Investigating and Integrating Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society

Our 9th Annual International Scientific Conference for Clinicians, Researchers and Educators

March 30 - April 3, 2011

New Location: Four Points by Sheraton Norwood Hotel & Conference Center
                         Norwood, MA, USA (convenient to Boston, MA and Providence, RI airports)

Please visit this web page again soon for more information about conference sessions.

Our Call for Submissions form will be available here on or before July 28, 2010.

The 8th Annual Conference concluded on Sunday, April 11, 2010. Please see below for information about that event.

If you would like to order audio and video recordings from the 2010 conference, please click here.

Investigating and Integrating Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society

8th Annual International Scientific Conference for Clinicians, Researchers and Educators

April 7-11, 2010

Crowne Plaza Hotel and Resort, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA

Turning into the 4th Decade of our Work...

The 2010 Conference will feature more than 75 presentations that include research forums, presentation dialogues, workshops, keynotes, breakfast roundtables, and pre- and post-conference institutes. Conference details and how to register are located below.

We look forward to seeing you in April.

Conference Logistics There are two ways to register for the conference: Download our printable (PDF) registration form and then send it back to us by fax or postal mail. It can also be completed electronically using the free Adobe Acrobat software and then sent by email to mindfulness@umassmed.edu. Call us at (508) 856-2656 If you are looking for our online registration form, please note that online registration has ended. Please register using one of the two methods listed above. Click to download complete conference brochure. Crowne Plaza Hotel Information: Reservations at the Crowne Plaza may be made directly with the hotel at 877-227-6963 or 508-791-1600.  Rooms for the Annual International Scientific Conference have been reserved at a reduced rate. You must register by March 16, 2010 to take advantage of the discounted rate.  When making your reservation you must reference "CFM ANNUAL CONFERENCE" to receive the discounted rate.  A one-night, non-refundable deposit and a three-night minimum reservation is required. Attendees that need to cancel hotel reservations must do so at least 5 days in advance, or will be charged for a minimum of three nights. For a Google map showing the Crowne Plaza Hotel, please click here. Continuing Education credits are available. Please click here for complete information.

Conference Highlights

Special Pre-Conference Public Event: Wednesday, April 7, 2010, 6:00 - 9:00 pm

The Eye and Ear of Beholding: Intimate Moments in Painting, Poetry, and Practice An Evening of Mindfulness Practice, Dialogue and Exploration with Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD Click for more information.

Opening Keynote Address
	Participatory Medicine: The Central Role of Mindfulness in this Emerging Field Saki F. Santorelli, EdD, MA Conference Chair Executive Director, Center for Mindfulness University of Massachusetts Medical School For more information, please click here.
Plenary Speakers
	Future Models of Health Care: The Role of Mindfulness David M. Eisenberg, MD Director, Harvard Medical School Osher Research Center Bernard Osher Associate Professor of Medicine Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Program Director, Integrative Medicine Brigham and Women’s Hospital For more information, please click here.
	Shifting the Culture: Integrating Mindfulness-Based Work into an Academic Health Center Mary Jo Kreitzer, PhD, RN, FAAN Director, Center for Spirituality & Healing Professor, School of Nursing University of Minnesota For more information, please click here.
	Reducing Mind-Wandering and Improving Meta-Awareness with Mindfulness Training Amishi P. Jha, PhD Assistant Professor Department of Psychology Center for Cognitive Neuroscience University of Pennsylvania For more information, please click here.
	The Present Moment in Mindfulness Research: Scientific Progress and its Near Enemies Paul Grossman, PhD Director of Research Department of Psychosomatic Medicine Division of Internal Medicine University of Basel Hospital Basel, Switzerland For more information, please click here.
Research Symposium
	Neural Mechanisms of Mindfulness: Basic and Clinical Applications Co-Chairs: Philippe Goldin, PhD Postdoctoral Researcher Department of Psychology Stanford University Amishi P. Jha, PhD Assistant Professor Department of Psychology Center for Cognitive Neuroscience University of Pennsylvania Morning Presenters: B. Rael Cahn, MD, PhD Britta Holzel, PhD Clifford Saron, PhD Afternoon Presenters: Willoughby Britton, PhD Judson Brewer, MD, PhD Philippe Goldin, PhD For more information, please click here.

Special Gala Evening: Friday, April 9, 2010, 6:00 - 9:00 pm

Congressman Tim Ryan Mark Shilansky Join an extraordinary group of colleagues from around the world to dine and dance, converse and celebrate. This special gathering will begin with a cocktail reception where conference participants and presenters can mingle with each other, Center for Mindfulness staff, Advisory Board members, and faculty. The Gala Evening will include: Comments from Saki Santorelli and Jon Kabat-Zinn. Remarks on “Mindfulness in the National Agenda” from Congressman Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) Silent/Live Benefit Auction Dinner and Dancing with music by The Mark Shilansky Trio. Click for more information.

Daily Conference Schedule and Details

Please click each day below for full details.

Richard Davidson, PhD, delivers a keynote address at the 7th Annual Conference, March 2009

Wednesday, April 7

• Pre-Conference Institute
• An Evening of Mindfulness Practice, Dialogue and Exploration with
  Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD

Thursday, April 8

• Research Symposium - Neural Mechanisms of Mindfulness
• Poster Session
• Welcome Reception
• Opening Keynote Address with Saki Santorelli, EdD, MA

Friday, April 9

• 8th Annual Conference -- Day 1
  (includes Keynote Addresses, Research Forums, Workshops, Presentation Dialogues, Break-out Sessions, Breakfast Roundtables, and Morning Meditation)
• Cocktail Reception and Dinner

Saturday, April 10

• 8th Annual Conference -- Day 2
  (includes Keynote Addresses, Research Forums, Workshops, Presentation Dialogues, Break-out Sessions, Breakfast Roundtables, and Morning Meditation)
• Closing Remarks by Saki Santorelli, EdD, MA

Sunday, April 11

• Post-Conference Institutes

Wednesday, April 7

Pre-Conference Institute

9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Full-Day Institutes

Integrating mindfulness and self-compassion
Kristin D. Neff, PhD, Christopher K. Germer, PhD

The intention to cultivate compassion for ourselves as well as others lies at the heart of Buddhist approaches to well-being. By holding our pain in compassionate awareness, we are better able to soothe and heal disruptive thoughts and feelings so that our suffering is eased. Self-compassion entails three main components: 1) being warm and understanding toward ourselves when we suffer or feel inadequate rather than ignoring our pain or flagellating ourselves with self-criticism; 2) framing our experiences in terms of the shared human experience rather than feeling isolated; and 3)holding our difficulties in mindful awareness, rather than being carried away by negative thoughts and emotions.

One might say that self-compassion integrates the equanimity of mindfulness, the wisdom of no-self, and the nurturing quality of loving-kindness. By giving ourselves compassion, we are also tapping into our oxytocin and opiate-based mammalian care-giving system, allowing us to calm our physiology in a way that facilitates mindfulness-based approaches to well-being.

The art of self-compassion is a kind of portable, therapeutic technique that can be taught and learned. It is relevant to therapists, patients, caregivers, parents, and anyone who wants to learn how to lead a healthier, happier life.

This workshop is a journey into mindful self-compassion, weaving lecture, meditation, case examples, demonstration, and discussion. Participants will learn how to synthesize self-compassion with mindfulness and acceptance-based treatments, apply self-compassion to clinical settings, and utilize self-care strategies. The workshop will also present research demonstrating how self-compassion differs from self-esteem.

Developing our teaching and our teaching community
Lawrence J. Ladden, PhD, Donald McCown, MAMS, MSS, Diane Riebel, PhD

Good teaching arises from the teacher’s committed mindfulness practice. That’s a truth that cannot be repeated too often. Yet, practice is just one dimension of teaching, two others, nearly as important, include growing mastery of a basic skill set, and a deep understanding and acceptance of one’s ability to be and to share with others. This workshop will define and assist participants in developing an interrelated set of four skills — (1) stewardship (caring for the group), (2) homiletics (conversational delivery of didactic material), (3) Guidance (of formal practices and informal group experiences), (4) Inquiry (into participants’ direct experience) — and will use the gathered community to build an environment in which all participants feel free and supported in exploring the joys and challenges of refining their teaching. The four skills will be presented and developed through didactic presentations, dyadic and small group exercises, and guided meditations and contemplations. The community of teachers will be developed as an environment for exploring, through the introduction and practice of the method of “functional subgrouping.” Functional subgrouping cultivates similarity in content, affect, and depth of expression prior to a focus on difference, explicitly developing communications that emphasize resonance and “joining.” The presenters, whose work together arises from a sangha of more than 35 MBI teachers that meets regularly for mutual support and development, will share reflections on the role of the community in good teaching.

9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Half-Day Morning Workshops

Applying Mindfulness to Adolescents: Meeting Teens Where They Are At
Gina Biegel, MA, LMFT

Through clinical practice and published research the efficacy of MBSR with an adolescent population has been proven to be an effective evidence-based treatment. Dissemination and explanation of potential interventions and skills that work particularly well with adolescents will allow for skill acquisition with this population. Discussing the developmental, social and cultural underpinnings of teens today will allow those who work with this population to have a better understanding of the mechanisms by which mindfulness affects adolescents’ thoughts, feelings and emotions. Proposing a paradigm by which mindfulness may affect adolescent thoughts (i.e., judgments, rumination) and the potential shift that begins to take place through mindfulness training. Focusing on interventions that target the most frequently reported mental health issues among adolescents today, anxiety and mood disorders. Acquiring a base knowledge of both the challenges and rewards of working with this population will be shared. A brief overview of research to date with this population will be provided.

Workshop skills will be offered via experiential techniques, didactic conversation, and a dissemination of information for you to be able to take back to your work with adolescents.

This workshop is designed for those with a professional background or personal interest in applying mindfulness with adolescents in both group and individual settings.

Is this Raisin Kosher? Cultural Competence and Teaching MBSR  - This pre-conference workshop has been cancelled
Diane Wyshogrod, PhD

As the world shrinks and our work reaches increasingly diverse populations, how do we remain true to the essence of MBSR while adapting it for people from wide-ranging cultural and ethnic backgrounds? Simultaneously, what elements of mindfulness inherent in these cultures might enrich our work and our lives, and how might we integrate those into the curriculum?

This presentation uses Israel as a model to describe the religious and cross-cultural challenges and possibilities I have encountered since introducing MBSR to Israel in 2002. These experiences are based on my work with approximately 1,000 people, including: lay people, health care professionals interested in learning about mindfulness, native-born Israelis and immigrants from around the world. Classes are taught in Hebrew and English, languages that often are participants’ second or even third languages. Formats have ranged from the 8-week MBSR course to brief introductory workshops to 3- or 4-day intensive trainings.

Topics will include: cultivating stillness; mindful eating and religious dietary practices; teaching loving-kindness and forgiveness against a backdrop of war; the need to walk a tightrope between secular and religious sensibilities; what’s lost – and gained – in translation.

In small- and large-group discussions, participants will be asked to react to the above and to share relevant experiences. What particular challenges have they faced? What have they learned? Has this prompted any changes in their MBSR curriculum, and with what results? How has this affected their practice, their lives?

I hope this discussion will spur the creation of a network of teachers working in different countries and within multicultural settings to allow for further dialogue and the continued exchange of ideas, so that we may continue to enrich MBSR for our students and ourselves.

1:00 - 4:00 p.m. Half-Day Afternoon Workshops

Mindfulness in Caring for Infants and Toddlers
Lienhard Valentin, Christina Heilig-Friedrich

This workshop is directed to anyone who cares for infants and toddlers professionally or as a parent.

Over the last 20 years the Organization “Mit Kindern wachsen“ (Growing with Children) in Germany has developed a unique approach for applying Mindfulness to caring for infants and toddlers.

The workshop will start with a presentation which gives an overview of the development and background of this approach. The presentation includes short videos and references to research which serve to demonstrate the key elements.
This will be followed by a discussion of half an hour followed by a guided meditation and role-play.

After this the “Growing with Children Exploring Room“ is presented – a specific program for parents with infants or toddlers.

Animal Being: A Mindful Approach to Human and Animal Connection
Elizabeth B. Strand, PhD, LCSW

This workshop benefits anyone bringing mindfulness skills to people earnestly bonded to or working with animals. Deeply missing in human beings’ experiences of animals is the spacious presence between right and wrong. When human beings discuss animals- thoughts, feelings, and sensations stir deeply. Witnessing a news story of an abused animal provokes, “What kind of person would abuse a helpless animal!” Coming home after a long workday and tenderly engaging the beloved dog before a gentle word is spoken to a spouse, is not uncommon. Observing the sincere and intense division between hunters and those who wear only Naugahyde, causes “moderates” to just simply “check out” of the battle entirely. This workshop increases the mindfulness teacher’s skill in serving people with deep connections to animals in ways that increase equanimity as well as human connection.

Special Pre-Conference Event:
An Evening of Mindfulness Practice, Dialogue and Exploration with
Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD

5:00 - 6:00 pm: Registration

6:00 - 9:00 pm: The Eye and Ear of Beholding: Intimate Moments in Painting, Poetry, and Practice -- An Evening of Mindfulness Practice, Dialogue, and Exploration

Please click here for more information

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Thursday, April 8

Research Symposium

Neural Mechanisms of Mindfulness: Basic and Clinical Applications
Co-Chairs:  Amishi P. Jha, PhD and Philippe Goldin, PhD
8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

This full-day research symposium will offer a set of presentations examining the basic and clinical mechanisms of action of mindfulness meditation training from the cognitive, affective, social, and clinical neuroscience perspectives. The morning session will examine the effects of meditation practice on basic psychological and neural mechanisms in healthy populations, including:

1. structural and functional brain changes that accompany engaging in MBSR in novices
2. electrophysiological differences between mindfulness practice and mind-wandering in experienced practitioners, and 
3. benefits in a variety of domains that accompany engaging in an intensive 3 month retreat in those with a broad range of prior experience with mindfulness training.

The afternoon session will focus on how mindfulness meditation training may benefit clinical symptoms and clinical disorders by examining: 

1. electrophysiological indices of sleep
2. functional brain changes in patients suffering from substance abuse disorders, and
3. neural dynamics of emotional reactivity and emotion regulation in patients with social anxiety disorder. 

In addition to this didactic content, there will be an experiential component of mindfulness practices offered to participants throughout the day.

Morning Presenters:

• B. Rael Cahn, MD, PhD
• Britta Holzel, PhD
• Clifford Saron, PhD

Afternoon Presenters:

• Willoughby Britton, PhD
• Judson Brewer, MD, PhD
• Philippe Goldin, PhD

 Learning Objectives:

1. The presentations will examine the effects of mindfulness meditation practice and training on attention and emotion regulation, and the basic mechanisms of these systems will be reviewed.
2. The presentations will discuss a variety of neuroscience methods used to investigate the neural bases of mindfulness training including event-related potentials, oscillatory neuroelectric profiles, morphometric structural changes with MRI, and functional brain changes indexed by functional MRI.
3. The presentations will provide an overview of the disorder-specific benefits of mindfulness training in the context of sleep disturbances, substance abuse, and social anxiety disorder.

Poster Session -- 4:30 - 6:00 pm.

The Poster Session is an essential element of Investigating and Integrating Mindfulness-Based Interventions into Medicine Health Care, and Society.

Posters are a great way for abstract authors to discuss their work with colleagues. The Center for Mindfulness views these Poster Presentations as important as paper presentations.

Investigating and Integrating Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society
8th Annual International Scientific Conference for Clinicians, Researchers and Educators

Thursday Evening, April 8

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Friday, April 9

6:00 - 7:00 a.m.:  Meditation with Saki F. Santorelli, EdD, MA

7:00 - 8:00 a.m.:  Breakfast

Breakfast Roundtable Discussions

Mindfulness Programs on the University Campus:  Educational, Clinical and Structural Considerations
Cheryl Kurash, PhD, Miv London, PhD

Mindfulness Meditation and Happiness
Yowon Choi, MA

8:15 - 9:15 a.m.   Break-out Sessions

Presentation Dialogues

Cool Minds: Mindfulness-Based Teen Program—a new curriculum and teaching approach for teens
Florence Meleo-Meyer, MS, MA, Judith Erdman, MEd, Marlene Samuelson, PhD

What Comes Next? Creating a Curriculum for MBSR Graduates
Michael Baime, MD

Resilience, MBSR, Law Enforcement Culture & Training: Breaching Barriers to Mindfulness Integration
Brant Rogers, MS, RYT, Richard Goerling, MBA 

Mindful Leadership: A Four-Year Experiment - Part 1
Janice Marturano, JD, Saki Santorelli, EdD, MA

Research Forums

A Randomized Controlled Trial of a Mindful Eating Intervention
Brian M. Shelley, MD

Utilizing Rasch Analysis to Compare the Psychometric Properties of Four Mindfulness Measures and Conduct Scale Revision
Sharon G. Solloway, PhD, Theo L. Dawson, PhD

9:30 - 10:30 a.m.  Break-out Sessions

Presentation Dialogues

Towards an “Empty” Curriculum: Identifying the key “teaching intentions” of the MBIs to help improve pedagogy and shape new interventions
Donald McCown, MAMS, MSS, Diane Reibel, PhD, Marc Micozzi, MD, PhD

Mindful Leadership: A Four-Year Experiment - Part 2
Janice Marturano, JD, Saki Santorelli,  EdD, MA

Research Forums

Mindfulness meditation results in drops in clinic blood pressure  for individuals with prehypertension
David M. Fresco, Rodney Myerscough

Objective and Subjective Sleep Parameters following Treatment of Primary Chronic Insomnia: A Randomized, Controlled Trial of Mindfulness versus Pharmacotherapy
Cynthia R. Gross, PhD, Mary Jo Kreitzer, PhD, RN, FAAN

Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction for Failed Back Surgery Syndrome: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Greg Esmer, DO, Jim Blum PhD  

Mindfulness Intervention for Child Abuse Survivors
Elizabeth Kimbrough, PhD, MPH, Trish Magyari, MS

11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.  Keynote Address

Future Models of Health Care: The Role of Mindfulness
David Eisenberg, MD

Please click here for full description of this and all other keynote addresses

12:45 - 1:45 p.m.  Lunch 

2:00 - 3:30 p.m.  Keynote Address

Shifting the Culture: Integrating Mindfulness-Based Work into an Academic Health Center
Mary Jo Kreitzer, PhD, RN, FAAN

Please click here for full description of this and all other keynote addresses

4:00 - 5:00 p.m.  Break-out Sessions

Presentation Dialogues

The Relational Benefits of Mindfulness: A Review of the Empirical Research and Professional Literature
Bob Gillespie, LMFT

Mindfulness Practices in a Chronic Pain Management Clinic and in Current Medical Care
Marcia J Howton, MD

Mindful Writing: A University Course in Learning to Write with Comfort and Presence
Donna Strickland, PhD

Philanthropy and MBSR at Your Health Care Organization: Creating a Case for Support for Your Creative Initiatives
Georgia Tetlow, MD, FAAPMR

Research Forums

Neural correlates of altered socio-emotional processing associated with mindfulness meditation
Sara Lazar, PhD, Britta Holzel, PhD, Elizabeth Hoge, MD

Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention in Alcohol Dependence: a feasibility pilot study.
Aleksandra Zgierska, MD, PhD, David Rabago, MD, Jennifer Wiegel, BS

Friday, April 9, Gala Evening

6:30 p.m.  Cocktails 

7:30 p.m.  Dinner 

Congressman Ryan

7:40 p.m. - Opening Remarks by Congressman Tim Ryan, JD
                 4th Term, U.S. House of Representatives, Ohio (D)

Mark Shilansky

Our dinner will be accompanied by the Mark Shilansky Trio, with dancing to follow.

The Gala Evening will also include Live and Silent Benefit Auctions.

Please visit our Conference Gala web page for more details about this special evening!

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Saturday, April 10

6:00 - 7:00 a.m.  Meditation with Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD

7:00 - 8:00 a.m.  Breakfast 

Breakfast Roundtable Discussions

A Collaborative Discussion of Those Working With Adolescents
Gina Biegel, MA, LMFT, Angela Marie West, PhD

Adapting MBSR for People with Disabilities
Debjani Mukherjee, PhD, Christine Wisniewski, MSW, LSW

8:30 - 10:00 a.m.  Keynote

Reducing Mind-Wandering and Improving Meta-Awareness with Mindfulness Training
Amishi P. Jha, PhD

Please click here for full description of this and all other keynote addresses

10:30 - 11:30 a.m.  Break-out Sessions

Presentation Dialogues

Training mindfulness teachers within an academic Master’s programme in the UK
Judith Soulsby, CQSW

Mindfulness-Based Curriculum in the U.S. Forest Service
Jim Saveland, PhD

Research Forums

Attentional processing in short-term and long-term mindfulness practices: the role of the two components of mindfulness reconsidered
Paul van den Hurk, MSc, Fabio Giommi, PhD

Participation in MBSR for Persons with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Results in Behavioral Activation
David J. Kearney, MD

A randomised controlled trial evaluating the effect of MBSR on mood, quality of life and wellbeing in women with stages 0 - III breast cancer
Caroline Hoffman, PhD, BSW, RN

Assessing Adolescent Mindfulness: Validation of an Adapted Mindful Attention Awareness Scale in  Adolescent Normative and Psychiatric Populations
Angela Marie West, PhD, Gina Biegel, MA, LMFT

11:45 - 12:45 p.m.  Lunch

12:45 - 3:45 p.m.  Workshops

Sensory Awareness:  New Routes to Liveliness In Both Practice and Teaching
Louise Boedeker, PhD

The practice of Sensory Awareness has its roots in European explorations of optimum human functioning and development beginning early in the last century. Charlotte Selver, a student of these gentle, permissive practices, brought them to the U.S., where her influence, particularly in the ‘50s and ‘60s, was profound and far reaching. Her students included Erich Fromm, Fritz Perls, Alan Watts, Paul Reps, Shunryu Suzuki, Ruth Denison, Norman Fischer, and other shapers of the ground from which the MBIs are arising.  The practice has contributed to the pedagogy of mindfulness. Giving quiet attention allows us to awaken to new possibilities. 

Sensory Awareness asks participants to notice, without judgment, their embodied experience with simplicity — e.g., by turning the head or raising an arm with attention and without expectation, layers of physical or social conditioning may be recognized and allowed to subside. A new clarity comes with awareness to how posture, movement, and attitude affect the breath; how the body responds to gravity; and how energy and intention develop and manifest within.  Sensory awareness is a resource for teaching — and living — mindfully.

The Functional Neuroanatomy of Mindfulness Meditation: Brain basics and current findings
M. Kathleen B. Lustyk, PhD

Evidence supporting the neurobiological concomitants of mindfulness meditation is growing. Incorporating the relevance of these recent findings into clinical work or other meditation practice is important and exciting, but demands a basic working knowledge of neurobiology. Drawing upon her years of teaching Behavioral Neuroscience and systematic brain dissection to clinical doctoral students, Behavioral Neuroscientist/Psychophysiologist Dr. Kathy Lustyk will provide an overview of the functional anatomy of the nervous system implicated in mindfulness. This will include discussion of neuronal pathways connecting lower and higher brain functions, the organization and utilization of localized regions in the prefrontal cortex, the relationship between areas of the brain that control and monitor affect, memory, perception, and anticipation, and a discussion of the basic research methods used to collect this information.

This workshop is geared towards clinicians and non-neuroscientists. However, the format will be flexible enough to accommodate questions of any detail regarding current research and its functional implications. Several visual aides will be used in this workshop including 3-D neuromodeling software.

In addition to the lecture, there will be opportunities for participants to work with a brain model and view sectioned samples of dissected brain tissue. Participant discussion and the specific interests of the group will shape the latter part of the workshop, allowing in-depth investigation into the areas of neuroscientific research that are most relevant to attendees.

Design of mindfulness program for student teachers in Hong Kong
Lau Ngar-Sze, MA

Recent research reports revealed that Hong Kong young people suffer from stress, negative emotion and low attention level. In the past decades, mindful awareness which is a meditation skill has been researched and implemented as an effective healing tool for general public and chronic patients to cope with stress and negative emotions. However, little is known about the effects of mindfulness training on psychosocial well-being of adolescents. Nor has there been any research into joint effects over time of mindfulness-intervention on the impact of students in Hong Kong context.

Mindfulness practices may be beneficial for adolescent, however, it is unclear that how long practices need to be for adolescents to be effective. We expect that modification with longer practices will allow the young people to develop a less impulsive relationship to move.

A pilot study of a six-week program was done in October 2008 in order to examine the well-being, attention level and stress level of student teachers in Hong Kong. In this workshop, design of mindfulness practices for Chinese students will be explained and demonstrated. Effects as well as difficulties and limitations of the pilot mindfulness program will also be shared and discussed. Therefore, teachers in secondary level and college level may be benefited from the workshop.

12:45 - 1:45 p.m.  Break-out Sessions

Presentation Dialogues

Measuring Mindfulness: An Evidence-Based Perspective
Elise Labbe-Coldsmith, PhD, Brittany F. Escuriex, MS

A Conversation about Loving-Kindness Meditation for Veterans with PTSD
David J. Kearney, MD, Tracy Simpson, PhD

2:00 - 3:00 p.m.  Break-out Sessions

Presentation Dialogue

Razorwire Mindfulness: Adapting Teaching MBSR inside a Women’s Prison
Claudia Schippert, PhD, Elizabeth Cohen, LMT, DABS

Research Forums

Mindfulness Program for Teachers
Robert Roeser, PhD, Margaret Cullen, MFT

Building Psychological Wealth: Alternative Theoretical Models May Explain Increased Mindfulness, Self-Compassion and Well-Being Following MBSR
Jeffrey Greeson, PhD

4:15 - 5:45 p.m.  Keynote Address

The Present Moment in Mindfulness Research: Scientific Progress and its Near Enemies
Paul Grossman, PhD

Please click here for full description of this and all other keynote addresses

5:45 - 6:00 p.m.  Closing Remarks by Saki F. Santorelli, EdD, MA

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Sunday, April 11

Post-Conference Institutes

7:30 - 8:30 a.m.  Breakfast 

8:00 - 9:00 a.m.  Registration 

9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.  Full-Day Institutes

Taking Your Seat: A Day of Mindfulness Meditation
Melissa Blacker, MA, Florence Meleo-Meyer, MS, MA, Bob Stahl, PhD

Many of us spend our days in service to others, and it can be so easy, in the pressure of doing, to lose contact with the deep, still center that nourishes us. This day of sitting in silence, in the company of others, is an opportunity to give yourself the gift of dropping into being, and of reconnecting with the source that may have first inspired you to choose mindfulness as a professional path.  By being fully present with your own body/mind, you may experience moments of clarity and presence, awareness of your own patterns of reactivity and response, and some discoveries about the nature of the self and reality. 

The day will include periods of sitting and walking meditation practice.  Throughout the day, each of the three teachers will give talks and may also offer individual practice meetings.  Please bring your own sitting cushions and/or benches.

Statistics Don't Tell The Whole Story: Understanding & Applying Qualitative Research Methodologies to Mindfulness
Belinda S.L. Khong, PhD

Research on mindfulness using quantitative methodologies has attested to the benefits of mindfulness for various medical and mental health issues. Helpful as they are, statistics however do not tell the whole story--e.g. what do we learn about the effects of mindfulness on the individual when a study finds that a certain percentage of the research population’s health improved through the use and practice of mindfulness? Mindfulness, a subjective experience, cannot be numerated as often individual differences and similarities are averaged out. Qualitative methodology, a process-oriented research method focuses on the meanings that individuals attribute to their experiences, rather than on symptom abatement. This methodology provides a valuable approach for appreciating the individual’s first-person experience, and helps us to understand the process involved--why and how individuals benefit from being mindful, and how being mindful have impacted on other areas of their lives such as work-life balance, relationships, communication and creativity.

The workshop format consists of a lecture, discussion and practice exercises. It explores different major qualitative research approaches including Grounded Theory and Phenomenology; differences with quantative research, and examines numerous qualitative research & studies to illustrate the value of this method to mindfulness-based research. Participants will learn skills for using qualitative research methods including interviewing techniques, data analysis, and report writing.

The workshop is intended to give researchers, educators, instructors, practitioners and health care professionals practical skills for understanding and applying qualitative research methodologies to their research, and in developing appropriate mindfulness-based programs for different populations. Reseachers intending to use qualitative methodology are encouraged to bring their research proposal for discussion in the workshop.

9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.  Half-Day Morning Workshops

Preaching to the unconverted: Introducing mindfulness into the training of healthcare professionals
Craig Hassed, MD

Although many elective programs exist for the training of healthcare professionals in mindfulness, there are very few integrated programs in core curriculum. This workshop will use the experience at Monash University in Australia as a foundation upon which to explore and extend competencies in designing, integrating and implementing mindfulness programs in the training of medical and allied healthcare professionals.

Monash has approximately 2,200 medical students across its campuses. All 450 first year medical students undergo a six-week, 22-hour Health Enhancement Program (HEP). The HEP includes 10 hours of lectures, and 12 hours of tutorials which divide time equally between mindfulness-based stress management and the Essence lifestyle program. The lectures provide a scientific and clinical underpinning to mindfulness, mind-body medicine and lifestyle change. Tutorials are experiential, skills-based and reflective where students are invited to apply mindfulness and lifestyle change to their personal lives. Outcomes of the program have been very encouraging in terms of student acceptance (over 90% report using the mindfulness practices personally), enhancing student wellbeing (improvements on all measures of physical and psychological wellbeing), meeting learning objectives, and integration into the wider curriculum (Adv Health Sci Educ Theory Pract. 2009;14:387-398.).

This workshop will be benefit those involved with the introduction of mindfulness to the education of health professionals and will explore the following areas.

Shelter in the Storm: Teaching MBSR to women with sexual trauma histories and complex PTSD
Trish Magyari, MS, Char Wilkins, MSW, LCSW 

This is a practical experiential workshop focused on addressing the teaching challenges posed by women with complex trauma histories (especially childhood sexual abuse) using lecture, demonstrations, role-play, small group discussion and question/answer periods. Childhood sexual abuse is a relatively common event in the lives of women, making it likely that general MBSR classes are populated with those with this trauma history.  This workshop is for MBSR teachers and therapists who wish to make their groups more sensitive to this population as well as for those offering classes specifically for traumatized populations. Common challenges of those with complex PTSD include dissociation, flashbacks, on-going distress and strong avoidance as coping mechanisms.  Our experience and research data have given us confidence that MBSR is an appropriate and helpful intervention for those healing from complex trauma, given a mindful awareness by the teacher to the curriculum and participants’ stages of healing.  In this session we will present what we consider to be essentials regarding teacher sensitivity, curriculum adaptations and languaging with emphasis on addressing teaching challenges.

We will begin with a 30-minute review of PTSD symptoms, MBSR as a healing adjunct, and the selection of MBSR participants, followed by a 15 min. Q&A. In the next hour we will present specific adaptations to the MBSR curriculum including skillful teaching of the body scan and examples of how to help participants stay within the window of mindfulness practice (without distress) both in class and at home.  The last hour will be spent in dyads and small group work doing experiential exercises involving typical classroom scenarios with this population.  A closing 15 min dialogue with participants will allow reflections and concerns to be raised and discussed.

12:00 - 1:00 p.m.  Lunch

1:00 - 4:00 p.m.  Half-Day Afternoon Workshops

When you can't fix it: MBSR and chronic conditions
Lucia McBee, LCSW, MPH, CYI, Elana Rosenbaum, MS, MSW, Vered Hankin, MA, PhD

Western medicine has cured many acute medical conditions. Increasingly, we are living longer, but with more chronic conditions. How do we address illness that is “chronic,” i.e. unfixable? How are we to live with unattenuated pain? This workshop will focus on another model – sitting with pain and illness. Together we will survey the current research on MBSR and chronic illness, including the most current findings from studies involving the presenters.  Utilizing findings from their extensive experience working with chronic physical and cognitive conditions, the presenters will review modifications and adaptations of MBSR practices. Storytelling, both ancient and personal, will be offered here as well, as we learn and explore both from the old and the new, learning to embrace the moment in all of its complexity. Mindfulness exercises and therapeutic interventions applied mindfully will be explored and practiced.

Participants will acquire a variety of hands-on, practical skills that have been successfully adapted for those with chronic conditions.

In the Eye of the Storm: Inner-City Mindfulness-based Programs - This post-conference workshop has been cancelled.
Beth Roth, MSN, APRN, Kate Mitcheom, CNM, MSN, Fernando De Torrijos

This workshop is for teachers of mindfulness-based programs and other conference participants. Through lecture, discussion, role-plays, and simulated classroom activities, we will explore the following issues:  funding sources and insurance reimbursement, teacher preparation, provider and staff support, patient recruitment and adherence, Spanish language MBSR, adaptations of the MBSR curriculum to inner-city settings, and conducting research on inner-city programs.  There will be opportunities for participants to share their experiences and learn from one another. The three presenters have among them over 30 years experience teaching MBSR in inner-city settings.  Handouts, a resource list and literature review will be provided.

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