39):
my behaviors and approach these in a way that was
very different to how I had been living. So Marita
suggests that we have two conflicting agendas that he identifies
in human motivation. So according to Marita, we have two
opposing drives. So we have a desired live fully or
(02:01):
self actualize, which is living our full potential, and a
desire to maintain security and comfort. And I'm sure this
sounds familiar to many of you because it definitely I
can definitely relate to this. So think about it. When
you're pursuing something important like a career goal, or a
new relationship, or training for a half marathon, you're often
(02:24):
faced with doubt, discomfort, and insecurity, as well as excitement
and motivation to actually achieve these things. So that's where
these two opposing drives are. And what Marita noticed was
that the more we try to avoid the uncomfortable feelings,
the more they disrupted our lives. So it's like trying
(02:47):
to ignore as a mosquito bite, the more you scratch it,
the worse that it gets. And this brings us to
a key concept in Marita therapy called arugamama, which you
may have heard of because I talk about it a lot.
So Aragamama means accepting life as it is. It's all
about embracing the present moment without constantly comparing it to
(03:11):
this idealized version of how you think think things should be.
So often we are not happy with the way things
are in this moment, and we live in this state
of dissatisfaction of our current situation and thinking that once
we fix what's wrong, we'll finally be happy. And this
(03:32):
relates to our mental health. Is very much in the West,
where we feel that we need to get rid of symptoms.
We're very focused on symptoms and we need to get
rid of them before we can start to live a good,
meaningful life. But then when that future arrives, it's just
another present moment with its own set of challenges. So
Marita therapy teaches us to break free from this cycle
(03:56):
and find satisfaction in the present moment. So let's talk
now about the naturalness of feeling bad. So this may
be what you don't want to hear, but Marita observed
that it's perfectly normal to experience unpleasant thoughts and feelings
like anxiety or depression or self doubt, and the real
(04:19):
issue isn't these feelings themselves, but it's our attempts to
suppress or avoid them because they're so uncomfortable. So Marita
therapy helps us change our relationship with these feelings so
we accept them as a natural part of being human.
And this was a game change for me because my
(04:42):
life was so often dominated by trying to get rid
of my feelings or emotions if they were difficult, and
how I responded to this was often not aligned with
the person who I wanted to be or what I
stood for because I was so reactive to the emotion
and I would think or feel. I would just think,
(05:03):
and then I would feel, and then I would just act.
You know, I wouldn't even think about it. I wouldn't
even think that there was an option. So allowing emotions
to always dictate what we do often means that we
either are living in the past or we're living in
the future, and it takes away from who we are
right now. So Marita emphasized that we can't control our
(05:25):
internal experiences through sheer will and putting our attention and
our energy on unwanted thoughts and feelings often backfires on
us because making the what it does is it makes
them even more intense and more frequent, because what you
pay attention to is what grows. Or what I often
say is it's like you put attention on these thoughts
(05:47):
and the feelings, and it's like throwing fuel on the
fire it grows. So instead, Marita therapy focuses on what
we can control, which is our actions and our behaviors.
And just on a side note, this is very much
aligned with epictetis, with a stoic philosopher with the zones
of controls, and it's also very much aligned with act
(06:08):
which I often consider being a kind of a Western
version of Marita therapy. And in all of these actions
are controllable, unlike our automatic thoughts and emotions. Our automatic
thoughts and emotions are a part of our brain wiring
from our past experiences, so they're very hard, if not impossible,
(06:31):
to control. So an example of this would be, and
it's quite a light example, but you might not feel
like going for a run, or you might not feel
like getting out of bed, but you can do it
despite how you feel and often taking action can actually
change how you feel. So for example, you might gain
(06:52):
confidence after giving a few presentations, even if you were
anxious at the start. And Marita therapy encourage us encourages
us to accept our feelings and take purposeful action regardless
of how we feel. And then, as I said, quite
often our feelings will change, but that's not the primary
motive of doing it. And another important aspect of Marita
(07:16):
therapy is around self centered attention, which includes our suffering,
So paying attention to our suffering. When we become so
preoccupied with ourselves, which seems to be quite a normal
human trait, so we're talking our anxiety, our worry, our shame,
what our symptoms are. We often get trapped in this
(07:39):
cycle of suffering, and Marita teaches us to shift our
focus or shift our attention from ourselves and this self
centeredness to the outside world. So being present, getting in
touch with the world around us, especially the natural world
around us, it can really break us free from the
(08:04):
prison that we often create in our own minds. So
Marita therapy has taught me to be aware of and
accept the moment to moment fluctuations of my thoughts and
my feelings without struggling with them. And the point is
not to get rid of their discomfort, but it's about
living a purposeful and a meaningful life even in the
(08:27):
presence of it. And I would certainly say that it
is easy to say and often hard to do, but
this is a skill. It is a life skill, and
like all skills, the more you practice, the better you
get at us. And I am somebody who since twenty
seventeen has been practicing this stuff, and so I can
(08:50):
personally say that it has had a huge positive impact
on my life and my relationship with my own emotions
and my own things thoughts. So traditionally Marita therapy have
this strict sort of four stage protocol which he had
as an inpatient program, which I won't delve into now,
(09:13):
but it can certainly be used as an approach focused
on developing healthy living skills and learning to take control
of and manage our attention and taking action aligned with
our purpose in each moment. And that's why Marita therapy
is often referred to as the psychology of action. So
to wrap up, I want to leave you with a
(09:35):
quote from Showman Marita himself. Accept your feelings, know your purpose,
do what needs to be done. So next time you
find yourself struggling with uncomfortable thoughts and feelings, try to
accept those feelings as part of your humanness. Focus on
(09:56):
your actions, so where is your attention in this Redirect
that attention and focus on your actions and do what
needs to be done. And you may need to coexist
with those thoughts and feelings for a while, but when
you are focused on what needs to be done or
focused on the outside world, often though, the intensity of
(10:18):
those feelings will start to decrease. If you engage fully
in the present moment with whatever it is you are
doing over time, like me, you might just find that
life takes on a new perspective. So thanks for listening,
and I hope you've found today's episode on Marita Therapy
interesting and inspiring, and don't forget to subscribe and live
(10:43):
a review if you've enjoyed this episode, and I will
see you next week.
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