Mindfulness has been defined as: “Paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally” (Kabat-Zinn 1994). This may sound simple, but in fact most of us are anything but mindful a great deal of the time and this appears to be detrimental to our wellbeing (Killingsworth & Gilbert, 2010).

Empirical support continues to grow for the use of mindfulness meditation, and psychotherapeutic approaches that incorporate mindfulness, with a wide range of mental and physical health conditions. For example, Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) is recommended in the NHS NICE guidelines for the prevention of relapse in depression.

I run a range of mindfulness meditation courses for health, social care and psychotherapy professionals, particularly 8-week mindfulness-based stress reduction courses (MBSR). The primary aim of these courses is for participants to develop their own regular, personal mindfulness practice and to use this practice to effectively manage stress, increase their sense of wellbeing and emotional resilience. Through these personal experiences, participants learn how this approach may also benefit clients and patients.

I also run courses for specific groups of health professionals. For example, I teach mindfulness to medical students in the University of Southampton Faculty of Medicine.