Sign up for either the8 week course or 2 week course, and
 
enter to win a Zafu (meditation cushion)!  

I use these meditation cushions every day in my family practice and have some to share with participants of my workshops! However, if you're really interested in setting up a mindfulness  practice in your home, having the right tools can make all the difference! 

The draw will take place May 3 at 4pm!

Spring is in the air! 

Why not join me and learn more about mindfulness and meditation in the season of new beginnings! 

I’m offering three workshops this Spring, each is unique and caters to different parts of our mindful spirit. 

The first is my Winedfulness course. This course introduces you to the practice of mindful eating (and drinking). We will explore 6 wines that are “off the beaten track” and taste different small plates after. I will introduce mindful meditations as well as provide you with suggestions on how to bring mindfulness into your daily life. This is a great intro course for you and your partner (or friend!). 

Price: $40 (regularly $60) and $75 for two people! Space is limited. 
Date: Saturday, April 14 from 8-10pm. 

My 2nd course is a two part Mindful Parenting Workshop offered at the Old Ottawa South Firehall! This course is an intro to mindful parenting. If you have taken the evening workshop, not to worry!  This course takes what we originally learned (using the same resources), but invites you to dive into the practice. We experience different mindful meditations, play with the resources and explore our parenting / caregiving struggles.  We also have daily homework to get you into the habit of daily meditation. Lots of resources will be provided and participants will have full access to my extensive library throughout the week.

Price: $130 (course may be covered by your insurance)
Date: Thursday, May 3 & May 19 from 6:30-9pm

My 3rd course is the bread & butter of mindfulness. This 8 week, Mindfulness Based Stressed Reduction (MBSR) - or what I like to call, Mindfulness for Stressed out Folks - is the original foundational Mindfulness course. Designed by Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn, this intensive program immerses participants in the world of mindfulness through practice. Science tells us that daily mindful meditation over an 8 week period changes the way our brain works. It creates neural pathways that helps us to respond differently to stress, become more resilient to adversity and develop increased levels of compassion for self and others. 

I LOVE this course. I find that participants who really put in the time have had incredibly positive and life changing outcomes. If you’re a parent, teacher or caregiver, this course is GOLD! Not only does it provide you with a compassionate space to learn about your triggers, it gives you concrete tools that will allow you to work through and respond differently to those triggers. For me, the MBSR program has taught me the gift of the “pause”. As a parent and social worker, it has improved my relationships with both my children and partner, but also the way in which I see myself and my community.

Mindfulness practice has the potential to be life changing. 

Price: $425 (course may be covered by your insurance). Sliding Scale available.
Date: Sundays, May 6-June 24, from 6:30-9pm. Full day silent retreat on June 16th from 9:30-3pm. 

So I’m standing in the play yard right now listening to a caregiver tell a little person that because she was “disrespectful and rude”, and that she will sit out and miss after school, outside playtime with her friends. 

Now, I don’t know the whole backstory. I also have no intention of judging this caregiver’s response, but I do have some observations about what took place after, as well as some alternatives. 

Observations: 
This little person is now ready for a fight. She keeps running away the moment the caregiver turns her back. This has become a battle and a painful game of cat & mouse where her initial “disrespectful” behaviour has been forgotten and everyone is reacting to the subsequent behaviours as egos get involved. 

Possible alternatives: 

I wonder what would have happened if some collaborative problem solving was implemented here. What’s that you ask? Well, it’s the belief that kids do well when they have the skills to do so. It’s the belief that behaviours are just ways that kids communicate that they are having trouble meeting someone’s (or their own) expectations. It’s the belief that when we invite kids into the problem solving experience, magic happens. 

So, I would have asked the kid to give me the backstory and come up with some solutions for the lagging skills/inability to meet expectations. It may have looked a little like this: 

“I noticed you were really upset when you were talking to me earlier. What’s up?” 

My goal would be to separate the behaviour from the experience and find out what’s underneath the “disrespect”. At this time, I would be silent and just listen to the little person’s experience and explanation as to why she used those words! When she had said everything that needed to be said, and I had successfully validated those explanations (repeated back to make sure that I completely understood), then I would have explained my side and / or expectation. 

“I need to feel safe and respected here and when you’re feeling angry, I get it, but your words hurt me. I would like for you to use different words to explain how you’re feeling” 

After this, we would have taken a few moments to brainstorm some solutions with the little person. 

​“I understand that you’re really upset, but is there another way that you could tell me that you’re angry/hurt/hungry/sad/tired/uncomfortable?” 

“So the next time you’re feeling really … what are some words or actions that we can use to ask for help?"

Once we have some solutions and an agreement as to what we can do, we test it out! If it fails, we come back to the “Hey, I noticed we used some angry words again when you were feeling frustrated back there. What’s up?” And then we start from the beginning. 
​
Remember that helping little people grow their brain takes lots and lots of practice. Patience and discipline are our most amazing and powerful tools. Time outs & punishments may have their place, but as I’ve said before, the latter is more connected to justice (making us feel better or have more power / control) and focuses only on behaviours. Consequently, it doesn’t help the child in building their skills to do better and can create larger barriers between the child and the caregiver. 

So, there you go. Just some observations and thoughts from the play yard. Send word if you have additional thoughts or comments?

Why mindfulness? Here is what we know: 

Mindfulness: 

1. improves our levels of compassion and makes it more effective
2. increases resiliency to stress
3. sharpens our attention
4. reduces mind wandering
5. improves our ability to solve problems
6. improves mental health, along the same lines of exercise, therapy and medication
7. can improve your relationships​
8. helps to reduce bias
9. helps you to see the cup 1/2 full!
10. is great for your body - just kidding, but there is a marginal improvement!

 Mindfulness is not: 

1. a replacement for medications
2. the cure all for all ages : teenagers might benefit from meditation, but we still have some work to do to make it effective! 
3. not all kinds of meditation work. 

What does the MBSR course do?

We learn meditation. We learn about our stresses. We learn about our triggers. We learn about different forms of meditation. Then we talk about parenting stresses. Then we throw these things together and we practice. Practice some more. Then practice a little bit more after that. 

By the end of 8 weeks, you'll have practiced 40 minutes a day, 2.5 hours a week and completed a 6 hour silent retreat. Science tells us that by practicing 30-45 minutes a day for 8 weeks changes our brain. It does all those things that were listed above.  

Want to learn more? Call me or check out my blog. Need more information, I'd love to chat. 

Mindfulness for Stressed Out Folks: 8 week MBSR course - Spring Sale!