By the end of autumn, five courses will have been run by Jill Palmer and Prasadu (pictured). Each has been full with 20 participants, and there is also generally a waiting list. 

Drop-in mindfulness sessions are also on offer to colleagues who have attended at least four sessions. These are one hour per week for six weeks. They are designed to help people kick-start their mindfulness practice if it has lapsed, refresh their memory of practices covered in the six week course, learn new practices, get advice on their practice and experiences with mindfulness, and to create time and space to be with like-minded colleagues.

Maternity support worker – parent education & health promotion, Jill Palmer who helps run the course said "I'm really pleased that we have an emerging mindfulness network in the Trust of more than 45 colleagues.

"This growing network has a group email that goes out every Friday in which colleagues share mindfulness tips, practices, and sources of inspiration".

If any colleagues are interested in helping us to develop the mindfulness network, for instance you may be using mindfulness as a clinical intervention and want to share learning and experience from that, Jill and Prasadu would love to hear from you by email.

Likewise if you are interested in mindfulness for yourself, your team or division, or patients, please get in touch and share your ideas. We might be able to help turn them into a reality.

If mindfulness is something you’re interested in but have never tried, you can also have a taster session at the staff retreat offered by chaplaincy. You could book yourself on a ‘Great Day Out’ with chaplaincy and give mindfulness a try before you sign up for a six week course. For further details contact George Spencer, chaplaincy on (34) 2092 or Occupational Health (Workforce Wellbeing) on occupationalhealthcht@cht.nhs.uk

The next six week course starts on Thursday 13 October at CRH at 4.45pm with each session lasting 90 minutes. 

The attached poster tells you more and how to book a place.

Still not entirely sure what Mindfulness is?

This film by a Buddhist teacher gives a nice description of a mindfulness practice: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUBNLC3JfMw

And this animation shows how Mindfulness can empower you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vzKryaN44ss