TheCenterForMindfulness.com - Meditation, Workshops and Psychotherapy for Fresno, CA

2011-07-05T17:11:00.001-07:00

Welcome to the online home of
The Center For Mindfulness!

The Center for Mindfulness is based in Fresno, California that offers mindfulness-based psychotherapy, couples counseling, workshops, retreats and customized programs in mindful living to individuals and organizations throughout the San Joaquin Valley.

Our director, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and ordained Zen lay practitioner Lori Granger, can teach you how to manage the stresses of life with powerful mindfulness-based tools; including meditation and mindful movement. Her colleagues offer Qi-Gong, easy Tai Chi, mindful poetry and journaling; all of which help you actively manage your life challenges, enhance your well-being, improve relationships, and increase your skillfulness in the world.

Enjoy less DO-ing...and practice BE-ing. Learn to stop imagining your life and start embracing it, moment-by-moment with a peaceful mind and an open heart. Quiet your internal chatter and LIVE THIS MOMENT at The Center For Mindfulness!

Mindfulness meditation is widely utilized by clinics, corporate organizations, hospitals, therapists, and health education centers around the world to support people coping with challenges such as chronic pain, stress, addiction, anxiety, depression, cancer, fibromyalgia, heart disease, and diabetes, among many other illnesses.

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"This moment is the perfect teacher"

- Pema Chödrön

"There is no way to happiness, happiness is the way"

- Thich Nhat Hanh

"You can't stop the waves -- but you can learn to surf!"

- Jon Kabat-Zinn

2011-01-10T14:03:00.001-08:00

2011-01-01T09:04:00.000-08:00

www.TheCenterForMindfulness.com


Visit our Web site and achieve conscious relaxation and stress reduction through meditation. RealAudio meditations allow you to listen, relax and achieve inner peace right. Meditation, meditate, guru, learn, peace, relaxation, relax, peaceful, light, instruct, education, holistic, therapeutic, cleanse, healing, heal, spirit, spirituality, stress, relief, guidance, guide, intuition, serenity, serene

Meditation: Take a stress-reduction break wherever you are

Meditation can wipe away the day's stress, bringing with it inner peace. See how you can easily learn to practice meditation whenever you need it most.

By Mayo Clinic staff

If stress has you anxious, tense and worried, consider trying meditation. Spending even just a few minutes in meditation can restore calm and inner peace.

Meditation has been practiced for thousands of years. Meditation originally was meant to help deepen understanding of the sacred and mystical forces of life. These days, meditation is commonly used for relaxation and stress reduction. Anyone can practice meditation. It's simple and inexpensive, and it doesn't require any special equipment. And you can practice meditation wherever you are — whether you're out for a walk, riding the bus, waiting at the doctor's office or even in the middle of a difficult business meeting.

Understanding meditation

Meditation, considered a type of mind-body complementary medicine, produces a deep state of relaxation and a tranquil mind. During meditation, you focus your attention and eliminate the stream of jumbled thoughts that may be crowding your mind and causing stress. This process results in enhanced physical and emotional well-being.

Benefits of meditation

Meditation can give you a sense of calm, peace and balance that benefits both your emotional well-being and your overall health. And these benefits don't end when your meditation session ends. Meditation can help carry you more calmly through your day and improve certain medical conditions.

Meditation and emotional well-being
When you meditate, you clear away the information overload that builds up every day and contributes to your stress.

The emotional benefits of meditation include:

Gaining a new perspective on stressful situations
Building skills to manage your stress
Increased self-awareness
Focusing on the present
Reducing negative emotions

Meditation and illness
Many healthy people use meditation as a way to relax the body and reduce stress. But meditation also might be useful if you have a medical condition, especially one that may be worsened by stress.

A growing body of scientific research is supporting the health benefits of meditation. But many of the studies aren't of high quality, and some researchers believe it's not yet possible to draw conclusions about the possible benefits of meditation.

With that in mind, some research suggests that meditation may help such conditions as:

Allergies
Anxiety disorders
Asthma
Binge eating
Cancer
Depression
Fatigue
Heart disease
High blood pressure
Pain
Sleep problems
Substance abuse

Be sure to talk to your health care provider about the pros and cons of using meditation if you have any of these or other medical conditions. Meditation isn't a replacement for traditional medical treatment. But it can be useful in addition to your other treatment.

Types of meditation

There are many types of meditation and relaxation techniques with meditation components. But all share the same goal of inner peace.

Ways to meditate can include:

Guided meditation. Sometimes called guided imagery or visualization, with this method of meditation you form mental images of places or situations you find relaxing. You try to use as many senses as possible, such as smells, sights, sounds and textures. You may be led through this process by a guide or teacher.
Mantra meditation. In this type of meditation, you silently repeat a calming word, thought or phrase to prevent distracting thoughts. Transcendental meditation is a type of mantra meditation in which you achieve a deep state of relaxation to achieve pure awareness.
Mindfulness meditation. This type of meditation is based on being mindful, or having an increased awareness and acceptance of living in the present moment. You focus on what you experience during meditation, such as the flow of your breath. You can observe your thoughts and emotions but let them pass without judgment.
Qi gong. This practice generally combines meditation, relaxation, physical movement and breathing exercises to restore and maintain balance. Qi gong (chee-kung) is part of traditional Chinese medicine.
Tai chi. This is a form of gentle Chinese martial arts. In tai chi (TIE-chee), you perform a self-paced series of postures or movements in a slow, graceful manner while practicing deep breathing.
Yoga. You perform a series of postures and controlled breathing exercises to promote a more flexible body and a calm mind. As you move through poses that require balance and concentration, you're encouraged to focus less on your busy day and more on the moment.

Elements of meditation

Different types of meditation may include different features to help you meditate. These may vary depending on whose guidance you follow or who's teaching a class. Some of the most common features in meditation include:

Focusing your attention. Focusing your attention is generally one of the most important elements of meditation. Focusing your attention is what helps free your mind from the many distractions that cause stress and worry. You can focus your attention on such things as a specific object, an image, a mantra, or even your breathing. Don't fret when your mind wanders. Just return to your focus of attention.
Relaxed breathing. This technique involves deep, even-paced breathing using the diaphragm muscle to expand your lungs. The purpose is to slow your breathing, take in more oxygen, and reduce the use of shoulder, neck and upper chest muscles while breathing so that you breathe more efficiently.
A quiet location. If you're a beginner, practicing meditation may be easier if you're in a quiet spot with few distractions — no television, radios or cell phones. As you get more skilled at meditation, you may be able to do it anywhere, especially in high-stress situations where you benefit the most from meditation, such as a traffic jam, a stressful work meeting or a long line at the grocery store.
A comfortable position. You can practice meditation whether you're sitting, lying down, walking or in other positions or activities. Just try to be comfortable so that you can get the most out of your meditation.

Everyday ways to practice meditation

Don't let the thought of meditating the "right" way add to your stress. Sure, you can attend special meditation centers or group classes led by trained instructors. But you also can practice meditation easily on your own.

And you can make meditation as formal or informal as you like — whatever suits your lifestyle and situation. Some people build meditation into their daily routine. For example, they may start and end each day with an hour of meditation. But all you really need is a few minutes of quality time for meditation.

Tips to practice meditation on your own
Here are some ways you can practice meditation on your own, whenever you choose. Take a few minutes or as much time as you like to practice one or more of these meditation methods:

Breathe deeply. This technique is good for beginners because breathing is a natural function. Focus all attention on your breathing. Concentrate on feeling and listening as you inhale and exhale through your nostrils. Breathe deeply and slowly. When your attention wanders, gently return your focus to your breathing.
Scan your body. When using this technique, focus attention on different parts of your body. Become aware of your body's various sensations, whether that's pain, tension, warmth or relaxation. Combine body scanning with breathing exercises and imagine breathing heat or relaxation into and out of different parts of your body.
Repeat a mantra. You can create your own mantra, whether it's religious or secular. Examples of religious mantras include the Jesus Prayer in the Christian tradition, the holy name of God in Judaism, or the om mantra of Hinduism, Buddhism and other Eastern religions.
Walking meditation. Combining a walk with meditation is an efficient and healthy way to relax. You can use this technique anywhere you're walking — in a tranquil forest, on a city sidewalk or at the mall. When you use this method, slow down the pace of walking so that you can focus on each movement of your legs or feet. Don't focus on a particular destination. Concentrate on your legs and feet, repeating action words in your mind such as lifting, moving and placing as you lift each foot, move your leg forward and place your foot on the ground.
Engage in prayer. Prayer is the best known and most widely practiced example of meditation. Spoken and written prayers are found in most faith traditions. You can pray using your own words or read prayers written by others. Check the self-help or 12-step-recovery section of your local bookstore for examples. Talk with your rabbi, priest, pastor or other spiritual leader about resources.
Read or listen and take time to reflect. Many people report that they benefit from reading poems or sacred texts silently or aloud, and taking a few moments to quietly reflect on the meaning that the words bring to mind. You can listen to sacred music, spoken words or any music you find relaxing or inspiring. You may want to write your reflections in a journal or discuss them with a friend or spiritual leader.
Focus your love and gratitude. In this type of meditation, you focus your attention on a sacred object or being, weaving feelings of love and gratitude into your thoughts. You can also close your eyes and use your imagination or gaze at representations of the object.

Building your meditation skills

Don't judge your meditation skills, which may only increase your stress. Meditation takes practice. Keep in mind, for instance, that it's common for your mind to wander during meditation, no matter how long you've been practicing meditation. If you're meditating to calm your mind and your attention wanders, slowly return to the object, sensation or movement you're focusing on.

Experiment, and you'll likely find out what types of meditation work best for you and what you enjoy doing. Adapt meditation to your needs at the moment. Remember, there's no right way or wrong way to meditate. What matters is that meditation helps you with stress reduction and feeling better overall.


Yoga,
QiGong,
Mindful Movement,
Stress,
Stress Reduction,
Here...Now...,
Relaxation,
Deep Relaxation,
Meditation,
Meditation Practice,
Stillness,
Peace

2010-03-31T22:39:00.000-07:00

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www.TheCenterForMindfulness.com Home Page

thecenterformindfulness.com

Tagged: meditation, Guided Meditation, Yoga Meditation

659 W, Shaw, Fresno, CA 93704 (559) 228-0099

659 W, Shaw, Fresno, CA 93704 (559) 228-0099 ‎ thecenterformindfulness.com

There are different types of yoga. This type of exercise can leave you toned and supple or you may even be spiritually enlightened according to some teachers. Yoga is the latest thing. It is said to be shaped many of the great stars in our present day whether it is Madonna or Sting.

Yoga comes in varying forms with some that concentrate more on physical aspects while others concentrate on spiritual. Yoga is extremely good for fatigue,depression, arthritis, aging, stress-related illness,

Before you can choose which type of Yoga guided meditation you would like to follow, you need to ask yourself what is your aim. Basically yoga is very simple. It aims to help you relax and tune out, get relaxed and get out all your stress by stretching and meditation.

If you are looking to get fit these types of yoga are suitable :

Hatha Yoga guided meditation

An emphasis is placed on developing a flexible spine.
This type of yoga is excellent for all levels of fitness.

Vini yoga Yoga guided meditation

This type is most gentle and can be practiced even by old people. Desikachar and is usually taught on an individual

If one’s objective is to get physical, then the following types of yoga would be suitable.

Lyenger Yoga guided meditation

This type focus a lot on postures and getting it correct. Sometimes the use of blocks and ropes are used to help in getting the correct postures.

Sivananda Yoga guided meditation

This type of yoga is suitable for every age and covers a wide range of poses which range from simple to complex.

Ashtanga Yoga guided meditation

This “power yoga” is only suitable for people who are fit and it is physically demanding.

For those of you who want to get spiritual, then you would want to choose from these types of yoga:

Raja Yoga guided meditation

This form concentrates mainly on the mind and is often called “royal yoga”.

Dru Yoga guided meditation

This is group yoga which concentrates very heavily on breathing work.

Jnana Yoga guided meditation

This concentrates on the philosophical aspects of yoga and is very spiritual and meditative.
So to choose whichever type of yoga guided meditation to follow, you must first examine your objectives of what you would like to achieve.

meditation, meditate, meditating, fresno, meditation fresno, Fresno Meditation, Fresno meditate.

The Center for Mindfulness in Fresno offers psychotherapy, workshops, drop-in meditation, and resources for mindful living.

2008-11-07T09:25:00.001-08:00

"The purpose of life is happiness
and the keys are in our own hands"

The Dalai Lama

Breathtaking sunrises and sunsets

Mind chatter down to a whisper

Unplugged and Wakeful

Join us as we bring the practices that secure happiness down to earth at a Mindfulness Retreat in the majestic Sierras!

Far Horizons from July 28 - August 1

We will practice happiness through guided meditation and formal practices like sitting meditation, walking meditation and mindful movement.

We will experience, share and meditate on keys
that help to awaken happiness:

Let Go
Be Present
Tame the ego
Cultivate gratitude

Content with yourself

Feeling centered

Believing in your capability to respond well to life's challenges

These are the benefits of practicing happiness.

Imagine:
Sitting quietly and befriending your mind, opening your heart and experiencing your moments as rich and meaningful.

Invest 4 days, practice these keys and begin a path toward contentment, centeredness and an enduring sense of your own capability.

The retreat teaching fee is $100. A wide variety of lodging options are available, from camping to private cabins. Lodging and meals are extra. The meal fee includes three generous organically delicious meals per day.

Register by June 26th and receive a 20% discount!

Visit www.FarHorizons.org to register.

For more information go to: www.iPracticeHappiness.com

Live THIS moment!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Imagine your internal chatter

quiet, even for a moment.

Imagine the battle between your heart and mind

settled, even for a day.

Imagine feeling at home in your body

not lost, hungry or homesick.

Imagine the pull of the past and the

push of the future as invited guests, not intruders.

Imagine feeling content with things

as they are, though much remains undone.

Imagine less doing, and more BE-ing.

Imagine this very moment as enough.

Welcome to The Center for Mindfulness

where you can learn to stop imagining your life

and start embracing it, moment-by-moment,

with a peaceful

mind and an open heart.

"This moment is the perfect teacher"

Pema Chodron

MB-ACT Registration Form

2008-05-02T17:48:00.000-07:00

DOWNLOAD this as a Microsoft Word Document

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MB-EAT REGISTRATION

2008-02-13T15:52:00.000-08:00

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Download

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The Center for Mindfulness in Fresno is featured on KSEE-24. View the video here!

2008-02-10T21:51:00.000-08:00

Meditation Audio from The Center For Mindfulness - Relaxation CDs and guided meditations

2008-02-01T11:59:00.000-08:00

To order CDs email: lori@TheCenterForMindfulness.com

Mindfulness Practice with Lori Granger

Track 1 - Sitting With Breath 14:59

Track 2 - Mindful Awareness 24:47

Track 3 - Body Scan 20:02

Track 4 - Advanced Sitting 19:35

Mindful Yoga Practice with Lori Granger

Track 1 - Standing Yoga 14:59

Track 2 - Lying Yoga 24:47

CDs are $15 each or BOTH for $25
To order CDs email: lori@TheCenterForMindfulness.com
LIMITED to a pressing of 100 discs

The beautiful music featured on these discs comes from our friends at Inner Spirit Music. You can purchase songs in their original form by clicking on the iTunes icon above.

The songs are performed by Karma Grace from their CD Music for Meditation, Yoga, and Relaxation Part One, and licensed for a maximum pressing of 100 meditation discs.

If you or your company produce studio-quality meditation music, please contact us! We would like to help promote artists and record companies whose musical gifts bless so many in the yoga and meditation community.

If you do purchase music, let Inner Spirit Music know HERE that you heard about them through The Center for Mindfulness!

Track listing of song(s) featured on discs:

Mindfulness Practice

* Sitting With Breath ("Whisper")
* Mindful Awareness ("Underwater")
* Body Scan ("Moon")
* Advanced Sitting ("Drone")

Mindful Yoga Practice

* Standing Yoga ("Island" and "Water")
* Lying Yoga ("Seagull" and "Antarctica")

lori@TheCenterForMindfulness.com

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The Center For Mindfulness Media - Audio And Video

2007-12-30T20:46:00.000-08:00

Lori Granger Interviewed by Bill McEwen about MB-EAT

Lori Granger interviewed by Feleena Sutton about Mindfulness

KSEE-24 feature on The Center For Mindfulness

Mindfulness Article - Lori Granger, Psychology Today, Jon Kabat-Zinn

2007-12-21T20:55:00.000-08:00

Mindfulness is Intentional Mental Health
Lori Granger, LMFT

CAMFT San Joaquin Valley Chapter Newsletter
January 09

Mindfulness is everywhere, and it seems to work like magic for everything from high blood pressure to low self-esteem.

You read about it in the last edition of this newsletter, last month’s Psychology Today, you may even have casually caught Jon Kabat-Zinn - the father of mainstream mindfulness - on Oprah a few months ago guiding a meditation for millions.

You may even have heard Jon define mindfulness as “paying attention, on purpose, in a particular way and non-judgmentally”. You may have read the outcome research on the effectiveness of mindfulness interventions in reducing stress, chronic pain, lowering blood pressure, increasing immune system function, reducing heart disease and alleviating GAD, panic, depression, mania and preventing relapse from addictions. Thinking “…wow! I’ve got to try this!” you may, in fact, now guide your clients in short mindful exercises that you learned in a day long seminar for CEU’s.

But, you may not yet have a clear grasp as to how mindfulness does its magic.

Mindfulness alleviates physical and psychological pain by allowing us to mentally step back from and observe discomfort as it arises. On this fertile platform of awareness, we can stand behind the waterfall, feel the spray, hear the roar, experience the fall, but not get thrown down the river. Consistent mindfulness practice also creates life-long resiliency to suffering as it has been shown to rewire the brain for positive emotions.
Mindfulness affects perception and perception affects neurons. This article will focus on the perceptual mechanism. For more information on the neuronal effects see the work of Richard Davidson, Daniel Siegal and Paul Eckman.

In an important article on the “mechanisms of mindfulness” in the Journal of Clinical Psychology, Shapiro & Carlson et al. (2006) describe a shift in perception they refer to as “re-perceiving” which mediates the mindful state.

Through the process of mindfulness, one is able to dis-identify from the content of consciousness (i.e. one’s thoughts) and view his or her moment-by-moment experience with greater clarity and objectivity. Rather than being immersed in our personal narrative or life story we are able to stand back and simply witness it. (Shapiro & Carlson, et al., 2006, p. 377)

Our observer self applies the mindfulness triad proposed by Shapiro & Carlson: bringing intention, attention and an attitude that can be described as “heartful” toward change.

Carl Rogers knew something about the mindfulness mechanism when he proposed, “when I accepted myself as I am, I was free to change.”

The mindfulness translation might read: “when I brought the intention to open to and perceive my experience without filtering and judgment, without grasping or pushing away, with a peaceful mind and open heart, I could choose how to relate to my experience and that choice could include equanimity.”

“To the extent that we are able to observe the content of our consciousness we are no longer completely embedded in or fused with such content” (Shapiro & Carlson, 2006.)

So, here is the bottom line: if we are able to observe “it”, we are not “it”. The re-perceiving of experience frees us to change because we are able to witness it, are thus bigger than it, and can abide with it, hold it and ultimately heal it. Whether “it” refers to psychological or physical pain, if we can we can observe it, we can hold it, we can heal it.

I refer to this as the Ohh factor! Observe, hold, heal. Aha.

During a life changing 7-day training with Jon Kabat-Zinn, one very significant aha moment came with his statement, “awareness is not in pain, thus we are not our pain if we are in awareness”. This was about as powerful an “aha” as the moment I read Eckhart Tolle’s words, “we are not our thoughts and our thoughts are not necessarily the truth”.

When you read Kabat-Zinn and Tolle you come to the magic. And here it is. When we experience pain, with the mindful awareness of the observer, we become intimate with it and explore it, then choose how to relate to it: we feel it, we hear it, our body expresses it by tightening, but we intentionally loosen and create a container of kind attention around it. We are not it and it is not us. This is the process of re-perceiving our experience. We move from subject to object.

I perceive my self as subject: me consumed by pain. Apply mindful awareness (intention, attention, attitude) and I can re-perceive myself and my experience of pain as object: a challenging sensation or emotion that comes and goes as I observe it and ride the waves of it. Re-perceiving also allows rigidified and painful ego states like the one we deal with quite often “I am unworthy” - aka depressive conditioning - to become a simple editable story, not a historical authorized hand-signed biography of who we are and always will be.

On a recent weekend retreat with Zen teacher Reb Anderson, fifty practitioners were invited to share their “stories” with the teacher. One man who was grieving the death of his mother last month told the story of how he was convinced as a kid that he wasn’t her favorite. Then while flipping through her stack of batter-splattered Betty Croker recipes, he came across his favorite cookies. He fell down and wept when he saw, written in her perfect penmanship, “Ralphie’s favorite! Extra cinnamon!” His rigid thought “I am not special to her” was not necessarily the truth. Ralph lamented how much suffering could’ve been healed by the love that was baked into each sweet bite.

Having put the axioms, “awareness is not in pain” and “we are not our thoughts” to the test in my own life, I can now help my clients to test for themselves through mindfulness practice whether these things are true: “I am bigger than my depression, I am calmer than my panic, my mother might just not have been very loving, but I can choose love over fear now.”

The mindful observer who re-perceives experience as it arises brings a quality of affection, compassion, kindness and interest to the experience. If I stub my toe often getting out of the shower (like I do), I feel the physical pain, but I don’t – as I once did - turn the experience into suffering by berating myself with the thought, “you’d think you’d know how to get out of the shower by now!” (and that in a hypercritical New York accent!) Instead I choose to mindfully connect with the pain sensation while it throbs and perhaps briefly ponder whether my recent caffeine fast is contributing to my bruised toe. I wonder. Interest and curiosity replace self-recrimination and the story of how I can’t do anything right.

Jack Kornfield renowned mindfulness teacher and author of the book, “The Wise Heart: A Guide to the Universal Teachings of Buddhist Psychology”, recently led a retreat for mental health practitioners. We were mentally guided to experience pain - either physical or emotional - and then soothe it, rock it and hold it as if we were holding a crying child. This imagery helps to drive home the “wise heart” experience that we are bigger than our pain, and we can hold it and heal it. And this is the sweet ripened fruit of mindfulness practice that can be cultivated inside each of us and inside each of our clients. And…it’s ripe for the picking, without a prescription.

We center ourselves in our bodies through our breath, we cultivate awareness through intention, attention and open-hearted attitude, we become the observer and we hold what arises in a container of compassion. When we do this and teach our clients to do the same, we see positive outcomes in four areas that are well-documented in the research:

1. self-regulation and self-management
2. emotional, cognitive and behavioral flexibility
3. values clarification, deciding what is meaningful for us
4. exposure, becoming intimate with strong physical and emotional sensation and learning to meet it with equanimity
(Shapiro & Carlson et al. 2006)

These outcomes however, do not appear with the wave of a wand. They are hard won through consistent practice. Daily meditation is the key. Attending workshops with meditation teachers and sitting and sharing with others is indispensible to the understanding and experience of how mindfulness works it’s magic.

Mindfulness works when we practice:
1) taking a backward step from our internal experience as it is unfolding
2) bringing the intention to be present in this moment, to this experience
3) focusing our attention by staying with the experience as it arises
4) bringing an attitude of curiosity, openness, acceptance and love (Siegal, 2007) to whatever arises

Mindfulness isn’t magic. Mindfulness is intentional mental health.

RESOURCES

Baer, R.A. (Ed.) (2006) Mindfulness-based treatment approaches: Clinicians guide to evidence base and applications. San Diego, CA: Elsevier Academic Press

Shapiro, S.L., Carlson, L.E., Astin, J.A., Freedman, B. (2006). Mechanisms of mindfulness. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 62(3), 373-386.

Davidson, R.J., Kabat-Zinn, J., Schumacher, J., Rosenkranz, M., Miller, D., Santorelli, S.F., Urbanowski, F., Harrington, A., Bonus, K., Sheridan, J.F. (2003). Alteration in brain and immune function produced by mindfulness meditation. Psychosomatic Medicine, 65, 564-570.

Germer, C.K., Siegel, R.D., and Fulton, P.R. (2005). Mindfulness and psychotherapy. New York: The Guilford Press.

Kabat-Zinn, J. (2005). Wherever you go, there you are: mindfulness meditation in everyday life. New York: Hyperion.

Kornfield, J. (2008). The Wise Heart: A guide to the universal teachings of Buddhist psychology. New York: Bantam Dell

Siegal, D. J. (2007). The mindful brain: Reflection and attunement in the cultivation of well-being. New York: W.W.Norton & Company

Tolle, Eckhart (1999). The power of now: A guide to spiritual enlightenment. Novato, CA: New World Library

Drop-In Meditation and Relaxation for Fresno

2007-11-27T18:33:00.000-08:00

Our Wednesday Evening MeetUp
from 6:30 - 7:30 pm

The Center for Mindfulness
659 West Shaw Ave. Suite E
[south side of Shaw between Palm and Maroa]

SPACE IS LIMITED IN OUR MEDITATION STUDIO,
so please RSVP via our MeetUP page:
meetup.com/mindfulness

Membership to MeetUp.com is free

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MBSR - Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction - Download Registration Form Here - TheCenterForMindfulness.com

2007-11-09T11:04:00.000-08:00

MBSR teaches you mind and body awareness techniques for coping with physical or psychological distress from stress and stress-related illnesses.

MBSR complements existing medical treatments. Awareness techniques and mindful yoga help you work around the edges of physical and emotional pain.

The MBSR experience:

* Mindfulness meditation
* Body awareness and relaxation exercises
* Light stretching and body work
* Brief lectures and discussions
* Practice at home

Learn to:

* Manage everyday stress
* Take responsibility for your well-being
* Tune into your breath to calm your body and mind
* Relax and let go of tension
* Develop skills for controlling pain and gaining a new perspective on healing

The program is taught in eight weekly 2 hour sessions.

MBSR was initiated 20 years ago at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center by renowned author and teacher Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD. Jon has been featured on Oprah and the MBSR program has gained much media attention over the past few years.

Get a taste of mindfulness from Jon Kabat-Zinn leading a session on Mindfulness for the employees at Google: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nwwKbM_vJc

MBSR is a time-honored and evidence-based program now taught world-wide in universities and hospitals including most Kaiser Permanente hospitals in California.

MBSR is widely offered and supported by research at California’s Stanford Center for Integrative Medicine, UCSF School of Medicine, UCLA Center for Mindfulness Research and the UCSD Center for Mindfulness among many others.

Cost: 230.00 (Limited scholarships available)

Spring/Summer 2010 Cycle: Monday evenings / 6:00 - 8:00 pm

Free Orientation: May 10

Class dates: May 17, 24, June 7, 14, 21, 28, July 5, 12th

Download registration form here

Registration Contact:
Lori Granger, LMFT
The Center for Mindfulness
em: lori@TheCenterForMindfulness.com
ph: (559) 228.0099

2007-11-09T11:01:00.000-08:00

MB-EAT PRACTICE can help you:

Step out of the diet-deprivation cycle

Reconnect with your body's inner cues of hunger and fullness

Replace comfort calories with calm, one bite, one breath at a time

Regain control of food in your life

MB-EAT is a small group approach to compulsive emotional eating. The program has evidenced positive outcomes in NIH and Duke University research. The program was developed by Jean Kristeller Ph.D., professor at Indiana State University and director of The Center for Mindful Eating www.tcme.org

Interventions that incorporate mindfulness meditation, with a goal of increasing general psychological and physiological self-regulation, are particularly well-suited to the complexity of behavioral, emotional and cognitive dysregulation observed in eating disorders. (Kristeller, Baer & Quillian-Wolever, 2006)

MB-EAT is taught in six sessions in a small group setting.

You will learn basic mindfulness meditation techniques and be guided in focused meditative exercises with food in a safe and supportive atmosphere.

You will learn to become more aware of your experience of hunger, fullness, and eating enjoyment or dissatisfaction.

You will learn to focus more on the quality of the eating experience as opposed to the quantity of the intake.

Lori Granger’s MB-EAT Program has been supported by Fresno Women’s Medical Group and Whole Foods in Fresno.

If you are interested in attending or forming an MB-EAT group with
friends or colleagues, please email lori@thecenterformindfulness.com

Location: To be determined

Cost: 210.00 (limited scholarships available)

The Center for Mindfulness is a BBS certified Continuing Education provider
PCE# 4634.
This course meets the requirements for 12 units Continuing Education credit as authorized by the Board of Behavioral Sciences for MFTs and LCSWs.
A $20 CE processing fee is required.

CLICK HERE to download registration form

Registration Contact:
Lori Granger, LMFT
The Center for Mindfulness
em: lori@TheCenterForMindfulness.com
ph: (559) 228.0099

Lori Granger Interviewed by Bill McEwen about MB-EAT

MB-ACT is Mindfulness-Based Awareness and compassion training

2007-11-07T10:07:00.000-08:00

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MB-ACT
Mindfulness Based
Awareness & Compassion Training

Awareness quiets the mind ~ allowing for clarity and balance.
Compassion opens our hearts ~ to ourselves and others.

MB-ACT PRACTICE can help you:

Quiet the busyness of your multi-task mind

Handle emotional challenges as they arise

Unravel the urges of emotional eating and substance misuse

Respond with more balance to distressing mood swings

Replace self-criticism with self-compassion

Learning to be Aware in the present and Compassionate toward ourselves and others, allows us the clarity to Act more intentionally and respond more skillfully to difficult emotional states including:

Anxiety ~ depression ~ addictive urges ~ relationship challenges.

ACT is a six-week group workshop offering skills and group support toward building awareness and compassion through mindfulness meditation, inner reflection and guided group imagery.

Mindfulness meditation helps us clearly see and experience, with an observer’s perspective, what’s happening in the moment. It helps us quiet the harsh voice of self-judgment and open to new ways of responding to moods, thoughts, addictions and struggles with others.

Dates and Times:

Cost: $210.00 [Limited scholarships available]

*Pre-registration is required
Click HERE to download a registration form (Microsoft Word document)

Group Facilitator:

Lori Granger, M.S. is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with extensive training in the integration of mindfulness and psychotherapy. She practices Zen meditation and specializes in Mindfulness Based Psychotherapy. Lori teaches classes in Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), Mindfulness Based Eating Awareness Training (MB-EAT) and The Power of Presence for mental health professionals. She is also adjunct faculty at CSU Fresno.

Registration Contact:
Lori Granger, M.S.
The Center for Mindfulness
em: lori@TheCenterForMindfulness.com
ph: 559-228-0099

Lori Granger LMFT -- Mind, Body Awareness Specialist and Psychotherapist

2007-11-07T08:40:00.000-08:00

“When it's over, I want to say: all my life

I was a bride married to amazement.

I was the bridegroom, taking the world into my arms.”

---------------------------------------------------------------------Mary Oliver

I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (MFC # 46228) and adjunct faculty at California State University, Fresno. I began a meditation practice during intercontinental trips as an international broadcast consultant. My broadcast consulting career was interrupted by Sept. 11, 2001 and the obstacles to travel that ensued.

Mindfulness meditation provided the perfect vehicle for authentic self-discovery and purpose which led to the unlikely career transition from broadcasting to Mindfulness Based Psychotherapy.

I have personally trained with these teachers and authors:

Jon Kabat-Zinn, the father of mainstream mindfulness and Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and author of numerous books including Wherever You Go, There You Are

Jack Kornfield, teacher and author of seminal books integrating Eastern and Western psychotherapy including his newest, The Wise Heart: The Art and Science of Buddhist Psychology

John Welwood, author of numerous books on Eastern and Western psychotherapy including Toward a Psychology of Awakening.

Tara Brach, teacher and author of Radical Acceptance

I attended the UCLA Mindfulness and Psychotherapy Conference, June 07 and I was fortunate enough to walk in meditation behind Vietnamese Zen author and teacher Thich Nhat Hanh along with 1800 other mental health advocates. The sold-out conference was a testament to the growing numbers of practitioners who integrate mindfulness approaches into their work with clients.

Bringing mindfulness practices consistently and under one roof to Central California and establishing The Center for Mindfulness is a deeply personal and passionate pursuit of mine and the culmination of years of study and practice.

Amazement surrounds us, but we’re mostly too dazed by our over-loaded, multi-tasked days that we’re blind to it. Countless riches in the form of simple perfection go lost every moment.

I spent half of my life missing-in-action and rushing through, to get on to what’s next.

This next half, I’m settling. Opening to amazement. Acknowledging the inherent beauty of experience as it unfolds.

Mindfulness has given me back the moments of my life.

My belief, which research is proving, is that we all would benefit from the enrichment mindfulness offers.

I invite you to join me on the path to mindful living at The Center for Mindfulness.

2006-12-17T21:57:00.000-08:00

Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)
and
Mindfulness Based Eating Awareness Training (MB-EAT)
are being offered in January.

MB-EAT
If you have not pre-registered, there is still space available for the class beginning January 6.
Please call 228-0099
or email lori@TheCenterForMindfulness.com for more information
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)

Come to an informational, no obligation
MBSR Orientation to find out about the class and register
if you choose.

Or Pre-register by clicking the MBSR REGISTRATION button to the right >

There are two separate MBSR cycles:

January/ Wednesday evenings

Time: 6:00 - 8:00 PM

Location: Oakdale Heights 7442 N. Millbrook
(just south of Alluvial in Fresno)

OR

February / Monday evenings

Time: 6:00 - 8:00 PM

Location: Fresno State Campus
(University Business Center)

1 ~ January cycle classes / WEDNESDAY evenings
Class Dates: January 14, 21, 28, Feb 4, 11, 18, 25, Mar 4
Orientation: Wednesday, January 7, 6:00 - 8:00 PM
Oakdale Heights Assisted Living, 7442 N Millbrook
(just south of Alluvial in Fresno)

2~ February cycle classes / MONDAY evenings
Class Dates: Feb 9, 16, 23, Mar 2, 9, 16, 23, 30
Orientation: Monday, February 2, 6:00 - 8:00 PM
Fresno State Campus
University Business Center ~ Room 194
Parking Relaxed in UBC Lot
Enter campus at Woodrow, left at second stop sign, pull into UBC Lot

Need more information? Have questions?
Please email: lori@TheCenterforMindfulness.com
or call: 559 228-0099

-

MBSR - Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction with Lori Granger, LMFT

2006-07-21T07:52:00.000-07:00

____________________________________

Invest 8 Monday evenings
and begin to savor
the richness
of the moments of your life

7442 N. Millbrook
@ Cottonwood Court Assisted Living
(just south of Alluvial)
2nd Floor Mountain View Room

To learn more CLICK HERE

Contact: Lori Granger, LMFT
email: lori@thecenterformindfulness.com
559.228.0099

__________________________________________

Mindfulness-Based Eating Awareness Workshop for Emotional Eating

2006-01-04T17:35:00.000-08:00

You can print a registration form by clicking the PRINT ICON
in the top right corner of the window above.

You can also download a PDF by clicking here

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Center For Mindfulness Images

2005-11-27T17:53:00.000-08:00

Directions to The Center for Mindfulness -- Psychotherapy Workshops and Drop-in Meditation

2004-01-13T22:57:00.000-08:00

From CA-99 South Freeway:

Take Shaw Avenue Exit
Turn RIGHT at Shaw and drive 4.5 miles
Destination will be on your right
Park in the back!

From CA-99 North Freeway:

Take Shaw Avenue Exit
Turn LEFT at Shaw and drive 4.5 miles
Destination will be on your right
Park in the back!

From CA-41 North/Yosemite Freeway:

Take Shaw Avenue Exit
Turn LEFT at Shaw and drive 1.25 miles
Make a U-turn at Palm
Destination will be on your right --
Park in the back!

From CA-41 South/Yosemite Freeway:

Take Shaw Avenue Exit
Turn RIGHT at Shaw and drive 1.25 miles
Make a U-turn at Palm
Destination will be on your right
Park in the back!

2. Look for the "No Right Turn" sign.
Our driveway is just before this sign!

3. Follow the driveway, and find plenty of parking in the lot behind the building. Suite E is through the two glass doors, and to the right.

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2002-03-09T17:27:00.000-08:00

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