Well-being Now Blog

Taking a mindfulness course is life-enhancing in so many ways. One young mum, Lisa, found that it transformed her experience of being with her young children:

‘Like many mums, I was always feeling guilty. Guilty about shouting and getting cross, guilty about doing something just for myself even going out for a few hours, guilty about feeling fed up because it is all so relentless.

‘Following the mindfulness course I find I focus much more on the positive. Mindfulness leads me to stop and appreciate the children, rather than thinking ‘oh no I’ve got to give them a bath, cook tea, take them here, take them there - now they are arguing aaargh.’ It’s easy to get caught up in what you want them to do rather than enjoying them being themselves. Mindfulness gives me the space to appreciate them and I am so grateful because they are lovely.

‘Bedtime for instance used to be really stressful. I could not wait for them to just go to sleep. By the time it got to 7pm I was knackered. I remember getting so wound up and thinking ‘GO TO SLEEP! I was resentful at not being able to sit down on my own and have time for myself. I learnt it made life much easier to simply accept the way the children were. I accepted that I might just have to sit there for half an hour. Sometimes it was beautiful to do that. And when they were finally asleep I would enjoy my tea, TV, book so much more because I wasn’t wound up and was calm.

‘I am generally much calmer with them. If I do get annoyed by them then I don’t feel so guilty about that and that means I can snap myself out of that much more easily.

‘I make mindfulness part of my day. I practice in bed in the evening and that helps me get to sleep and sleep more deeply. If I find I am getting really cross during the day I take some moments to breathe deeply, then connects me to a calmer state, and then I can – sometimes- respond differently.

‘Mindfulness gives me the space to appreciate life in general so much more and the children are an important part of that. It means, for instance, we literally stop to smell the roses on the way to school.’

The next mindfulness courses start with free introductions in September as follows:

EAST GRINSTEAD Free introduction Tuesday 25 September 7,30 - 9.30 @ Chequer Mead, De La Warr Rd, RH19 3BS. The 8 week course starts the following Tuesday

CATERHAM Free introduction Wednesay 26 September 7.30 - 9.30 @ URC Church, Harestone Hill CR3 6SX The 8 week course starts the following Wednesday
Sue Bolton