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My Teaching AspirationsIn my role as a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) instructor, my aspiration is to awaken participants' curiosity to what might be possible through cultivating an open-hearted and compassionate stance in the present moment. I seek to create an environment in the class that invites participants to access greater stillness, to befriend themselves, and thereby open to new ways of meeting the stress that is a part of each human life. In MBSR class, we are all teachers; we are all students.
"Mindfulness asks us to simply see, to open to ourselves and, in so doing, to open to the world, learning to be with whatever presents itself." |
My Training |
I began teaching MBSR in 2011. I am certified to teach MBSR through the Center For Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society at University of Massachusetts to qualify . I also completed an apprenticeship in teaching MBSR through Mindfulness at the Center in Indianapolis. I currently teach both a community class and a course for faculty and staff at Indiana University through the Healthy IU employee health and wellness program.
I am also in private practice in Bloomington specializing in health psychology and mindfulness-based therapies, http://www.lindafbrown.com. I received my doctorate in clinical psychology from IUPUI in 2011 and continue to be part of a research team at Regenstrief Institute in Indianapolis that is studying the effects of MBSR to help those with cancer-related fatigue. |
My Personal Practice |
I experienced what I will call a mid-life crisis in the late 1990s when I began wondering why I was still feeling a sense of dissatisfaction even though my life contained nearly all of the things I thought would make me happy. Most things in my life were seemingly moving along pretty well--so why was happiness still so elusive? My search for answers eventually led me to read about mindfulness. I began taking a stab at meditating as a do-it-yourselfer, doing the best I could by reading about it. It was interesting and somewhat helpful--at least relaxing--but I did not stick with it. Then I came across the work of Jon Kabat-Zinn and his Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program. This approach really resonated with me and I took a class, which solidified my meditation practice. Thus I have had a personal mindfulness practice since 2002. I eventually decided to make MBSR a part of my research in graduate school. Maintaining a consistent daily practice has been challenging in the context of a busy life; yet I have found greater peace and meaningfulness through my mindfulness practice. It is clear to me that this will be a lifelong journey. I feel so very privileged to have the opportunity as an MBSR instructor to walk alongside many others who are on a similar path.
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