“I really like the definition that mindfulness expert Rob Nain uses: ‘Mindfulness is knowing what is happening, while it is happening without preference.’ Mindfulness is exactly that. It’s not about stopping thoughts or feelings, it’s about noticing your thoughts as they arise,” says Norwich-based mindfulness teacher Leah Larwood.
Many of us will have experienced negative feelings including low mood, anxiety, stress and worry, especially during the last two years.
Mindfulness, which has its roots in Buddhism and meditation, can be a powerful tool for maintaining your emotional equilibrium.
The idea is that by focusing on what’s happening in the here and now, on the body and the breathing, the technique can help people to feel calmer and relax, cope with difficult emotions and thoughts, develop their self-awareness and be kinder to themselves.
And Leah, who is also a qualified hypnotherapist, poetry therapist in advanced training and offers lucid dreaming workshops, will be holding a free online introduction to mindfulness workshop on April 25.
“Mindfulness has become an important part of my own personal process and I wanted to share this with others,” she says. “It was always something I was surrounded by as a child. My Dad became Buddhist when I was around 10 years old and I remember trying out meditation with him at various points.
“It was around 15 years ago that I started to explore meditation independently and more meaningfully for myself,” she says.
“I’ve tried various different kinds of meditation over the years, then after several retreats and courses, including a 10-day silent retreat at the Tushita Meditation Centre, I completed my mindfulness teacher training with the Mindfulness Association.”
Leah says that mindfulness can be beneficial in many ways.
According to a 2010 study by Sala Horowitz it can help with reducing stress, anxiety, anger, chronic pain disorders, substance abuse, memory loss, and trauma.
The same research also shows that meditation results in significant physical and mental health benefits after as little as eight weeks of daily practice
“It can help to reduce feelings of stress and allow you to tune into stillness and calm,” says Leah.
“Often we can spend our lives with racing thoughts and sometimes we get into a state of not really begin connected to what we’re feeling and thinking in both our mind and body,” she says.
“Life can start to feel like a tangle or whirlwind that we get caught up in, and it can become harder to slow down, notice our experiences, and tap into a sense of calm when we’re operating in this way.
“Mindfulness is a helpful skill, to help you notice your thoughts and have some awareness about the types of things you are thinking and feeling as this can lead you to make better choices and decisions.
“Ultimately when you cultivate more self-awareness of your thoughts and feelings it can be easier to spot patterns, which can inform you of what you are feeling and lead you to take beneficial action to meet your needs.”
The free taster is for people to try out mindfulness for size and everyone is welcome. During the session, participants will be able to meet Leah and ask any questions they have about mindfulness.
“I’ll provide an introduction to mindfulness and explain what it is and how it can be a helpful skill to learn. We’ll try a selection of different mindfulness approaches so people have a good feel of what to expect.
“One common myth is that you have to clear your mind of thoughts to practise mindfulness. This isn’t the case. Mindfulness and meditation isn’t about stopping all thoughts and entering a void of nothingness. It’s about noticing thoughts as they arise. That doesn’t mean that you allow that train of thought to become a full narrative on what you need to do today. It just means observing the thought as it arises.
"This noticing of the thought may allow you to let it go before it runs away with you.
“However, the same thought or a slightly different one may pop up again in a few seconds, and that’s okay, we just notice it and let it go.
"This may sound as though we’re stopping thoughts but we’re not, we’re just noticing. This helps the thoughts to pass, and other times it doesn’t. But that doesn’t mean you’re doing it wrong, it just means that during your mindfulness session, you had a lot of thoughts that arose.
"It does take practise. Some days may feel easier than others, though regardless, it’s important not to judge the success of your practise.
"Part of mindfulness is just witnessing and accepting your experience for what it is – whether it felt like an ‘easy’ or ‘challenging’ practise.”
If people connect with the session, they may then wish to join the eight-week Mindfulness Based Living Course Leah is running which starts on May 23.
“The Mindfulness Based Living Course is a comprehensive way to learn mindfulness – it’s a structured approach and includes learning how to practise mindfulness, working with distractions such as sound, mindful movement and the body scan, among other approaches,” Leah explains.
“We will meet weekly and learn a different aspect of mindfulness each week. Daily practise is part of the course and it’s suggested that participants set aside around 15 minutes a day for the duration of the course.”
The free mindfulness taster session with Leah is being held on Monday, April 25 from 6.30-8pm on Zoom.
Her eight-week Mindfulness Based Living Course starts on Monday, May 23 from 6.30pm-8.30pm and will also be held on Zoom.
Instructions, hand-outs, audio recordings and a Mindfulness Based Living Course course-book will be provided as part of the workshop fee of £150. Leah hopes to run the same course again in the autumn in Norwich or Great Plumstead, venue to be confirmed.
For more information visit themoonlab.net
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