Health and Wellness

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program - Wellness

Description

In this Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program participants learned and practiced mindfulness meditation (including body scan and gentle yoga). Participants also learned how to cultivate an observant, accepting, and compassionate stance towards their thoughts, emotions, body sensations, and impulses as well as specific information about stress physiology and psychology.

Position Overview

During this 8 week (1.5 hours/week) program, a safe, supportive, and deeply engaging learning environment is created by 2 VIU Counsellors that allows participants to seek, explore, and inquire. 

Upon completion of the program, MBSR participants will be able to articulate the key aspects of mindfulness as it relates to stress reduction, coping with pain and illness, and enhancing well-being, practice and apply mindfulness techniques in both personal and professional settings as a means of contending more effectively with the demands of life, and integrate mindfulness into social interaction with peers, family, friends, and supervisors to facilitate more effective and mindful communication. 

Empirically supported benefits of mindfulness include both physical and psychological benefits such as increased immune functioning, lower blood pressure, reduction of chronic pain, improvement in sleep, reduced rumination and stress, boost to working memory, increased focus and attention, and less emotional reactivity, resulting in better communication and conflict resolution.

Position Requirements

  • A half-hour intake interview is required with one of the counsellors teaching the program

Graduate Attributes Associated

Students in this position will gain skills in their capacity to engage in respectful relationships, foundations for lifelong learning, integrative learning, and oral communication.

Position Type

  • The program is offered in both the fall and spring semester

Sign Up Directions

For more information, please contact either Art Phipps at Art.Phipps@viu.ca or Michelle Daoust at Michelle.Daoust@viu.ca