Mindfulness Resources

Willoughby Britton : Why A Neuroscientist Would Study Meditation

In this TEDxTalk, Professor Willoughby Britton tells us that happiness is not about getting what you want. She discusses our mental qualities as habits we practice and she sheds light on an important link between neuroscience and contemplative studies.

Want to be happier…stay in the moment - Matt Killingsworth. TED talk. (10 minutes)

When are humans most happy? To gather data on this question, Matt Killingsworth built an app, Track Your Happiness, that let people report their feelings in real time. Among the surprising results: We're often happiest when we're lost in the moment. And the flip side: The more our mind wanders, the less happy we can be.

Resilience

When facing the same challenges, why do some people become more vulnerable and others more resilient? Is there a way to nudge people along this continuum to encourage development of more qualities that promote wellbeing and flourishing?Professor Richard Davidson has asked these questions throughout his career. This has led him to explore how mindfulness changes the emotional life of our brains, and what we know about the brains of individuals showing more resilience than others. He discusses this in this thought provoking Ted Talk ( approx.17 min).

Richard Davidson is a psychologist and neuroscientist by training. He is the William James and Vilas professor of psychology and psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison as well as founder and director of the Centre for Healthy Minds. His research is focused on the neural bases of emotion and emotional style and methods to promote human flourishing, including meditation and related contemplative practices.

Cultivating Mindfulness in Difficult Times

This powerful talk was offered by Jon Kabat-Zinn prior to the Covid pandemic, but seems so pertinent to now. Jon Kabat-Zinn sensitively covers so much in such a short time, ( 20 minutes), what is mindfulness, our sense of wanting to turn away from aspects of ourselves, how interconnected we are, to mention just a few. What catches your attention? What does it say to you?

Pausing, noticing and being curious of our day-to-day experience offers a space for us to become aware of how we relate to our experience, to notice reactivity. As we gradually see more clearly the patters within our mind, we can consciously choose to cultivate certain helpful attitudes, nurturing these like seeds.

Overcoming Objections to Self Compassion

A common pattern we observe is a high level of self-criticism, as well as concern that being more compassionate towards our self could lead to self-indulgence and self-pity.

Psychologist, Professor Kristin Neff, is recognised internationally as an expert on compassion, in this 12 minutes video she speaks about this and barriers to self-compassion. If you often notice self critical thoughts we would urge you to watch Professor Neff as she discusses this.

( Updated: 25/04/22)