Anyone can meditate. Sometimes I hear “but my mind is so busy.” All our minds are busy. This Action Calendar from Action for Happiness has quick daily suggestions for helping develop a mindfulness practise. They are so simple; follow them daily and notice what happens. “It helps us get in tune with our feelings and stops us dwelling on the past or worrying about the future – so we get more out of the day-to-day. It can also help us identify what…
Simple Ideas for Building Emotional Resilience It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters. Life is currently tough for everyone. Uncertainty faces all of us from all directions. Perhaps there never was a time riper than now to develop resilience skills. One of my favourite quotes on this subject is from Epictetus the Greek philosopher. It also serves as a mantra when exploring cognitive behavioural therapy. “It’s not what happens to you, but how…
Do you have balance in your day? This is something I am constantly asking myself. Today is a weird day. I have found it difficult to focus on anything. My head is all over the place. I am struggling to pay attention to one thing. Not mindful at all. Not present. Should I tidy the house? Should I clear a cupboard? I am so close to finishing a book on mind body connection, only 60 pages left, but the last…
It may be difficult for some of us to meditate during these extraordinary times. I found that when I was ill, it was not easy to practice the longer meditations. My focus was not good and my attention wandered much more than usual. When you are ill, this is normal as your brain can become foggy. I did find that shorter practices were a massive comfort. The 3-minute breathing space is a particular favourite of mine along with shorter grounding…
WELL-BEING WEEK WITH POSITIVELY PUTNEY The Putney Clinic will be participating on several free events organised by Positively Putney as part of its Well-being Week. From the 18 to 24 May, experts from a number of fields will discuss ways to help your well-being while you work from home and cope working in lockdown. There will also be physical and mindful sessions to help reduce stress, increase engagement and activity. We want everyone to be able to interact & participate…
Are you looking to take up mindfulness but don’t know where to start? Our resident mindfulness teacher Fiona Worthington has put together a 20-point mindfulness practice starter kit. It includes suggestions and recommendations to help you along your mindful journey. Anyone can meditate. Sometimes clients say, “but my mind is too busy.” Every body’s minds are busy. Mindfulness is not about clearing the mind. It’s about changing the relationship with what goes on in our head. We learn how observe…
I love the Calendars from Action for Happiness, which come out each month. This subject for this month is “Meaningful May”. The calendar has simple daily reminders to help us respond to these extraordinary times with a sense of meaning and purpose. Fiona is offering free online Mindfulness Practices For All sessions. Everyone is welcome and no experience is needed. These half-hour sessions run on Wednesday evenings (18:30 – 19:00). To book, please visit the Yoga Mama Wellness website.…
FEELING BETTER? – MY PERSONAL RECIPE FOR RECOVERY By Fiona Worthington (Cognitive Behavioural Coach, Clinical Hypnotherapist & Mindfulness Teacher) I was unwell at the same time as one of my closest friends. Whenever he noticed a speck of improvement, he would leap up, dash about working or cleaning. I thought he was completely mad. He would push himself hard, but then crash. If there is one tip in all this, please take it easy. It has taken me a while…
‘This, too, shall pass.’ – How to stay emotionally strong and positive alongside COVID 19 Many of you will have heard this wise old saying. And it is certainly something that is helpful to keep in mind at the moment. Although we know it instinctively, we sometimes forget that change is the only thing we can really be sure of. It is also important to remember that we are enormously resilient and adaptable creatures. We will find a way through…
Living with pain on a daily basis can be physically and emotionally exhausting, not just leaving you in severe discomfort but also influencing your mood and overall sense of wellbeing. There is an overwhelming amount of information out there on what to do, or not do, and so much advice that it can be hard to know where to start, so we’ve offering some help. This is the first part of ways of coping. THE FIRST SKILL: Understanding There…
