Hi I am Paula
Mindfulness, compassion and creating space to understand myself has been such a big part of my healing journey.
I started my journey with mindfulness many years ago, it was due to suffering with anxiety and depression. I thought I was going to take a 8-week mindfulness course and be fixed. Little did I know that all these years later I would still be practicing and receiving the benefits.
Mindfulness didn’t fix me or get rid of my problems it did something much more beneficial. It gave me a new way of understanding myself and offered me skills to work with my mind. My practice over the years has deepened and life, like so many people, has thrown me curve balls. Mindfulness has helped me come to terms with having Multiple Sclerosis, living with chronic pain and a recent breast cancer diagnosis and treatment.
Mindfulness has taught me that we don’t always need to change what we are experiencing. Sometimes, we need to change the way we meet it.
It has become a way of pausing, noticing and becoming curious about my thoughts, feelings and experiences, rather than automatically reacting to them.
And it is this that I love sharing with others.
What mindfulness means to me
For me, mindfulness isn’t about emptying your mind or trying to become calm all the time.
It’s about learning to notice the thoughts that are passing through the mind.
To notice the stories we tell ourselves.
And perhaps, over time, to create a little more space between what happens and how we respond.
That space can give us a choice. It can help us become less caught up in our thoughts and more connected to what is actually happening right here, right now.
My hope is that through mindfulness you can begin to understand yourself with greater curiosity and compassion, rather than feeling that you constantly need to fix or change yourself.
I offer a gentle, compassionate and non judgemental space where you can slow down, breathe, reflect and reconnect.
My Training
I have had my own personal practice since 2005 and then went on to train through the Mindfulness Association to teach mindfulness-based programs in 2017.
I am registered with BAMBA (British Association for Mindfulness-Based Approaches) and continue to develop my own practice and learning.
My work also draws upon compassion based approaches, an understanding of Polyvagal Theory and nervous system regulation.
Alongside mindfulness, I offer a range of holistic practices, creating opportunities for people to slow down, rest and reconnect with themselves.
A little more about me
Im a big believer in the little things
A quiet moment
A walk outside
Watching the trees move in the wind
A cup of something warm
A conveersation where you feel truly heard
The moment where we stop rushing through life and actually notice that we are here
These are the things that mindfulness has helped me appreciate more deeply
And perhaps that is what I most hope to offer through The Mindfulness Space – somewhere you can step away from the noise for a while, come back to yourself and discover what you might need.
THERE IS ANOTHER WAY WE CAN BE WITH OURSELVES.
Perhaps we can begin there.
Paula