Mindfulness Training Programmes
About Mindfulness
Mindfulness is a mind-body approach to wellbeing that can help you change the way you think about experiences and reduce stress and anxiety.
We believe Mindfulness should be available to everyone.
What is it?Combining meditation, breathing techniques and paying attention to the present moment, Mindfulness helps people change the way they think, feel and act.
What are the benefits?People who practice Mindfulness report feeling and experiencing the following:
• Greater wellbeing
• Clearer thinking • More effective communication
• More creativity and stronger leadership skills • Greater teamwork • Improved ability to address conflict • More awareness of personal stress and how to prevent it
• Increased stability during periods of change
• The ability to respond rather than react by breaking habitual patterns of behaviour
Mindfulness in the workplaceMindfulness in the workplace will help employees develop the clarity required to make good decisions and exercise better judgement in addition to improving their overall wellbeing. Both the individual and the organisation benefit from Mindfulness training.
Organisations who have integrated Mindfulness into the workplace include:• Rehab Group • Apple • Google • Facebook • IBM • McKinsey • Yahoo! • Proctor and Gamble • Bord Bia • Irish Life
• Greater wellbeing • Clearer thinking • More effective communication • More creativity and stronger leadership skills • Greater teamwork • Improved ability to address conflict • More awareness of personal stress and how to prevent it • Increased stability during periods of change • The ability to respond rather than react by breaking habitual patterns of behaviour
Mindfulness Programmes
1. MINDFULNESS, WELLBEING AND RESILIENCE SHORT COURSES
Half Day ProgrammeIntroduces participants to the benefits of Mindfulness and teaches strategies to build resilience and wellbeing.
Full Day ProgrammeIntroduces participants to the benefits of mindfulness and teaches strategies to build resilience and wellbeing. Includes preparation of wellness plan for participants.
2. MINDFULNESS BASED STRESS REDUCTION (MBSR)
Eight Week ProgrammeA weekly two and a half hour class for eight consecutive weeks.
Forty-five minutes of home practice on every non-class day for duration of course, (meditation audios and workbooks are provided).
3. MINDFULNESS BASED COGNITIVE THERAPY (MBCT)
Eight Week ProgrammeA weekly two and a half hour class for eight consecutive weeks. 45 minutes of home practice on every non-class day for duration of course, (meditation audios and workbooks are provided).
See below for details on MBSR and MBCT
Mindfulness Based
Stress Reduction(MBSR)
While short bursts of pressure can help us rise to meet a challenge, long-term stress can have a major impact on our physical and mental health.
Stress is the feeling of being under pressure, with symptoms including anger and
anxiety, difficulty sleeping, loss of appetite, breathlessness and chest pains. People who are under prolonged stress are at greater risk of health problems like high blood pressure and heart attacks.
As a nation, we're under greater stress than ever. After bereavement and divorce, work is the third biggest cause of stress. Over half of all workers believe that stress is damaging their health. As well as impacting on people's health and wellbeing, it can also damage social lives and relationships. Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) incorporates techniques such as meditation, gentle yoga and mind-body exercises to help people cope with stress. It gives people greater clarity on what is happening in their lives, improving problem-solving and boosting concentration. People who take a course in MBSR say that they feel more engaged in their work, more energised and less anxious. They sleep better and have fewer physical symptoms of stress.
Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy
Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) was designed specifically to help people who are prone to recurring depression. It combines mindfulness techniques like meditation, breathing exercises and stretching with elements from cognitive therapy to help break the negative thought patterns that are characteristic of recurrent depression.
Long-term courses of antidepressants are typically used to treat recurring depression. However, almost three-quarters of GPs think Mindfulness meditation would be helpful for people with mental health problems, and a third already refer patients to MBCT on a regular basis.
MBCT has been scientifically proven to help people with a range of mental health problems such as:
• Anxiety disorders
• Bipolar disorders
• Chronic fatigue syndrome
• Insomnia
MBCT is also recommended by the National Institute for Clinical and Health Excellence in the UK (NICE) as an effective treatment for people who suffer from recurrent episodes of depression.
MBCT teaches people to pay attention to the present moment, rather than worrying about the past or the future, and to let go of the negative thoughts that can tip them over into depression. It also gives people a greater awareness of their own body, helping them to identify the signs of oncoming depression and ward off the episode before it starts.
MBCT techniques include the 'three-minute breathing space' - a meditation exercise that gives people a quick and easy way to step back from stressful situations - and preparing 'relapse prevention plans' to help people lift their mood when depression starts to creep up on them. It's so effective that it could reduce the risk of a person experiencing a recurrence of depression by over 50 per cent.
• Anxiety disorders
• Bipolar disorders
• Chronic fatigue syndrome
• Insomnia
