COURSE DESCRIPTION

Attendees learn the principles of mindfulness meditation, the importance of living in the moment, and the power of now, and how these relate to suffering less pain. Mindfulness assists in remaining calmer and more pain controlled despite the challenges of everyday life, such as when interacting with family, friends, colleagues, employers, workers compensation, and insurers.  This can change the intensity of pain suffering, both emotional and physical, in a very positive way.  Life skills are also enhanced in this course.

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN

• Module 1 (first 5 classes):  Introduce tools to increase wise-mind and resilience
• Module 2 (classes 6 to 9):  Enhance the mind-body connection, self-nurture, and awareness
• Module 3 (classes 10 to 13):  Enhance relationship skills in a broad context

The full three modules are usually taught over 12 to 13 weeks at 2.5 hours per class, but can be taught over three to four days, or over two weekends.

Click here for the NNC Referral Form

COST

The cost of participation is covered by the Ontario provincial health insurance plan, if led by an MD facilitator or a health care professional covered by a health facility’s budget.  Cost of this course would otherwise be $900.

Participants do need the MBCPM™ course materials to achieve the best outcomes:  The book The Mindfulness Solution to Pain and the CD or download bundle ($85 plus applicable taxes and shipping). The MBCPM™ Basic and Advanced Review Workbook is recommended particularly for the revision courses and costs $52 plus taxes and shipping.

DO YOU WANT TO HAVE MBCPM™ COURSES AT YOUR OWN FACILITY?

Health care professionals wishing to apply to bring MBCPM to their centre can email us at team@neuronovacentre.com to discuss training to become a facilitator, and/or, if in Ontario, to discuss connecting with a facilitator delivering the course via Telemedicine to bring it to their centre. A minimum of 8 participants should be signed up for the course to ensure a viable site.

MINDFULNESS-BASED CHRONIC PAIN MANAGEMENT (MBCPM™) ADVANCED REVIEW

MBCPM™ Advanced Review is open to participants who have completed at least one MBCPM™ course, have been consistent in attendance, and are meditating at least 5 days a week leading up to the MBCPM™ Advanced Review course.

COURSE LOCATIONS

PROGRAM BENEFITS

• Reducing symptoms of pain, OSI, and burnout – increasing resilience
• Easing transition from traumas and troubling life events:  Understanding triggers
• Improving life balance
• Renewing a sense of purpose
• Improving personal and professional relationships
• Managing anxiety, life stress, and feelings of isolation
• Possibly modifying medication requirements (with physician oversight)

CONTENT

• Practicing mindfulness and meditation
• Understanding the connection between stress and mind/body challenges
• Enhancing self-care:  Eating, exercising, and sleeping issues
• Working on behaviors and self-awareness in relationship with others and with self

Click here to download the Veterans and First Responders Referral Form

This course to is parallel to the pain course, as most of what is covered is just as relevant for those suffering from stress and stress-induced conditions.  Facilitators trained to run the pain course can also run this course using the customized MBCSM workbook and the meditations created to accompany this course.  Alumni from the pain course may also work with this workbook and find it to be a useful revision.

This course is particularly relevant to staff or corporations, health care workers and others in many industries and may help prevent stress-related challenges and enhance resilience.

MINDFULNESS-BASED CHRONIC STRESS MANAGEMENT (MBCSM) COURSE MATERIALS

Mindfulness-Based Chronic Stress Management Workbook 

DOWNLOADS of MEDITATIONS

These downloads have been created to accompany the Mindfulness-Based Chronic Stress Management course.  An added bonus is the poetry which can be used to encourage thoughtful discussion during this course, two of the poems helping with the concept of being mindful (Download 1) and two poems to shed light on the formal practices of body scan and guided imagery (Download 2).  Alumni of the pain version of our courses will appreciate having these meditations, too.  Music plays quietly behind the introductions and the poetry.  It is not used in the formal practices:  Music being a distraction from simply being open with awareness to whatever arises during the guidance.

MINDFULNESS-BASED CHRONIC STRESS MANAGEMENT (MBCSM) ADVANCED REVIEW

Revision courses take the same content to a deeper level for Alumni of the basic courses.  Facilitators who teach the basic pain course can facilitate these revision courses. 

This six-week therapeutic and educational course is designed for Ontario health care workers and those in helping and caring roles who are experiencing stress and trauma in these pandemic times:  This is your course!

Through the applied practice of Mindfulness in stress management, participant outcomes include:

• Understanding how stress is manifesting in your body, and finding ways to mitigate the the effects;
• Recognizing caregiver burnout and compassion fatigue;
• Exploring the causes and impacts of post-traumatic stress and post traumatic stress disorder and the difference between the two;
• Learning to mindfully manage your Occupational Stress Injuries/Illnesses (OSIs) and reduce its impact on families, friends, and colleagues; and,
• Applying effective mindfulness strategies in your life and enhancing your overall mental and physical health.

Contact NNC at team@neurovnovacentre.com for more information

MBCPM™ COMMUNITY

MINDFULNESS MATTERS MAINTENANCE DROP-IN CLASSES

MBCPM™ Mindfulness Maintenance is called “Mindfulness Matters” and is a “drop-in” class for alumni of the MBCPM™ and MBCSM courses and trainings.

Anyone who has done a mindfulness programme elsewhere may also apply with a physician’s referral.

There are currently three ″Chapters” of “Mindfulness Matters” in Ontario, but as groups at health facilities can no longer congregate, the affected chapters are suspended during COVID-19 restrictions:

Chapter 1 is hosted by facilitators Annie Hebert RN and Barb Fraser MSW from Noelville and Haliburton respectively, and links with a number of sites via telemedicine including Aurora, Blind River, Bracebridge, Elliot Lake and Newmarket, but please check our table periodically for site updates.  Scripts of themes and guidelines are provided by NNC, to explore through formal practice and discussion.  Classes run on Thursdays from 3:30 to 4:30 pm ET;

Chapter 2 is hosted by NNC, online, via Zoom interface into participant’s homes, following the NNC themes and guidelines, to be explored through formal practice and discussion each week.  Classes run on Mondays from 7:00 to 8:15 pm ET via Zoom with NNC team members Katherine Hall and Debbie Joel. 

First time attending, two classes are free and then $25 to continue the session.  The next session of 9 drop-in classes is $55, or $130 for the year (add HST to all amounts).  There are four “sets” of classes per year.  Where there is financial hardship special arrangements can be made by contacting NNC at team@neuronovacentre.com

REFERRAL FORMS

Referral Form for Chapter 1:  Mindfulness-Matters-Referral-Form

Referral Form for Chapter 2:  MBCPM Mindfulness Matters Registration Form

EMOTIONAL SKILLS

The Emotional Skills course teaches insightful and less reactive ways to communicate effectively with others and with yourself.  This can result in keeping pain more under control, as pain intensifies under stress.  It is a 10-week course divided into 5 modules, each of which focuses on a specific topic, and participants work closely with the material in the Emotional Skills workbook.

Module 1:  Emotional Development and Neural Pathways

Module 2:  Emotions and the Immune System

Module 3:  Mental Illnesses

Module 4:  The Male and Female Brain

Module 5:  Personality Differences

(Module 5 segways into the Lumina Spark course offered as the level 4 of the MBCPM™ series)

PRE-REQUISITES

• Two of the MBCPM™ Courses, OR
• One of the MBCPM™ Courses and one of the MBCPM™ Advanced Review Courses
• Consistent attendance at the prior courses
• Regular formal practice

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN

The course is based on seven books, on which the Emotional Skills workbook for the course is based (Please note: you do not have to purchase these books, just the workbook):

This course consists of 10 sessions.