This post brings you up-to-date with the latest courses for the New Year at Embrace Mindfulness. 8 week MBSR programmes This is the core teaching programme of Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR). In the course you will become more aware of the unhelpful thought patterns that can trigger and perpetuate stress, anxiety, depression and low moods. …
Impatience is a common experience in our modern world. We become impatient when traffic stops or slows, when we or someone else is late for a meeting, whenever we have to wait and “do nothing.” Signals of impatience can be both physical; the rapid heart beat, tapping fingers, jiggling legs, tightness in chest or stomach …
In conjunction with SoundsTrue, Dr. Rick Hanson presents a FREE seven-part video series—The Compassionate Brain—that explores effective ways to change your brain and heart and life. Each week Dr. Hanson will be joined by a world-class scholar/teacher, including Richie Davidson, Dan Siegel, Tara Brach, Dacher Keltner, Kelly McGonigal, Kristin Neff, and Jean Houston. They’ll discuss …
Earlier this month, Saki Santorelli, EdD, associate professor of medicine and executive director of the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care and Society, joined Ohio Congressman Tim Ryan at the Manhattan JCC for a discussion about the power of mindfulness to reduce stress, improve performance and “recapture the American spirit.” Congressman Ryan is the …
Many people use affirmations to make themselves happier or more positive in outlook repeating phrases to themselves such as “I am worthy of love” or “Today I will concentrate on taking one step forward however small” Affirmations may be of value at certain times, but they can also paper over a troubled mind. This mindfulness …
There has never been a school for girls in the village of Deh Subz, Afghanistan. Afghan-American Razia Jan set out to change that. In 2009, despite pressure to educate boys and threats to ruin the school, the Zabuli Education Center opened a school to educate 200 girls. Razia’s hope is to make life a little …
This post brings you up-to-date with the latest developments at Embrace Mindfulness. 8 week MBSR programmes This is the core teaching programme of Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR). In the course you will become more aware of the unhelpful thought patterns that can trigger and perpetuate stress, anxiety and low moods. With that awareness comes choice …
Alan Watts (1915-1973) was a philosopher, writer, and speaker. He wrote over twenty books and numerous articles on subjects such as personal identity, the true nature of reality, and the pursuit of happiness, relating his experience to scientific knowledge and to the teachings of Eastern and Western religions and philosophies. He also gave many lectures, …
In every interaction you have with another human being—doesn’t matter who—you always have two main choices. (The keyword is choice.) One choice usually leads to logical (boring) interaction, politeness, formalities. And, more importantly, a lack of connectivity. The other usually leads to interesting discussion, love (yes, love), aliveness, friendship, gift giving. And connectivity. In every …
All day long we humans are walking around on the surface of the earth and we are often unaware of the huge ball that is our platform for life. We are equally oblivious to the force of gravity that the earth exerts on us. Moreover when we are up in our heads, on automatic pilot, …
Please take the time to support some of the research work taking place at the Mood Disorders Centre, Psychology, College of Life and Environmental Sciences at the University of Exeter. The Mood Disorders Centre is a partnership between the NHS and the University of Exeter. The centre’s mission is to conduct psychological research and also …
A poignant article exploring the differences between sadness and depression
Most of the time we only look at a narrow wedge of the world. As our eyes are in the front of our head, our visual awareness is usually limited to what is in front of us, a slice from the ground up to about ten feet high. Only when we see or hear something …
This charming video pays tribute to the happy wholesomeness of being alone. Tanya Davis recites her poem about the ways of solitude, gently cataloging all the places where aloneness can bring freedom and healing. Whether at a lunch counter, park bench, mountain trail, or on the edge of a dance floor – all you have …
Suffering is everywhere. We see it in people’s faces, hear it in their voices, see it on the news. As we attempt to pay attention to suffering we can hear it in our own thoughts, feel it in our bodies and see it in the face in the mirror. Often people balk at this practice …
At first sight, this practice is about bringing our attention to the experience of spaciousness within our visual field. It takes effort to shift our attention to the space around us, but when we remember to do so it can become a potent tool of awareness. When we practice this externally, it also becomes possible …
This CBS Miami news clip from 30th May and accompanying editorial on Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction is actually very good. Read the article Secrets to Mindful Meditation here or watch the video below.
A key component of mindfulness is the practice of bringing our awareness into the mundane, so that the stuff of everyday experience which lies between the extremes, becomes transformed by the quality of our attention. When we pause and look deeply enough to notice, the ordinary becomes extraordinary. The video below by Dietrich Ludwig truly …
Despite being pressed into service day in day out, we rarely pay much attention to our feet even when we are using them to carry us from A to B. One reason for this is that the bottoms of our feet are about as far away as we can get from our head, which is …
Given all the hot weather we are having recently may I suggest some of this rather wonderful philosophy courtesy of Dharma Comics……hey, it made me smile! “F*** it! I’m getting in touch with my inner cat: embodied, present, impulsive, playful, emotionally straightforward. Forgive me if I’m slow to respond to email, unlikely to schedule meetings, …