Learn Mindfulness

You can learn Mindfulness by booking onto an 8 week Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) course or by attending a monthly meet-up (see links below).   

If you would like a one-to-one session, either to find out how mindfulness might help you or to deepen an existing practice, use the contact form to get in touch.   These one-to-one sessions can be tailored to suit you.   The practices are short and gentle, the guidance is clear and friendly, the tempo relaxed.  Practices may include sitting meditation, bodyscan, mindful movement and/or mindful walking

People come away from these sessions feeling calmer, more refreshed and in control. They may be facing the same challenges as before but the mindfulness practice helps them to have a healthier perspective.  Things seem more manageable and participants feel more grounded, centred and resourced, able to deal with these situations

Mindfulness allows us to let go of trying to get things right or to make things feel different.  Giving ourselves permission to pause is an act of kindness that ripples out to all around us

What to expect when you learn Mindfulness

Mindfulness courses and sessions usually include some gentle guided practices that give you a chance to notice what’s happening in your mind or body.  The practices are simple and invitational with no expectation to ‘get it right’.  It’s more of an exploration – ‘I wonder what happens when I pay attention to this’.  Practices may be done sitting (on a chair, on the floor or wherever you are comfortable), lying down or standing.  Sometimes we pay attention to the breath or to other parts of the body.  Sometimes we do this when we are sitting still or lying down and sometimes when we are moving (mindful movement or walking)

As well as the actual practices, we are also cultivating a new and fresh approach to our experiences.  We are learning to bring friendliness and kindness towards what we notice.  Jon Kabat-Zinn describes mindfulness practice in this way: “the overall tenor of mindfulness is gentle, appreciative, nurturing.  Another way to describe it would be heartfulness”

So we are learning about how we habitually approach or react to experiences and we are exploring some new, more gentle and curious approaches.  Sometimes there is space for a little bit of inquiry and feedback as we explore these experiences.  Unlike therapy sessions, there is no analysis or delving into the past.  We are only concerned with what our experiences are in the present moment, right now.  Where does the mind go when we pay attention in this way?  What thoughts do we notice?

It’s difficult to read about Mindfulness and get a good understanding of how liberating and transformative it can be.  Until we practise, it may not seem to make much sense.  If you need some more help in deciding whether it is for you, why not hop over to the testimonials page and read what other people have said.  Or get in touch via the contact form with any concerns or questions