November 10 Drop-In Session
The Drop-In Meditation Session this month will be
held on Thursday, November 10 from 7-9 PM
at the Wright
Tavern Center, 2 Lexington Rd. Concord. The Drop-
In sessions are for anyone with some experience with
insight or mindfulness-based meditation.
All
are
welcome!
This month we will be focusing on self-care for the
holidays. How to let go of some of the "shoulds" and
embrace the feelings and emotions that
surround us during this time of the year. We will
practice some gentle restorative yoga, as well as
work with contemplative practices. Wear
comfortable clothes and bring along a yoga mat or
blanket.
Drop-in fee is
$15 Feel free to come late and leave early,
if
necessary.
Quick Links...
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Greetings!
November...slowing down to
the speed of life!
As I prepared for a new class I am teaching at the
University of Massachusetts this month, I was struck
by the very apt title of one of the books selected for
the course: Slowing Down to the Speed
of Life. How wonderfully fitting a title
for this month's newsletter; and the month of
November, as we are feel ourselves being pushed
faster and faster into the holiday hustle and bustle!
If you have been meaning to take some time for
yourself, this may be a perfect opportunity for some
self-care before being swept away in the frenetic
pace of the holiday season. I have highlighted both
the monthly drop-in session,which I facilitate at the
Wright Tavern, as well as a wonderful one-day
beginner meditation retreat in Cambridge.
By allowing ourselves to practice some simple stress
reduction
practices, such as mindful breathing or walking, and
perhaps turning off the 24/7 technology for just a
few moments, we enable ourselves to re-balance,
and slow down to the speed of life,
instead of
spinning our wheels as we ramp up to try to make
our lives move even faster. For those of you
connected to handheld technology
devices, you may be interested in a recent study
commissioned by Hewlett-Packard UK on "Info-Mania".
As always, I encourage and appreciate your
comments and suggestions for future programming
and newsletter topics. May you spend your
November slowing down to the speed of
life.
Take Care,
Pam
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Info-Mania and IQ
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Do you think you are a more productive worker by
being
connected
24/7 to "always-on" technology or do you feel even
more
stressed? A recent study from the United Kingdom
looked at the use of "always-on" technology in
workers who were literally addicted to checking e-
mail messages during meetings, on vacations,
throughout the night and on weekends (dubbed
info-mania) and its effect on IQ.
Interestingly, the study's findings indicated a 10
point
drop in IQ in those workers suffering from "info-
mania". The study was commissioned on behalf of
technology experts at Hewlett Packard. Check out
the article, "Info-Mania - is it reducing your
IQ?".
While not a rigorous scientific study, the results do
show an interesting correlation between constant
hyperarousal with external stimuli and the ability to
focus on tasks and problem solving. Men seemed to
fare worse than women. So...if you need a good
reason to log-out of your e-mail or turn off the
Blackberry, this may be it!
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Beginner's Meditation Retreat
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For those of you who have taken my 8-week
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program, you
know that I recommend you try a short day-long
silent retreat as a complement to your regular
practice. The Cambridge Insight Meditation Center is
offering a one-day beginner's meditation retreat on
Saturday, November 12. This is an opportunity to
practice silent sitting, walking and eating meditation
in a meditation hall setting. The meditation style
practiced is vipassana (insight) meditation. For more
information contact the Cambridge Insight
Meditation Center.
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Winter Session 8-Week MBSR Program
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The Winter Session of the popular 8-week
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program
will
begin in January. The program is modeled after Dr.
Jon Kabat-Zinn's internationally-known program at
the UMass Medical Center in Worcester, MA. This is
the only MBSR program I know of that offers
19.2
contact hours for nurses to be participants!
Classes will be offered on Tuesday evenings,
7-9 PM
and Friday mornings, 9:30 AM-11:00 AM.
Participants may choose either PM or AM
sessions to
meet their needs. Classes begin the week of
January
16 and end the week of March 13. No
classes during
February school vacation week.
The program is held at the Wright Tavern Center,
next to First Parish Church in Concord, MA.
Registration will start on December 1 and class size is
limited to 15 participants in each session. For more
information, check out the Stress Resources
website.
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