MINDFULNESS TRAINING FOR SERVING PERSONNEL IN BRITISH ARMED FORCES, THEIR COMMUNITY AND VETERANS.

Serving British Armed Forces

I (Jan)have been building links with our local Armed Forces Communities since 2015 when I went to Kinloss Barracks and met the Welfare Officer at Kinloss Barracks

* In 2016 Jan, Elke, Patti and Rob ran a 7 week Mindfulness Course in Kinloss Royal Engineers Barracks in The Hive.

* We have offered free taster sessions on Mindfulness in Kinloss.

A free taster session held in Kinloss saw 35 people from The Armed Forces Community enaging with Mindfulness teachers from NHS and Mindfulness 37. A powerpoint showed the principles of Mindfulness and after the teabreak everyone joined in with the Mindfulness practices. This was followed by an interesting Q and A.

* 2017 Invited to Kinloss Barracks to talk about Mindfulness to families and serving personnel.

* 2017 Cameron Barracks, Wimberley Way, invited to come and speak to Community Forum on the benefits of Mindfulness to Armed Forces personnel and families.

* 2017 RAF Lossiemouth, invited to come and take part in Wellness Day with RAF staff and community, racing awareness of Mental Health in Tri-services community

* Jan and Elke ran monthly Mindfulness courses in The Seaforth Club, Nairn to encourage more members of the Armed Forces Community to come and try Mindfulness for wellbeing during 2017-2019 when Covid happened.

Since Covid, Jan and Elke together with an expanding network of Mindfulness Facilitators have been teaching with Highland Mindfulness Group, which during lockdown provided free Mindfulness sessions to everyone in the community online.

During 2020 Highland Mindfulness Group became registered as a charity, and we have run many courses for people, including 8 week courses, study days, retreats and daily meditations online and face to face. Highland Mindfulness Group are now teaching Mindfulness to staff in NHS and Adult Social Care.

Jan has continued to make new connections with UK Defence through various channels, including the Defence Buddhist Network and through links with Kinloss Barracks.

During this year (2022) Jan has once again been able to offer Yoga and Mindfulness Taster sessions with Officers at Kinloss Barracks and plan to provide regular courses during the next 12 months.

In the past 2 years UK Defence has championed the benefits on Mindfulness through the International Mindfulness in Defence Symposium (2021) Chaired by General Robert MacGowan and supported by other members of the UK Defence Mindfulness Steering Group. There are many very committed people within UK Defence who are committed to bringing regular Mindfulness sessions and courses across the three services, and civil services. Jan is very grateful to Dr. Sunil Kariyakarawana and members of the Defence Buddhist Network for friendship and mutual support in bringing the benefits of Mindfulness to serving personnel in UK Defence.

She is also grateful for the opportunity to help support Dr. Sunil by teaching Mindfulness and Meditation on the Buddhist Spiritual Care Givers Training Course the Kalayana Mitra Course twice a year for the past few years.

Recent research across Defence internationally recently shows an accumulating evidence base for enhanced resilience and welfare in personnel trained in Mindfulness. There is a significant increase in resilience (ability to 'bounce back') in the participants who regularly practices the Mindfulness Practices.

Jan is committed to continuing to bring Mindfulness to the Armed Forces and Police in the UK and Internationally.

If you would like to find out more about how Mindfulness can support your staff or team wellbeing please do email Jan at

info@mindfulforces.com

I will redirect you to personnel within Defence who can help with Mindfulness Training or to Highland Mindfulness Group for training for other groups and organisations

OFFERING ONE TO ONE MINDFULNESSSESSIONS

We are currently offering confidential one to one mindfulness training sessions in our warm, nurturing practice space in Nairn
Contact Jan or Elke on
info@mindfulforces.com

ARTICLES ON THE MILITARY AND MEDITATION:

Mindfulness Training is currently being researched in a number of contexts connected with the Military.

Mindfulness Meditation for PTSD, TBI, and Compassion Fatigue (Tracy Quantum’s New Book)
Mindfulness-based stress reduction therapy decreases PTSD symptom severity among Veterans
How to Improve Your Health with Mindfulness Meditation
Let Your Brain Relax: Mindfulness Meditation Can Reduce Some TBI Symptoms
Mindfulness Meditation Can Help Your Brain Handle Stress
Yoga gains support as a value-added treatment
Mindful Attention Increases and Mediates Psychological Outcomes
A Systematic Scoping Review of Complementary and Alternative Medicine
Teach Yourself to Meditate Mindfully
Meditation Programs for Psychological Stress and Well-being
Meditation’s positive residual effects
Mindfulness treatment as effective as CBT for depression and anxiety
Complimentary and alternative medicine for veterans and military personnel
Potential of Mindfulness in Treating Trauma Reactions
Yoga helps war Veterans get a handle on their PTSD
Mindfulness Meditation Could Help Stressed-Out Soldiers
War and Peace (of Mind): Mindfulness training for military could help them deal with stress
For Those With Traumatic Brain Injuries, Yoga Might Provide Some Benefit
Benefits of Mindfulness: Push-Ups for the Brain
Conscious Presence and Self Control as a Measure of Situational Awareness in Soldier- A Validation study
Soldiering On: New Methods for Battling PTSD
‘Mindfulness’ Therapy May Help Veterans with PTSD
Marine Expanding use of Meditation Training
Breathing exercises help veterans find peace after war, Stanford scholar says
Shaping Future Generations: Med Students Experience Mind-Body Therapies
Mindfulness and the Military: Does Self-Acceptance Help Veterans?
Meditation, stretching may ease PTSD symptoms
How Mindfulness Training Could Help People With PTSD Symptoms
Mindfulness Could Help Ease War- Related PTSD Symptoms, Study Finds
Mindfulness Therapy Can Aid Vets With PTSD
Meditation and Healing Combat Stress
Mindfulness and Mediation training could ease PTSD symptoms, researchers say
Reducing stress the military way?
“ALTERNATIVE” MEDICINE USE ON THE RISE IN MILITARY
A New Component of US Military Combat Preparedness Meditation
Meditation technique helps Veterans with PTSD
Meditation Training Shows Brain Effects Even Outside A Meditative Sate
Transcendental Meditation May Help Stressed Vets
New study shows PTSD Symptoms in Combat-Exposed Military Can be Reduced with Healing Touch and Guided Imagery
For Veterans, a Surge of New Treatments for Trauma
A State of Military Mind
Tracy Quantum Mindful Military Meditation
VA testing whether meditation can help treat PTSD
TBI Wounded Warrior Offers Healing Tips/Tracy Dyson (Health.mil/DOD)
PTSD? Try Meditation and Yoga
Meditation Heals Military Vets with PTSD
Inside the Pentagon’s Alt-Medicine Mecca, Where the Generals Meditate
‘Mindfulness’ Helps Soldiers Cope in Iraq
E. Raymond Rock, on Meditation and the Military – An Oxymoron? Or is Meditation Going Mainstream?
Harvard, Brigham Study: Yoga Eases Veterans PTSD Symptoms
Belleruth Naparstek on Can Meditation Bolster Mental Health in Soldiers and Veterans?
Troops use ‘Samurai’ Meditation to soothe PTSD

Veterans of the British Armed Forces