MINDFULNESS Retreat

How can we avoid being influenced by external events and conditions?

Buddhism Philosophy and CBT intervention both provide us with the same answer. “At all cost, Let us avoid negative thoughts“.

Let us learn together to use attentiveness to watch our thoughts and use mindfulness to act constructively. With these two we would have the means to annihilate all adverse conditions.

My approach is based upon the psychological principles of Buddha Dharma, Mahayana teachings, Japanese Zen, life long practice of mindful Prāna Yoga combined with CBT background. With those effective tools, let us practice together to keep our senses under control. Let us free our mind to keep  peace and calmness.

With our Mindfulness Retreat, you will gain skills to communicate with your body sensations. This short break would assist you to become aware that your emotional disturbances are mainly caused by your own cognitive construct, not by the external events or conditions.

Be aware of your body sensations, and knowing your limits at the given moment is the key to improving your well-being.  By recognising and then not exceeding your limits, you will prevent injury and illness caused by stress and over work. If you have lived your life a short distance from your body, then it is high time you started living with your body.

Are you currently experiencing any of the following?
– Feeling over-stressed
– Tiredness
– Unable to concentrate
– Unsettling mind
– Insomnia
– Anxiety
– Irritability

Mindful  Prāna Yoga practice would enable you to stimulate your sympathetic and para-sympathetic nervous systems alternately, thereby restoring balance to your autonomic nervous system.

By experiencing true and deep RELAXATION, we can free our mind to experience peace and calmness.

Some of the comments received from previous participants;-

• Overcame my fear and started my own business that I had dreamed of for many years.
• Other people have commented on the positive changes in me.
• I gained a way to mitigate my back pain and am now able to move with greater ease. Happy!
• I am no longer fearful.  I’m able to sleep well without medication.
• I am ready to communicate with others with increased self-confidence.
• Totally relaxed. I now value myself and shall take care of my body.
• I have managed to stop criticising myself and can appreciate who I am.
• I love myself, thank you!
• Experienced true relaxation and calmness.

Rates:

• Personal Retreat: £500 including 2 night accommodation at The Rufus House
  2nd day only with Retreat meal (breakfast and light dinner) and Programme videos.
• Group Retreat: £300 per person, 2 people sharing twin room.  2 night accommodation at The Rufus House.  2nd day only with Retreat meal (breakfast and light dinner) and Programme videos.
• A half-day retreat available upon request: £150, including programme videos.
• Subject to availability, please check availability in advance
• [NB]: During Festive Period, supplement charge of £50 per person would incur.

Payment

Please contact us first to check availability via Contact Page. We will come back to you within 48 hours to confirm availability. To reserve your retreat,  full payment would be required at the time of reservation.

CBT and Buddhism Psychology

I am now retired as a CBT psychotherapist, thus no longer able to offer psychotherapy. However, knowledge and experience in the field are extremely useful;  some part of CBT theory derived from Buddhism Psychology.

Being a human, it is natural to feel negative emotions in the face of adversity. It is important to be able to acknowledge our emotions and sufferings.

One of two CBT main theories, REBT describes distress as a binary construct composed of two different components: functional negative emotions (and behaviours) and dysfunctional negative emotions (and behaviours). By acknowledging the underlying dysfunctional beliefs (Ignorance), we can learn to shift towards functional counterparts (Wisdom).  When we can view and accept reality as it is, it would enable us to take functional actions with functional emotions.

• Cramer, D., & Frong, J. (1991). Effect of rational and irrational beliefs on intensity and “inappropriateness” of feelings: A test of rational-emotive theory. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 4, 319-329
• David, D. Schnur, J., Birk, J. (2004). Functional and dysfunctional feelings in Ellis’ cognitive theory of emotion: An empirical analysis. Cognition and Emotion, 18, 869-880.
• Ellis, A. & DiGiuseppe, R. (1993). Are inappropriate or dysfunctional feelings in rational-emotive therapy qualitative or quantitative? Cognitive Therapy and Research, 5, 471-477
• David, D, et al., (2005). An Empirical Investigation of Albert Ellis’s Binary Model of Distress. Journal of Clinical Psychology Vol. 61(4). 499-516
• David, D., Schnur, J., & Birk, J. (2004). Functional and dysfunctional feelings in Ellis’cognitive theory of emotion: An empirical analysis. Cognition and Emotion, 18, 869–880.
• Backx, W. (2003). REBT as an intentional therapy. In W. Dryden (Ed.), Rational emotive behavioural therapy: Theoretical developments. Hove, East Sussex and New York, NY: Brunner-Routledge.
• Backx, W (2010). The Distinction Between Quantitative and Qualitative Dimensions of Emotions: Clinical Implications. Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy March 2012, Volume 30, Issue 1, pp 25–37

Working with Etsuko. Some kind words received from clients/previous participants:

Well here I am surrounded by the forest and snow again. I have started my own business. I don’t think this message can fully convey the gratitude I have for what you have done for me. There is no doubt that I would not be here today if it wasn’t for you.

The last 9 months since I saw you have been quite amazing. I immediately started thinking about my business plans. It’s been very very hard but I know that the first year in business is the most treacherous. If it all fails then I would still have followed my dreams. I can still vividly remember the illness like I have just woken up from a bad dream. I think it will always be a part of me but I know that in ten years I won’t again look back and say I should have tried to change my life.

What I can offer you is my sincere gratitude and to say that I will be forever in your debt. As a form of thanks I hope you can take pride in the fact that you have changed my life so dramatically for the better. I think you were made to do this kind of work and many people must be glad for it.

In a short time, the improvement in OCD symptoms and anxiety was clear to see. I am much happier individual. I would happily recommend Etsuko’s services to anyone.

The feeling of complete relaxation and calmness that I am left with is indeed something else and I cannot tell you how much that has helped me through this difficult period. Your calming way and understanding makes it so easy for me. Thank you for all your help.

This has been a truly enlightening experience for me. I will take away with me the key principles that will be in my heart for many years.
“Infinite possibilities”, flexible way of thinking, applying a gentle compassionate logic. Thank you. This method will be in me, I am so grateful.

In order to sustain the outcomes from sessions, all of my clients and previous participants were asked to create 30 minutes of “My Time” each day to continue practicing the programme at home.

It is your body and mind and this is your life. Only you can heal yourself. What I offer is only a guidance to assist you achieve this life habit.

MINDFUL Prāna Yoga Session

Prāna Yoga Lesson

Upon request, we can offer you a group 90 minute Prāna Yoga Lesson.

Further information, please contact us

A Half-day Retreat

About me – Etsuko Ito
After a long career in International Banking in the City of London, I re-qualified as a psychotherapist. Having worked with CEOs and CFOs over the period of two decades, my in-depth knowledge of the real business world enables me to work effectively with you and your team in the business world.

As a Japanese Mindfulness teacher, my approach is based upon the psychological principles of Buddha Dharma, Mahayana teachings, Japanese Zen and mindful Prāna Yoga.

Meditation should progress hand in hand with study of Buddha Philosophy, without either one neglected. Meditation is (1) a way of training and transforming the mind to develop the one-pointed concentration of mental calm and (2) then meditation through analysis to examine an object until we gain a degree of certainty concerning its nature.

Mindful  Prāna Yoga practice would enable you to stimulate your sympathetic and para-sympathetic nervous systems alternately, thereby restoring balance to your autonomic nervous system, together with one-pointed concentration of mental calm.

By experiencing true and deep RELAXATION, we can free our mind to experience peace and calmness.

Rates:

• A half-day Retreat: £180 including 30 minutes programme videos.

Kabat‐Zinn, J. (2003). Mindfulness‐Based Interventions in Context: Past, Present, and Future
Clinical Psychology, Science and Practice, Volume10, Issue2, June 2003, Pages 144-156

It is important that professionals coming to this field understand some of the unique factors associated with the delivery of mindfulness‐based interventions and the potential conceptual and practical pitfalls of not recognising the features of this broadly unfamiliar landscape. This commentary highlights and contextualises

• what exactly mindfulness is,
• where it came from,
• how it came to be introduced into medicine and health care,
• issues of cross‐cultural sensitivity and understanding in the study of meditative practices stemming from other cultures and in applications of them in novel settings,
• why it is important for people who are teaching mind‐fulness to practice themselves ….

What we will achieve in our half-day workshop
Our experiential workshop is an introduction to the way of living your life with an awakened and focused mind. 
 It means that our work together would not finish at the end of the workshop, rather it would be the first day of living your life with your body.

Once you have gained such awareness, you will notice the limit at any given moment. Knowing such limits would help us to prevent accidents. It would also assist us free our unsettling mind.

You will learn basic skills during the experiential workshop, leading you to experience deep relaxation. If you let the practice work for you, then it would be the first day of truly living your life.

During the workshop, you will learn what is “My Time” and how to create it in your busy daily life. By practicing “My Time” at home, you will regain balance in your autonomic nervous system, enabling you to sustain wellbeing of body and mind.

Next steps
We are all life energy beings, inter-connected and influencing each other.
Let us build a path to Stress Resilience and live our lives with joy.

For availability please contact us

Payment

Please contact us first to check availability via Contact Page. We will come back to you within 48 hours to confirm availability. To reserve your retreat,  full payment would be required at the time of reservation.