Mindful parenting course, Being Mindful- SOuth London
by jen armstrong
I attended the 8-week mindfulness based stress reduction course with Debbie Johnson, one of the course leaders at Being Mindful, in April 2017. It definitely helped by ability to acknowledge negative without letting it have a lasting impact on my happiness or emotional wellbeing, which is essence is what being more mindful is trying to achieve. Debbie has such a calming presence, and the group of people I shared the learning experience with were all there for so many reasons and from such contrasting walks of life. The course was full of simple and workable ways to help develop your mindful abilities, and bring it into everyday life. Alongside the general MBSR course I completed, she also teaches parents, teens and other mindful teachers!
A word from Debbie at Being Mindful:
“Our mindfulness programme is an 8-week course made up of weekly 2-hour sessions. It includes all the essential elements of both courses which are considered the gold-standard in mindfulness training: Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT). Participants will develop insight into their emotions, thoughts and sensations, becoming less caught up in habitual response patterns. Simple techniques like sitting meditation and gentle movement help us to become more focussed, aware, relaxed and present.”
more from being mindful on their MINDFUL PARENTING COURSE:
Mindful parenting is based on an adaptation of MBSR and MBCT. We introduce the formal meditation practices such as the body scan, mindfulness of breath, mindful movement etc in roughly the same progression as the MBSR/ MBCT courses. We introduce ‘mindfulness of everyday activities’ to help with various situations that come up in family settings with our children and family relationships and to help clarify and enhance how we respond in difficult circumstances. We focus on day-to-day parenting and family activities. In addition we weave short self- compassion practices throughout the 8 weeks.
Training in compassion and learning to open and soften to the difficulties of parenting via a group is extraordinarily helpful as we are often holding so much for the family and it can be a relief to be able to share and investigate our challenges with support, and in this way alleviate and transform our parental suffering. Simply by relating differently to the difficulties in a compassionate way, our attitude towards them may change for the better.
We also help parents recognize patterns arising in their relationship with their child that may originate from their own childhood, using techniques adapted from schema therapy (recognising patterns of behaviours). The course includes exercises to help parents become aware of their own personal limits, to help them set limits with their child. Finally we include exercises to help parents reconnect emotionally with their child after a difficult conflict, finding ways to hold any situation with courage and kindness.
Clinical trials indicate that Mindful Parenting helps in the following ways:
Reduces parents’ behaviour and emotional problems
Reduces child behaviour and emotional problems
Reduces parenting stress and parental reactivity to stress
Improves parenting and co-parenting
Increases general mindfulness
Reduces parental experiential avoidance
Increases mindfulness with children
Being a parent can sometimes become a source of stress, worry, and total lack of energy, so engaging in a supportive environment and self-development course such as this can be a truly beneficial experience. Knowing you’re not alone by meeting others and sharing experiences will not only help you, but also your child’s development too.
Keep up to date with Being Mindful’s current news and courses on their website here.