Both mind and body benefit from taking time out of your daily life to switch off from the world to meditate, but for anyone who experiences anxiety, the act of sitting 'silently still' and 'watching their thoughts' can be excruciatingly difficult! Discover Beginner Meditation Foundations and Mindfulness Meditation techniques that make taming and quitening the mind more accessible for those who experience agitation when left to sit quietly with themselves.
Creating wonderful foundations for a mindful practice, this workshop is not only the perfect start for anyone new to meditation, it also serves to assist in the management of anxiety. You will learn to recognise and correct automatic and habitual patterns of stress within the physical body. Only then can you learn corrective tools and establish practices on which calm and relaxation can be experienced. With a hands on approach to ensure each participant's physiological responses to stress are recognised, you will come away with an understanding of where and how change can be implimented to re-pattern your relationship with situations that cause anxiety and with anxiety itself.
Mindful Breathing
Learn to breathe to soothe the nervous system, quieten the mind, and release physical & mental stress and tensions. Dedicated time for the practice of pranayama - yogic breathing techniques - will settle the mind and emotions, and guide the body home to a more relaxed state. Breath is essential to life. It is the first thing we do when we are born and the last thing we do when we leave. In between that time, we take about half a billion breaths. What we may not realize is that the mind, body, and breath are intimately connected and can influence each other. Our breathing is influenced by our thoughts, and our thoughts and physiology can be influenced by our breath. Learning to breathe consciously and with awareness can be a valuable tool in helping to restore balance in the mind and body.
Researchers have found the benefits of a regular, simple, deep breathing include:
Reduced anxiety and depression
Lower/stabilized blood pressure
Increased energy levels
Muscle relaxation
Decreased feelings of stress and overwhelm
In the medical community, there is a growing appreciation for the positive impact that deep breathing can have on the physiology, both in the mind and the body. According to the research, many of these beneficial effects can be attributed to reducing the stress response in the body.
Relaxation
Learn how to relax and re-pattern the body's response to stress, creating awareness and familiarity with the state of relaxation. Directing awareness to the intentional release of stress and tensions within the body invites a surge of lightness and a sense of freedom that comes with letting go of all that is physically weighing us down. When completely relaxed the body and mind shed their 'restless busy-ness' of everyday life to experience a welcome peace. Meditative Relaxation will leave you feeling nourished and deeply rested, with an enhanced sense of well-being.
Formal Mindfulness
Meditation is a wonderful path to peace - a peace that many so often long for. In an unnaturally stressful and fast moving, busy world, meditation is increasingly sought to bring a balance to our lives - balancing the inner realm of thought and feeling with the external world in which we live.
"Mindfulness is one of the most thoroughly researched forms of meditation, and the results are pretty much unanimous: Mindfulness is an effective tool for reducing stress and treating anxiety, depression, and addiction. Mindfulness requires a different perspective than most of us are used to, especially when it comes to observing thoughts and emotions without judgment. If you struggle with being carried away by your emotions, this type of meditation just might change your life." .SAMANTHA ALLEN
Mindfulness is not complicated to learn and requires no special equipment. It can be practiced anywhere, at any given moment, and it is not time consuming, and benefits can be noticed with as little as a few minutes every day! Anyone can learn meditation and experience the many benefits that it brings.
"I highly recommend the Meditation for Anxiety Course. Lisa is an amazing teacher with a wonderful way about her to make you feel at ease but empowered to master the body's anxiety response. The course has been a huge stepping stone in my journey to peace within". L.W. - CLEVELAND
"Absolutely loved this! Lot's of focus on breathwork which I have always struggled with - so that was great. I am definitely going to try and practice it everyday. This seems like a really achieveable goal that I can stick with! I would definitely recommend this class for others who have struggled with their breath and meditating when they are anxious!" L.R. - CLEVELAND
"Wonderful to help with feelings of anxiety. The practical advice to help deal with such feelings was wonderful. I now feel I have a tool box of strategies to practice at home" T.R - THORNLANDS
"I found this course very supportive. I have definitely learnt how to 'be with the breath' and how to practice diaphragmatic breathing which I have been able to incorporate easily into my everyday life. I would definitely recommend this course to anyone who experiences anxiety or general stress" N.E. - ORMISTON
"Great! With the right amount of time spent on each technique to get the experience of it. Thank you so much for enabling me to take time for myself" J.S - THORNLANDS
"Lisa has a gentle way of teaching and demonstrating techniques, and helpfully guided us to get us into the practices and repeating so we get it. She takes the time to make sure you've got it. It was very helpful and it works!! I felt a lot better at the end of the session. It makes me feel I can and must commit to this daily. It was great Lisa took the pressure off by saying 'start with just a few minutes', not an hour" L.Z. - CLEVELAND
"Wonderful as always. The physical feedback work was particularly beneficial. I finished feeling so much more grounded" - CLEVELAND
"I found this course incredibly beneficial in making me more aware of my emodied consciousness - I'm usually too much in my head. I particularly appreciated the attention to the physical pattern of the breath at the start as it provided a good foundation for the rest of the course. Thank you so much for this beautiful experience!" R.E - ORMISTON