At Breathworks we specialise in using mindfulness and compassion to manage pain and Long-term Health conditions (LTC). This is based on my own experience of severe chronic spinal pain since 1976. Our signature course is Mindfulness for Health.
I started running mindfulness courses in 2001 and went on to co-found Breathworks as a Social Enterprise in 2004. Breathworks is now a world-leading organisation in the field of mindfulness for health conditions, with teachers offering Breathworks programmes in over 25 countries. We also offer Mindfulness for Stress programmes.
I’ve produced a number of books and audio CDs/downloads offering my approach to others and am increasingly working with app developers such as Simple Habit and Insight Timer. On Simple Habit I have a 7 day introduction to meditation as well as various other guided meditations. On Insight Timer I have a 10 day course ‘Methods for Managing Pain and Illness‘ as well as various guided meditations. I have also released online courses partnering with the Mindfulnesscentre in Sweden.
My first book was ‘Living Well With Pain and Illness – using mindfulness to free yourself from suffering’ which was published in 2008 (Piatkus). This is a comprehensive and in-depth introduction to my approach and has been translated into a dozen languages.
In 2013 I co-authored ‘Mindfulness for Health – a practical guide to relieving pain, reducing stress and restoring wellbeing’. This was written with Danny Penman and won first prize in the British Medical Association Book Awards in 2014 (popular medicine category). It has been translated into 14 languages. In the USA it is released under the title You Are Not Your Pain.
In this book, Danny and I take the ideas from Living Well with Pain and Illness to create an accessible, easy-to-follow eight-week programme with a CD/audio downloads of guided meditations for each week. You can find the audio tracks here.
If you are interested in practising my approach then I recommend you follow the 8 week course in Mindfulness for Health. You can do this in a number of ways depending on your circumstances.
The list below lists the highest level of input at the top right down to ‘self-guided’ options at the bottom:
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- Face-to-face group course with a teacher
- Online course with a virtual group and facilitator
- Online course on your own
- Book-based course – working your way through the Mindfulness for Health book with accompanying CD or downloads.
- In 2018 I will also be releasing more ways to access this material via apps.
I recommend you use my other materials as background reading and opportunities for longer meditations when you feel ready.
