Oxford Mindfulness

We are honoured to invite you to join us in Oxford, UK, for an evening with HRH Princess Noor Bint Asem of Jordan as we celebrate her three books and share the vision of our future collaborations.  Taking place at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, UK on 19 June 2025, this exciting event offers an opportunity to come together to promote and support global well-being and mindfulness. You’ll hear Princess Noor Bint Asem introduce her books, discussing the themes of gratitude, kindness, and using the breath as a steadying anchor. Her writing is a valuable resource for those responsible for the well-being of children. The booking fee includes copies of the three books, networking space after the talk where non-alcoholic drinks will be served, and the chance to meet Princess Noor Bint Asem and have your books signed. Book your place: https://lnkd.in/eqjhYdzZ 

We're really looking forward to you teaching this course Liz Lord and to welcoming the participants who'll join you to explore mindfulness, and 'feeling tone', more deeply.

What is befriending? Befriending involves being curious, friendly, and kind, and is a capacity we can all develop towards ourselves and our experiences. It’s available to all of us, and extends kindness and warmth to all our experiences, whether it’s internal or external, pleasant or unpleasant: 🟢 When noticing pleasant experiences, befriending can help to make room for and create greater capacity for appreciation, connection, joy, and a sense of accomplishment. 🔴 When noticing unpleasant experiences, befriending can make room for and work with reactivity with compassion.  • • • If you’d like to explore befriending, and how it can support you in your daily life, we offer a range of personal learning courses tailored to meet you where you are.  Head to our website to find out more. 

Join us for Chapter 7! We’re delighted to be continuing our collaboration with Professor Willem Kuyken with the next instalment of our free guest talk series, ‘A Life Well-Lived: Mindfulness for Life in 12 Chapters’. The next chapter, ‘Befriending Our Minds’, will take place on Tuesday 18 March 2025, online, 19:00 - 20:00 UK time. In this session Willem will explore “what it means to befriend our minds. To befriend our mind is to cultivate a set of attitudes – curiosity, appreciation, kindness, care and courage to name a few.” Plus, when you join us live, you'll have the exclusive chance to engage in the chapter-specific Q&A with Willem. This month’s event is part of a year-long journey exploring practical wisdom from Willem’s new book, 'Mindfulness for Life', which serves as a valuable resource for navigating the complexities of modern life. Missed the previous chapters? You can catch up with recordings available on YouTube and all major podcast platforms. • • • Sign up for the series: https://lnkd.in/ezzS33h4

Research Poster Presentation Evening Submissions now open We’re pleased to share that if you’d like to submit your study to present at this year’s UK Annual Gathering, the application process is now open. Researchers of all levels who’ve studied MBCT are invited to submit and present their study in the main Gathering venue from 19:00-21:00 UK Time on Thursday 28th August 2025. ☑️ Enjoy live music ☑️ View research ☑️ Meet other researchers The deadline for submissions is 30 April 2025 with decisions communicated by 16 May 2025. Make your application here ➡️ https://lnkd.in/dk8S_GkJ

When it comes to our Annual Gatherings it’s you, our attendees, that make the event so special. Listen to our fantastic 2024 attendees discuss their experience ⬇️ It’s a privilege to be able to bring together the vibrant mindfulness community for an opportunity to reflect, connect, and this year our Gathering celebrates 30 years of MBCT’s impact on clinical care and population wellness. You’re invited to join us in Marlow, UK, from 27–29 August 2025, for this 3-day in-person event. Hosts Zindel Segal, Mark Williams and John Teasdale will offer keynote talks alongside a joint keynote from Ruth Baer and Willem Kuyken and a Day of Practice with Mark Williams and Antonia Sumbundu. Visit our website to find out more.

CHAPTER SIX: How We React to Stress and Difficulties We were thrilled to welcome so many of you to last month’s instalment of our Guest Speaker Event series, "A Life Well-Lived: Mindfulness for Life in 12 Chapters," in collaboration with Professor Willem Kuyken. In this insightful session, Willem Kuyken explores the mechanisms of our habitual reactions to stress and challenge. “It can be really helpful to think of these habits, these autopilot-type things that we can do in the spirit of habit and reactivity, as being deep wired in terms of evolutionary survival value. Our habits of avoidance of anxiety and control were once helpful for our survival. But modern life has different challenges.” Willem Kyken Willem then discussed concepts to help us understand reactivity such as the ‘vicious flower' and the 'two arrows of pain and suffering' and then suggested tools we can use to support a balanced response, practices like the breathing space, the 50/50 practice, and mindful walking. If you couldn’t make it to the session, don’t worry - you can still tune in. The audio is accessible on all major podcast platforms, and the full video recording is up on YouTube: https://lnkd.in/ehUCQ8g3 • • • We look forward to seeing you next month for Chapter Seven, “Befriending Our Minds”, a theme we’ll also be exploring over the month. Join us Tuesday 18 March from 19:00-20:00 UK time. #mindfulness #mindfulnessbasedcognitivetherapy

We were delighted to see mindful walking being highlighted recently in the Guardian! 🎉 The article, “How to walk your way to better health: five simple tips to supercharge your stroll and transform your wellbeing” notes: “Research has shown that people who regularly practised mindful walking for a month saw reductions in their stress levels, as well as improved mood and overall mental health.” The piece references a study ‘Mindful walking in psychologically distressed individuals: a randomized controlled trial’ that concludes ‘Patients participating in a mindful walking program showed reduced psychological stress symptoms and improved quality of life compared to no study intervention.’ Find out more: https://lnkd.in/gt4ZamDF Seeing mindful walking in the spotlight has certainly 'supercharged' our excitement for our upcoming Mindful Mile fundraising events! On Sunday May 25, 2025, join us in Oxford, Berlin or wherever you are as we walk to raise funds with the first mile walked together, mindfully. Head to our website to find out more.

WALK MINDFULLY WITH US IN: BERLIN We’re thrilled to announce that Oxford Mindfulness Teacher, Trainer and Trustee, Leonie Schell, will be hosting one of our upcoming ‘Mindful Mile’ fundraising events in Berlin, Germany! Join us either in Berlin or in Oxford UK or wherever you are on Sunday 25 May, 2025 as we walk to raise funds for greater well-being and improved mental health. The first mile will be walked together, mindfully, you’re then invited to join us for the whole walk, part of the route or to come along for the initial mile. Our hope is the Mindful Mile will become an annual occasion to come together locally, and globally, to practise, share experiences and raise funds. Visit our website to find out more.

💡 Q&A: Our new 8-week course: ‘Leading with Presence for Education Leaders: Enabling Cultural Change’ Are you a School Principal, Executive Leader overseeing multiple schools, or working in a senior advisory position in education? Our new specialised programme designed to support you and your teams in building resilience, managing stress and remaining more balanced could be from you. Starting 1 May 2025, this personal learning programme draws on evidence-based practices, real-world case studies, and practical exercises to support personal, interpersonal, and organisational growth. ▶️ Hear from the course trainers, Claire Kelly and Maggie Farrar, as they discuss your commonly asked questions. Claire is our Director of Teaching & Training and was a Senior Leader in Secondary schools and Further Education. Maggie is a mindfulness teacher, school leader, and author of ‘Leading with Presence – It’s an Inside Job.’ Enjoy the Q&A, and of course, feel free to ask any questions you may have in the comments! Find out more: https://lnkd.in/d4wX8pue