Diabetes Management with Mindfulness (DMM) Professional 10 Week Course


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Next Course Starting: 10/09/2012 two hours each subsequent
Monday for 10 weeks.

Diabetes Management with Mindfulness (DMM) is a stress and emotional management course designed to meet the unique self-care demands and challenges of living with either Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes.

This innovative ten-session program is founded on the clinically proven 8 week framework of Jon Kabat-Zinn’s Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program. The Diabetes Management with Mindfulness course has coupled these foundations with the integration and specifically diabetes relevant elements of self-compassion, acceptance and transpersonal growth and development.

The course is designed to help people who suffer with diabetes to reduce their stress and anxiety levels. The DMM will provide skills and techniques to recognise and transform emotions such as anger, fear and resentment which have found to be detrimental to general health and diabetes. The purpose of the course is also to cultivate healthy ‘Super emotions’ such as self-compassion and acceptance both mental states known to improve immunity, vitality and quality of life. Finally, this course also includes an exploration into the transpersonal nature of living with a chronic illness, while simultaneously learning to develop a new healthier relationship with it. This is a fundamental part of living with diabetes that is often shied away from in other Mindfulness courses.

The course is grounded in current psychological research on stress, the mind and body interaction, acceptance, self-compassion, anger and diabetes burnout. DMM is focused towards enabling participants to develop sustainable healthy behaviours towards self, food and diabetes.

What is mindfulness?

Mindfulness is being present to moment to moment thoughts, bodily sensations and feelings in a non-judgemental and compassionate manner.

The act of Mindfulness releases an individual from habitual, automatic mental and emotional patterns of replaying past memories or future ambitions or anxieties by bringing an intentional awareness to one’s present moment reality.

Mindfulness is each person’s inner resource to cultivate self-awareness and healing through physical, emotional and psychological resilience.

Current psychological research into the value of Mindfulness has shown both psychological and psychological benefits with its specific efficacy in the management and reduction of:

  • Stress
  • Chronic pain
  • Destructive emotions
  • Depression
  • Panic attacks
  • Anxiety
  • Addictions
  • Personality disorders

Research on Mindfulness practice has found that sustained practice leads to positive changes in brain function and immune system strength.

Empirical studies that were reviewed found Mindfulness to have:

  • Decreased levels of stress and anxiety
  • Improvement in psychological well being
  • Increased control of feelings & personal responsibility
  • Increased happiness, joy and positive thoughts
  • Increase problem solving skills
  • Enhanced acceptance, compassion and tolerance
  • Increased relaxation
  • Increased resilience
  • Improved self and personal relationships

The effectiveness of Mindfulness-based therapy has been recognised by both the National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and the Mental Health Foundation. Each of the medical advisory boards have recommended that Mindfulness-based therapies should be the treatment of choice ahead of drugs for depression, stress and other psychological illnesses due to its efficiency and lack of any harmful side effects.

Course Details

The Diabetes Management with Mindfulness course combines Mindfulness practices, techniques to recognise and respond to mind-body connections with human growth and development processes. Specifically, DMM is designed not only to meet the psychological and emotional needs of people suffering from chronic illness such as diabetes, but crucially provide a framework for self-develop, self-empowerment and health.

What does the course involve?

This 10-week course combines discussions and talks to develop an understanding of the theory behind mindfulness specifically in relation to diabetes management with experiential learning workshops.

The course requires a commitment to attend 2 hour weekly class consecutively for 10 weeks plus attendance at a 1 day retreat to consolidate the learning that has taken place throughout the course.

Personal practice will be encouraged each week to practice and reinforce the teachings of each session.

What will the sessions include?

Sessions will include brief lectures and discussions introducing the themes of the workshop.

Guided mindfulness meditation training will be a major part of each session, each week developing on the work of the previous week’s personal practice.

Body awareness training with integrated combinations of Chi Kung, Tai chi and light yoga will be introduced in later sessions of the course.

Exploration of thinking patterns, feelings and actions in order to understand the mind-body interaction restricting possibly destructive mind states and cultivating healthy minds.

Session will be supported by CDs or mp3 audios and handouts that will aid personal practice and consolidate the teachings of each session. Individuals will receive support and guidance throughout the course.

What can I expect from the course?

The philosophies of the course are based on the understanding that without actually personally experiencing something, one will never have the true knowledge.

Through experiential learning (based on each individual’s experience) the DMM course will enable participants to gain a firsthand understanding of how to control their mental and emotional states. Participants will learn to recognise those states which may be detrimental to their diabetes or their health. In addition, they will learn simple skills and techniques to promote healthier mind sets.

Who is it for?

This experiential, inspiring and transformative course is for anyone with diabetes or caring for someone with the condition. The course is for those people who want to reduce health-related stress, increase mental and emotional wellbeing, manage pain and most importantly take control and improve diabetes management.

“Diabetes management with Mindfulness DMM” – courses
designed by D S Panesar and associates in partnership with
Diabetes.co.uk – All rights reserved (2010-2012)

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