Mindfulness and Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) Muslims: Exploring the Intersection of Culture, Religion and Mental Health.

Aims: To explore the religio-cultural experiences of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) Muslims who have participated in Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs). The study also sought to explore the acceptability of MBIs based on participants’ religio-cultural experiences. Background: Despite the increasing popularity of MBIs, previous research has shown that participants rarely come from BAME backgrounds (Bignall et al., 2019). Moreover, research has primarily focused on quantitative outcome-based studies neglecting qualitative experiences (DeLuca et al., 2018). Although some qualitative research is emerging, there remains a need to explore the experiences of BAME Muslims (Thomas et al., 2017). Methodology: A critical realist research paradigm was used to explore participants' religio- cultural experiences qualitatively. Semi-structured interviews were utilised with a purposive sample of 10 self-identified BAME Muslim adults. All participants had completed an MBI in the UK. Results: A reflexive thematic analysis was used to develop five themes and 16 sub-themes: “Mindfulness Has Been Colonised.”; “It’s [Mindfulness] Ingrained In our Religion.”; “Islam is not [Always] Practiced Mindfully”; “You Can't Separate Culture and Religion”; Transformative Mindfulness When “Life Was Upside Down”. These themes shed light on the unique religio-cultural experiences of BAME Muslims and highlight the importance of considering the religio-cultural context in the design and delivery of MBIs. Conclusion: The findings suggest mindfulness can be a valuable and acceptable intervention for BAME Muslims. The findings also highlight the need for culturally sensitive MBIs that consider the specific religio-cultural experiences of BAME Muslims. The findings are discussed in the context of the strengths and limitations of the study and have important implications for practice, policy, and further research.