James Fitzgerald Therapy PLLC

“Jon Kabat-Zinn’s classic work on the practice of mindfulness to alleviate stress and human suffering stands the test of time, a most useful resource and practical guide. I recommend this new edition enthusiastically to doctors, patients, and anyone interested in learning to use the power of focused awareness to meet life’s challenges, whether great or small.”
—ANDREW WEIL, M.D., author of Spontaneous Happiness and 8 Weeks to Optimum Health

Disclaimer:

Full Catastrophe Living by Jon Kabat-Zinn describes the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program of the Stress Reduction Clinic at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. The book’s content does not necessarily reflect the position or policy of the University of Massachusetts, and no official institutional endorsement of the content should be inferred. The book’s content does not necessarily reflect the position or policy of James Fitzgerald, and no official endorsement of the content should be inferred.

The recommendations made in Kabat-Zinn’s book are generic and are not meant to replace formal medical or psychiatric treatment. Individuals with medical problems should consult their physicians about the appropriateness of following the MBSR program, and in particular some of the yoga postures, and discuss appropriate modifications relevant to their unique circumstances and conditions.

This very readable and practical book will be helpful in many ways. I believe many people will profit from it. Reading it, you will see that meditation is something that deals with our daily life. The book can be described as a door opening both on the dharma (from the side of the world) and on the world (from the side of the dharma). When the dharma is really taking care of the problems of life, it is true dharma. And this is what I appreciate most about the book. I thank the author for having written it.
THICH NHAT HANH; PLUM VILLAGE, FRANCE, 1989

I was first introduced to Full Catastrophe Living by Jon Kabat-Zinn during a pivotal time in my life—when I was both pursuing my Psychology degree at the College of St. Joseph and actively working my recovery through the 12-step fellowship of Narcotics Anonymous. The suggestion came not from a professor, but from a fellow traveler “in the rooms”—someone who had been walking their own path through suffering, healing, and awakening. They handed me this book as if passing along a torch, and it lit something inside me that I’ve been nurturing ever since.

Full Catastrophe Living is not just a book—it’s a guide for reclaiming one’s life in the midst of pain, stress, trauma, and illness. Rooted in the development of the groundbreaking Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, Kabat-Zinn invites readers into a radically compassionate and scientifically grounded approach to healing. At the heart of the book is the message that mindfulness—the simple yet profound practice of paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, without judgment—can help us meet the entirety of our human experience with greater clarity, balance, and resilience.

The title itself, drawn from a line in Zorba the Greek, refers to the “full catastrophe” of life: love, loss, sickness, health, joy, despair—the whole human condition. Rather than running from it, avoiding it, or medicating it away, Kabat-Zinn teaches us how to sit with it, breathe with it, and ultimately transform our relationship with it. His work echoes what I had begun to uncover through both my academic studies and my personal recovery: that healing is not found in escaping life, but in learning how to fully show up for it.

Reading Full Catastrophe Living through the lens of my spiritual practice in Buddhism, I immediately saw its resonance with the concept of samsara—the endless cycle of suffering driven by craving, aversion, and delusion. Samsara is not just a metaphysical idea; it is the psychological experience of being caught in reactivity, of being pulled by thoughts and emotions, of living on autopilot while longing for relief. Kabat-Zinn’s mindfulness practices offer a way out—not by escaping the cycle, but by becoming deeply aware of its workings. Mindfulness becomes a kind of liberation, a skillful means to see through the illusions of permanence and control that keep us stuck in suffering.

As a student of psychology and a person in recovery, I found Kabat-Zinn’s blend of ancient wisdom and modern science deeply affirming. His language is accessible yet profound, evidence-based yet deeply spiritual. Full Catastrophe Living laid the foundation for much of what I now teach and practice, and its influence runs through every aspect of this mindfulness masterclass.

This book, and the practices within it, have shaped not just my academic and professional path, but my very way of being in the world. I hope that by sharing it with you, it can become a part of your journey too—whether you are healing, recovering, growing, or simply longing to live more fully and consciously within the beautiful, messy, and sacred complexity of your own life.