MBSR
About MBSR
An 8-week journey
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) is a structured 8-week program developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn in 1979 at the UMass Medical School’s Stress Reduction Clinic. This evidence-based course offers practical tools to cultivate mindfulness and manage stress more effectively in daily life.
What is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness – a term you’ve heard of, as these days, it is easily tossed around. But what does it truly mean, and how can it help you?
Jon Kabat-Zinn defines mindfulness as following, “The awareness that arises from paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment and non-judgmentally”.
We live in an extremely fast-paced world where we get a portion of stress served to us almost daily. This stress can not only influence our mental health, but it can also cause serious damage to our physical health as well as our relationship with others, even reduce our productivity and capability.
Dealing with stress and learning how to cope with it requires you to be in the present moment, aware of your thoughts and consciously taking mindful action.
Mindfulness is an accessible tool that helps people increase the perception of their body; you become more aware of your body sensations, thoughts, emotions and general perception of life. This enables you to perceive them, without any judgement and with it decrease the stress, anxiety, and depression that come from not living in the present moment.
Mindfulness explained by Jon Kabat-Zinn - founder of the MBSR progra
What to expect from the course?
Pre-interview
Before enrolling, you’ll have a one-on-one introductory meeting. This session provides an overview of the course and answers any questions, ensuring the program aligns with your current life circumstances.
Curriculum
Over the course of 8 weeks, you will engage in:
Weekly sessions: 2.5 hours per session, blending guided mindfulness practices, group discussions, and reflective inquiry.
A full-day silent retreat toward the end of the program (between week 6 and 7 usually) for deeper practice.
Home practice
The course requires a commitment of about 45 minutes of home practice per day, supported by audio and handbook.
FAQs
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There are many emerging areas of research on mindfulness meditation benefits. The following topics are some of the ones where there is ample solid, robust research that points to the fact that mindfulness can positively impact:
Stress reduction (preventing / recovering from a burnout)
Anxiety and depression and irritability reduction
Insomnia reduction
Reduction of the impact of chronic pain
Reduction of emotional reactivity
Awareness of the present moment increase
Gaining better concentration and memory from stress reduction to improved focus and emotional resilience.
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Week 1 – Exploring Mindfulness
Week 2 – How we perceive the world and ourselves
Week 3 – Being at home in our own body
Week 4 – What is Stress?
Week 5 – Stress: reaction or mindful response?
Week 6 – Mindful communication
Week 7 – Taking care of ourselves
Week 8 – Looking backward, going forward
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A deeper understanding of stress and mindfulness meditation techniques.
Increased body awareness through both stillness and mindful movement.
Meaningful group reflections to enhance your learning.
A structured home practice supported by resources to help integrate mindfulness into your life.
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This program is accessible for anyone, regardless of prior experience with meditation or yoga. It is designed to be inclusive and adaptable to various physical conditions and life circumstances. Before enrolling, you’ll have a one-on-one introductory meeting. This session provides an overview of the course and answers any questions you may have.
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