Offering mindfulness meditation, yoga and workplace wellbeing sessions in Nottinghamshire and online.
Upcoming events
Reducing the Risk of Burnout: Mindfulness for Social Care Professionals
73% of Social Workers have reported experiencing high levels of emotional exhaustion (McFadden, 2015)
Working with people during challenging periods in their lives is a privilege, but it can also be emotionally demanding. When we don’t pay attention to our own mental and emotional wellbeing, stress can build and increase the risk of burnout.
Join us for a 4 week online course to help you to understand stress and burnout, and learn mindfulness practices to integrate into daily life and support your wellbeing
-
Understand the power of self-compassion
-
Increase self-awareness and recognise the early signs of stress
-
Begin to respond differently to challenging situations and pressure
4-week online course
Time: Monday evenings, 6:30–7:45 pm
Dates: 21 & 28 September; 5 & 12 October
Commitment: Please plan to attend all 4 sessions
Who can attend: Open to all social care professionals, including Social Workers, Occupational Therapists, social work students, Community Care Officers and others working in social care.
Free to attend. Donations to a local charity of your choice warmly welcomed
Facilitator
Suzanne has practised mindfulness meditation for nearly 20 years and holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Teaching Mindfulness Based Approaches from Bangor University. She has also been a qualified yoga teacher for 7 years and is currently completing the Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program (MMTCP) with Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield.
This course is offered as part of the MMTCP certification and by attending you are agreeing to be recorded. Recordings will be seen only by my mentor.
To book please email suzannemindfulnessyoga@gmail.com
About
My interest in mindfulness meditation began almost two decades ago. I had already practised yoga for a number of years when I started meditating during my first meditation retreat in 2007.
Over the years, mindfulness has become much more than something I practise on a cushion. It has influenced how I understand myself; how I relate to my thoughts, emotions and to difficult experiences.
Background
My professional background is in social work. I qualified as a Social Worker in 2005 and began my career working in adult mental health and as an Approved Mental Health Professional (AMHP); then later with older adults living with dementia. I now work as a Social Work Practice Consultant, mentoring apprentices at the beginning of their social work careers.
Working with people during challenging periods in their lives is a privilege, but it can also be emotionally demanding. My own experience of burnout in social work prompted me to look more closely at how I was living and working. Following a Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) course and later exploring Mindfulness-Based Self-Compassion, I began to develop a much more regular meditation practice.
Training and experience
My interest in mindfulness and yoga eventually led me to train formally as a teacher. I qualified as a yoga teacher in 2019 and then between 2021 and 2024, I completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Teaching Mindfulness-Based Approaches at Bangor University's Centre for Mindfulness Research and Practice. I am currently completing the Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program with Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield.
My professional experience, personal mindfulness practice and yoga training have all influenced the way I teach.
I have taught in person and online classes at Bahia Yoga studio in Nottingham City Centre, and acted as a mentor on their teacher training programme. I have also run weekly meditation drop-in classes for adult social care staff at Nottinghamshire County Council.
My approach
I would describe my approach as calm, warm, and compassionate. I encourage people to work at their own pace and to approach their experience with curiosity rather than judgement.
I am particularly passionate about supporting people working in social work and social care to navigate the realities of working in a demanding profession, whilst maintaining excellent practice and also prioritising their wellbeing to help sustain a long and healthy career.
For me, developing a regular practice is more important than doing things perfectly. A practice that fits realistically into your life is much more valuable than something that becomes another source of pressure.