Yoga from a systemic perspective: The effect of yoga practice on self-compassion,

The field of mental health is always progressing. As culture shifts over time, so does the focus and conversation around mental health. For example, the marriage and family therapy field developed as professionals recognized the limitations of focusing on individuals and not including the systems of which they are a part. Mental health treatment today is likely to involve a combination of psychotherapy and pharmaceutical medication (de Manincor et al., 2016). However, United States citizens are losing faith in these treatments as more and more systemic oppression is uncovered within the medical field. Questions have been raised about the ethics of pharmaceutical companies, side-effects to medication, over-prescribing, medication efficacy versus placebo effects, and unequal access to services (de Manincor et al., 2016). Racial discrimination within the US health care system has also been studied. Research suggests Americans of color are likely to receive poorer quality of health care than White Americans (Feagin & Bennefield, 2014). Clients and patients often feel powerless in today’s health care system and may start to find these approaches unappealing. The loss of faith in mainstream medical practices has led to a higher demand for alternative approaches. In the United States, there has been an increase in interest in Eastern philosophy (Neff, 2003). Specifically, in regard to wellness and health, Buddhist psychology has become a more prominent topic