Dropdown 1 – 8 Week Courses or MBSR/MBCT

We deliver two different courses, known as MBSR and MBCT. Both courses are intended to help address a range of general wellbeing and health issues. The aims of the courses are to develop the mindfulness skills that help participants to increase self awareness. We do this through developing skills that enable us to pay attention to feelings, emotions, physical sensations and thoughts as we experience them. This in turn helping participants to develop clarity around what is actually happening in the present moment, giving greater freedom and choice on how they respond to different life situations. Mindfulness helps us to see the fullness of the present moment bringing about a greater appreciation of the richness of life.

On both courses participants are guided through a number of mindfulness practices and exercises which help to develop mindfulness skills. These include techniques such as meditation, gentle yoga and mind-body awareness exercises to help people learn how to cope with stress. Participants are encouraged and supported to reflect on their experience to enhance learning. The course teaches you techniques that can be practised anywhere, anytime, to fit into your lifestyle. To help develop the skills of mindfulness and embed them within every day life, an essential part of the course is to practice the techniques in between the weekly sessions.

Both courses comprise of the following:

* An initial phone orientation / assessment session

* 8 weekly sessions of 2 hours

* Telephone / email support in between sessions

* A whole day of practice

* Participants receive a set of handouts and CD’s with guided meditation practices

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)

The Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction programme was developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn at the University of Massahusetts Medical Centre and is now offered in over 200 medical centres, hospitals and clinics around the world. Since its inception, MBSR has evolved into a common form of complementary medicine addressing a variety of health problems such as chronic pain, sleep problems, depression, life stress, anxiety, coronary artery disease, psoriasis and many more. There’s increasing evidence that Mindfulness Courses can support the wellbeing of employees, enabling them to find satisfaction and enjoyment in their work and, consequently having a positive impact on their work.

People who have engaged in a course which employs elements of MBSR report feeling more engaged in their work, more energised, less anxious, as well as sleep better and have fewer physical symptoms of stress.

The evidence demonstrates that the MBSR programme could help to reduce our anxiety levels and teach us how to manage stress. The results of various clinical studies and research speak for themselves highlighting benefits such as:

* A 70 per cent reduction in anxiety

* Fewer visits to your GP

* An ongoing reduction in anxiety three years after taking an MBSR course

* An increase in disease-fighting antibodies, suggesting improvement to the immune system

* Longer and better quality sleep, with fewer sleep disturbances

* A reduction in negative feelings like anger, tension and depression

* Improvements in physical conditions as varied as psoriasis, fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome