NDSU Counseling Center has scheduled mindfulness workshops for NDSU students, faculty and staff. The free eight-week workshop will meet weekly on Thursdays from 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. from Sept. 22 through Nov. 10 in the Counseling Center, 212 Ceres Hall (Group Testing Room). Advance sign-up is necessary before 5 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 13.

According to author Jon Kabat-Zinn, "Mindfulness means paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment and without judgment."

The workshop is geared toward individuals who are either new or relatively new to mindfulness. It can either stand alone, or serve as a precursor for those who would like more familiarity with mindfulness before attending the Counseling Center's ongoing weekly Meditation for Stress Management Group.

Each week will address a different facet of mindfulness through the use of discussion, readings, handouts and a variety of experiential mindfulness meditation practices.  

The weekly topics include:

Session 1: Introduction/Automatic Pilot
Session 2: Mindfulness of the Body
Session 3: Mindfulness of the Breath
Session 4: Radical Acceptance
Session 5: Mindfulness of Thoughts
Session 6: Mindfulness of Emotions
Session 7: Vipassana (insight) Meditation Practice
Session 8: Metta (loving-kindness) Meditation Practice

Attendance at the first session is mandatory to attend the remainder of the sessions, since the first session introduces mindfulness, and is the foundation on which all the following sessions will be based.

Further details on this and other groups and workshops can be found at www.ndsu.edu/counseling/groups_classes. More information specifically about mindfulness and meditation is at www.ndsu.edu/counseling/meditation_and_mindfulness. For additional information about the Counseling Center, visit www.ndsu.edu/counseling.

To sign up, call the Counseling Center at 1-7671 during business hours. Sign-up is limited to 12 participants.