Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)
Founded in 1979 by Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn, Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) is the systematic application of mindfulness training to stress and to health problems related to stress. MBSR has proven highly effective in diminishing anxiety and panic, and in lessening the ill effects of stress on heart disease, cancer, chronic pain, skin ailments, asthma, and many other conditions. Even with our greatest challenges, mindfulness can teach us to live more satisfying lives, and to nurture our health and well-being.
A growing body of research demonstrates the powerful effectiveness of MBSR as a tool for decreasing stress and supporting healing.
Upcoming MBSR Courses:
San Francisco — Jan. 25
Berkeley — March 19
Register for the next Berkeley course here.
Course Outline
The course in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction takes place over eight weeks. Classes are approximately 2-1/2 hours long and are held in the evening once a week. Each class consists of guided meditations, gentle movement exercises, lecture, and group discussion. The course includes an all-day session on a Saturday. Between classes, students will enhance their participation through working with meditation CDs, homework assignments, and readings from the course textbook, Full Catastrophe Living by Jon Kabat-Zinn. The in-class curriculum includes the following components:
- Week 1: Introduction to Program ° Foundations of Mindfulness ° More right with you than wrong ° Introduction to Body Scan meditation
- Week 2: Patience ° Working with perceptions °The Wandering Mind ° The STOP exercise
- Week 3: Non-Striving ° Introduction to Awareness of Breathing Meditation ° Mindful Lying Yoga ° Attention vs. Disattention
- Week 4: Non-Judging ° Responding vs. Reacting ° Seeing Our Patterns ° Sitting Meditation ° Standing Yoga ° Research on Stress & Stress Hardiness
- Week 5: Acknowledgment ° Group Reflections on Halfway Point ° Small & Large Groups ° Sitting Meditation ° Qi Gong
- Week 6: Letting it Be ° Skillful Communication ° Avoiding Difficulty vs. Entering and Blending ° Lovingkindness Meditation ° Walking Meditation
- Daylong Session (see description)
- Week 7: Sitting Meditation ° Mindful Movement ° Trust & Self-Reliance ° Learning How to Practice on One's Own ° Mindfulness in Everyday Life
- Week 8: Sitting Meditation ° Mindful Movement ° The Class Never Ends: Practice for the rest of Your Life ° Course Review & Group Reflection
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Daylong Outline
The Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Daylong consists of a day of lead meditations, gentle movement exercises, and group sharing. A typical schedule is as follows:
- 9:30: Introductions
- 10:00: Awareness of Breathing
- 10:15: Lying Yoga
- 10:30: Body Scan Meditation
- 11:15: Walking Meditation
- 11:45: Sitting Meditation
- 12:15: Lunch & Rest
- 1:30: Yoga
- 2:00: Sitting Meditation
- 2:30: Walking Meditation
- 2:45: Sitting Meditation
- 3:10: Walking Meditation
- 3:25: Lovingkindness Meditation
- 3:45: Group Disccussion (Check Out)
- 4:30: Farewell
bill@stressreductionatwork.com
(415) 820-1533