Mindfulness Classes and Psychotherapy in Ireland
Mindfulness Courses in Ireland
The word mindfulness is everywhere, from bestseller books to graduate courses in main universities around the globe such as UCD in Ireland. From shantytowns in Rio to the metropolis of New York, the entire world is talking about mindfulness....But why?
Much of the buzz about mindfulness comes from the vast empirical evidence of the huge amount of benefits observed by the medical and mental health community. Growing evidence demonstrates that practising mindfulness on a regular basis can improve one's sense of well-being, relationships with oneself and others while improving one's capability of enjoying life.
For More information on Benefits please click here.
Much of the buzz about mindfulness comes from the vast empirical evidence of the huge amount of benefits observed by the medical and mental health community. Growing evidence demonstrates that practising mindfulness on a regular basis can improve one's sense of well-being, relationships with oneself and others while improving one's capability of enjoying life.
For More information on Benefits please click here.
What is Mindfulness?
"Rather than being consumed by worries about the future or preoccupations with the past, living fully in the present moment is an art form that liberates the mind to relieve mental sufferings" (Dan Siegel) 
Kati and Dan Siegel (2017) Developmental Trauma Workshop
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Mindfulness in the words of Jon Kabat-Zinn PhD is “The awareness that emerges through paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally to the unfolding of experience moment by moment”. It can be developed through systematic training and promotes a way of being that helps us take better care of ourselves and others, and to lead healthier lives. It enables us to access inner resources for coping effectively with stress, difficulty and illness. It has nothing to do with ceasing to have thoughts, but it is a learned capacity of not getting sucked in the thinking process. It is to know what is happening while it is happening, without preference (Rob Nairn) so we can be present to whatever life brings us and learn to respond rather than react. A mindful person is more likely to be more effective in the world than someone whose mind is scattered and distracted. The basis for many psychological suffering is related to not understanding the many forces that are at play in our minds. Mindfulness allows us to understand why we feel and behave the way we do because by staying in the present with awareness, a natural process of inner learning and discovery arises. |
How Does Mindfulness Work?
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This video is an in-depth explanation about how mindfulness work from the most renowned mindfulness teacher in the west, Jon Kabat-Zinn PhD who is also the founding Executive Director of the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. He is also the founding director of its renowned Stress Reduction Clinic and Professor of Medicine emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.
Kati and Jon Kabat-Zinn, June 2017, Imperial College London. Masterclass for Mindfulness Teachers
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Paying attention in a particular way relates to monitoring the focus of our attention, which allow us to decenter from our thoughts. By understanding that thoughts are constantly changing, and are not always an accurate picture of reality, this can lead us to a great insight and relief.
Paying attention on purpose and in the present moment can enhance awareness about a wandering mind which easily gets lost into thinking, ruminating and worrying over past and future. Paying attention builds the capacity for concentration, and concentration aids us to see the workings of our minds with more clarity. As the internal chatter slows down and there is less involvement with verbal narratives we start to see that we have more capacity to exercise choice in our behaviour. Without concentration, it is very difficult to practice open monitoring and compassionate acceptance, these are the two other skills necessary for developing mindfulness. Paying attention non-judgementally means that instead of thinking about or analysing thoughts, images, feelings, emotions, sensations, we learn to be with them, bringing an attitude of interest, curiosity, and acceptance to the experience. Research has demonstrated that acceptance is a key factor for psychological and physical wellbeing, acceptance does not mean resignation, it is the opposite of denying or pushing away our realities. We can’t change what we can’t accept! |
Neuroscience can help us clearly see the way Mindfulness can change brain structure. Various journal articles have been writen on these, one of the earliest experiments comes from the National Institute of Mental Health in America where researchers asked subjects to perform a designated finger tapping exercise and after four weeks MRI scans showed that the areas in the brain corresponding to that task had developed and physically changed. This indicates that regular practice and repetition of a given task recruits new nerve cells which in turn changes neural connections in the brain. This demonstrates that we can actually reshape and change the way our brain works. By practicing Mindfulness on a daily basis we build and strengthen neuropathways in the brain related to concentration, awareness, acceptance, self-compassion, kindness amongst many others benefitial traits.
