Kind words from recent course participants
Dear Vicky,
Please find my summary and feedback of your recent course.
Format: Via Zoom Webinar sessions
Time: 6.30 - 8pm
Day: Tuesday
Length: 9 weeks including introduction.
Completed: 1st July 2020
Due to lockdown we were unable to meet together due to social distancing. Vicky provided information and an introductory session to the group online to explain the format and content of the course over the following 8 weeks. She would provide weekly workbooks and links to audio mindfulness practice.
Summary:
The sessions were for 1 ½ hrs on a Tuesday, early evening. This was family friendly and I was able to attend 8 sessions. The Zoom sessions were a new format to me but I enjoyed the privacy of my own home and there was no traveling, so more time spent with my family. Occasionally there were technical difficulties but Vicky was a proficient Zoom user and dealt with it all very calmly and professionally.
Her sessions had structure and we were informed at the beginning what would happen each week. The Mindfulness practices were interesting and varied. She has the most amazing voice to listen too and her tone was soothing and I must admit I did relax enough to fall asleep a couple of times.
She gave us homework each week but there was no pressure to formally show any evidence. We could record our thoughts, work and practices and discuss the following week.
There was never any pressure to contribute, so perhaps the more vocal participants spoke more each week. The breakaway groups were very useful to get to know other members of the group. I did seem to speak to Vicky quite often in these smaller groups but that was a bonus. One week I was unable to fully hear the lesson so she arranged for us to speak the following day to go through it.
Personal reflections and thoughts:
I feel so grateful to have participated in this course. I wanted to learn more about Mindfulness practice for students that I deal with at College and had no idea how much this was going to help me personally.
Vicky is an excellent teacher. The time flew by and I looked forward to the following week. It was a haven during lockdown. I started to incorporate the principles into my daily life and felt the benefits almost immediately. I slept better, took more care of my diet and increased my exercise. Relationships improved as I feel I have learnt to listen better too. It has been a very personal journey.
I have started to recognise my stressors and have learnt how to relax more. I learnt how to let things go, I worry less and care more about what really matters in my life i.e. the wet towels on the bathroom floor don’t irritate me any more! Well only sometimes.
I already had several activities that I did to help me cope with the world, but they now have more importance in my daily life. It has helped me realise taking time for me is essential. You have taught me mindfulness techniques that will remain with me all my life. It has also given me the desire to learn more about mindfulness and I would like to study it further.
“I highly recommend this course. It will change your life.”
I wish you all the very best in your ongoing career Vicky and hope you will continue to teach this course to many more nurses and others.
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I took Vicky's course as i wanted to bring regular mindfulness practice into my everyday life. I'd tried in the past to get going on my own using books and apps etc, but felt learning from an experienced practitioner was going to be the most successful way to do this,
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I joined the mindfulness group because i have suffered from stress and anxiety from an early age and have tried many ways to manage it but over the past couple of years it has escalated. I decided to try mindfulness as a coping strategy to hopefully provide me with some cal and positive thinking and to give me some time in the day for myself no matter how small that might be. What i am also trying to achieve is the ability to stop judging myself and accepting the behaviour of others. It all takes time but it is so worth it.
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"I have suffered from stress and anxiety from an early age and have tried many ways to manage it but over the past couple of years it has escalated. I decided to try mindfulness as a coping strategy to hopefully provide me with some calm and positive thinking and to give myself time in the day for myself no matter how small that might be. What I am also trying to achieve is the ability to stop judging myself and accepting the behaviour of others, it all takes time but it is so worth it?"
“Hi Vickie I just wanted to say thank you so much for the time you have spent with us teaching us mindfulness. I have learnt so much and feel it has been invaluable time spent with you… thank you for all the audio tapes you have sent and the notes for mindfulness techniques and yoga exercises… I wish you the best of love and luck with your amazing practice.”
"I have really been enjoying doing the practices. Setting aside time has been something to look forward to each day.
I have found myself mindfully doing things that used to irritate me, like doing the cleaning. Without intending or realising im noticing that I am talking myself through different thought processes whilst doing certain tasks.
I'm reflecting more on why I feel the way I do about certain things and where those feelings come from.
As a result I feel I have been so much more productive and pro active- getting things done without procrastinating or putting things off.
And dare I say actually enjoying them and feeling more enegrgised afterwards. I can’t quite believe it.
I am not stuffing bad feelings down- im questioning them with kind curiosity and exploring them. Thank you so much for all you are doing."
"I have suffered from stress and anxiety from an early age and have tried many ways to manage it but over the past couple of years it has escalated. I decided to try mindfulness as a coping strategy to hopefully provide me with some calm and positive thinking and to give myself time in the day for myself no matter how small that might be. What I am also trying to achieve is the ability to stop judging myself and accepting the behaviour of others, it all takes time but it is so worth it?"
— Name, Title
"I have suffered from stress and anxiety from an early age and have tried many ways to manage it but over the past couple of years it has escalated. I decided to try mindfulness as a coping strategy to hopefully provide me with some calm and positive thinking and to give myself time in the day for myself no matter how small that might be. What I am also trying to achieve is the ability to stop judging myself and accepting the behaviour of others, it all takes time but it is so worth it?"
— Name, Title