Meditation Experience

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I began studying and practicing meditation in 2004, under the guidance of Rob Nairn and since then I have continued to participate in a number of week long and month long retreats on an annual basis, with a variety of teachers in the U.K., South Africa and India. My main teachers at present are Donal Creedon and Mingyur Rinpoche. I began teaching mindfulness in 2012, and I am a lead tutor for the Mindfulness Association. Over the years I have taught on all the Mindfulness Associations one year course offerings (mindfulness, compassion, insight and mindfulness for life). In 2013, I was awarded a Masters Degree in Studies in Mindfulness from the University of Aberdeen and upon graduation I was invited back to teach on the same programme. In 2014 I became certified to teach mindfulness to children and adolescents after attending the .b course facilitated by the Mindfulness in Schools Project. I am also certified to teach the 8-week Compassion Based Living Course and the 8-week Compassionate Mind Training Course.  

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Mindfulness and Compassion Based Interventions at Work

 

From August, 2015, to date I have been employed as the Lead Mindfulness Facilitator for a large NHS Trust in Cumbria to design, deliver and research mindfulness and compassion based interventions for staff as part of a health and well-being initiative. A range of interventions were offered (introductory sessions, 8-week mindfulness and compassion courses and days of mindfulness) to allow staff the opportunity to be introduced to the potential benefits of mindfulness for free during work time. To date, I have delivered over 70 x 8-week Mindfulness Based Living Courses to approximately 700 staff, with an average retention rate of 87% recorded over a 3 year period (2017-2019). Over this same time period, staff reported on average a 31% increase in mindfulness, a 27% increase in self-compassion and an 80% decrease in perceived stress. The mindfulness initiative is one of the largest and longest face to face health and well-being interventions in the Trust and regularly attracts a waiting list for upcoming courses. I have now expanded this offer for staff to include compassion based interventions and the mindfulness one year programme, as well as more tailor made interventions for target groups. I meet all the necessary criteria for the Good Practice Guidance (GPG) for Teaching Mindfulness Based Courses as suggested by the U.K. Network of Mindfulness-Based Teacher Trainers. 

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Why Meditate?

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A welcome by product of meditation may be that we feel better in some way, but is this all there is to meditation or does it mean so much more? Let's find out together and enquire into the bigger questions of life. If you're a beginner, then it's likely that you will get into meditation doing some sort of course and there's plenty on offer below. If you have been meditating for a while and would like to deepen your practice, then there is also a place for you here.

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Self Study

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The 3-week introduction to mindfulness manual with accompanying audio practices 

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Online Interventions

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• 6-Week Introduction to Mindfulness Course (1 hour per week meeting with daily home practice)

• A limited number of 1:1 online mindfulness sessions may also available to participants who may be struggling to attend the regular face to face courses or may want more of an individual approach to their training (1:1 interventions will be offered in the 6-week format). 

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Face to Face Interventions

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• Introductory mindfulness session, 1 - 1 ½ hours long

• 8-Week Mindfulness Based Living Course (MBLC)

• Day of mindfulness (10am to 4pm)

• Sitting practice for graduates of the 8-week programme, 30 – 45 minutes

• Follow up session, 2 hours long

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Further Courses

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Graduates of the MBLC can then go on to access the following courses and support:

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• 8-Week Compassion Based Living Course (CBLC)

• 8-week Compassionate Mind Training Course (CMT)

• The One Year Mindfulness Course (4 x 2 day blocks spread out across a 9-12 month period)

• Email, telephone or face-to-face support for participants from our Mindfulness Facilitator

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Face to Face Interventions in More Detail

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Introduction to Mindfulness

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If you are new to mindfulness and unsure of its potential benefits, then this is a good way to start. This session will cover:

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What is mindfulness and why practice it. The potential benefits of mindfulness. The structure of the 8-week Mindfulness Based Living Course. Mindfulness at work research. An introduction to some of the practices we will use. This short session also gives you the opportunity to see the facilitator in action and to ask any questions you may have.

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The Mindfulness Based Living Course (MBLC)

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The MBLC is an eight week course consisting of eight classes, which are typically two hours long. Each week the participants are introduced to a new set of practices, to allow them to explore mindfulness in a variety of different ways. Each session consists of an introduction to the practice, facilitated practice, relevant theories to support the understanding of the participant and small and large group discussion. Participants are then encouraged to commit to their own personal practice of 30 minutes on a daily basis throughout the duration of the course. To aid the home practices, participants receive a Mindfulness Manual and a set of guided audio practices to listen to, which accompany the manual.  

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A Day of Mindfulness

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The day of mindfulness is typically included as a follow up to the MBLC (although it is often presented as a stand alone module), which allows the participant to experience a longer period of practice away from the work environment and is generally from 10am to 4pm.  

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The Compassion Based Living Course (CBLC)

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The CBLC follows the same format as the MBLC (see above), building on the foundation of the mindfulness practice while allowing the participant to begin to explore compassion for themselves and others. This course is only open to participants who have completed the MBLC or the Mindfulness One Year Course. 

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Compassionate Mind Training (CMT)

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Compassionate Mind Training is an integral part of Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT). It involves psycho-education that helps us to understand our tricky brains and how difficult it can be to be ‘human’, whilst teaching a variety of mind and body skills that help us to be with these struggles in a helpful and supportive way. We can learn to direct our compassionate minds to others and to ourselves, with the intention to be helpful not harmful.

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Post Course Practice and Support

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Mindfulness and compassion are already present but remain dormant if not cultivated. Post-course practice periods support the participant in their continued exploration of mindfulness and compassion. These are offered to the participant for 30 minutes to one hour depending on time and can be online or face to face. 

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