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Overcoming Overthinking with Mindfulness

 

A Swirl Live event 25th September, Newcastle upon Tyne

I’m delighted to be offering an introduction to mindfulness practice  together with Andy Walton, Founder of Swirl, on 25th September. Details as follows:

Tuning into your breath and focusing your attention is a key first step to overcoming a distressing level of overthinking. Mindfulness is a technique that can strengthen this ability. A practice aimed at using your senses to ground yourself into the here and now. Yet, it’s a practice that takes discipline, perseverance and patience and it’s not a quick fix.

Join Swirl as we take you through key approaches to effective practice, discussing common barriers, busting myths and providing clarity on how it works. The session is led by Gwennie Fraser, a mindfulness teacher with over 25 years of experience and Andy Walton, Community Mental Health Nurse and Swirl Founder.

The session includes takeaway copies of the Swirl Guide to overcoming overthinking to ensure participants build on what they have learnt and continue an empowered outlook.

Capacity — 10 participants

Price £15 (£13.50 for Swirl Members)

Date: Wednesday 25th September, 2019

Time: 7–9pm

Venue: Tyneside Cinema, The Headspace Room, 10 Pilgrim St, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 6QG

Contact: andy.walton@swirlzine.com for further information.

About Swirl:

Swirl is an outlet for those wishing to overcome overthinking in positive, proactive and practical ways. We provide evidence-based, uncomplicated and empowering guidance through vibrant, artful print and thoughtful real-life conversations.

Swirl is a project led by a transatlantic, multi-disciplinary team with lived experiences of anxiety. We are a social organisation, aiming to break down barriers and encourage dialogue in spaces not usually entered by mental health-specific services. We create opportunities to engage everyday people proactively in approaches to better manage worry and rumination.

www.swirlzine.com

Swirl

I was delighted to receive my copy of Swirl recently, a booklet produced by Andy Walton and Gina Yu, on overcoming worry and over-thinking. Andy Walton is a community mental health  nurse based  in the north-east who trained in mindfulness through the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction course and works with military veterans through  Combat Stress, a charity that helps military veterans with anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Andy wanted to produce a guide to rumination that would be concise,  empowering, uncomplicated and pleasing to the eye, and also free of mental health stereotyping. The words “mental health ” don’t appear until the last page. The result is a stylish and beautifully produced 20 page booklet, designed by award-winning creatives, including Guardian and New York Times illustrator Nate Kitch, providing accessible and straightforward wisdom on rumination from mental health professionals. It is simple, accessible and contains clearly presented information in a series of beautifully illustrated chapters. As Andy described in an interview with The Guardian, ‘if you wake up in the middle of the night with your mind swirling with thoughts, my hope is that you can pick up Swirl and that it will soothe you, help you feel a bit more in control, bring you back to the here and now. It’s something you could read on the bus on your way to work that will give you the positive mindset that you are in control of your thoughts.’ You can read more of the article from this link:

https://www.theguardian.com/healthcare-network/2018/may/15/mental-health-self-help-guide-swirl-zine

The booklet gives simple clear guidance on being grounded in the present moment, recognising thought activity and for example, the benefit of labelling thoughts rather than being subjected to the labels, making choices that stem from responding rather than reacting, and the value of building blocks of taking small steps towards a narrative of self-care and resilience. It’s a wonderful distillation of practical advice on how to work with rumination and engage pro-actively with the present moment,  building new habits to support well-being. The combination of its simplicity and design has great impact, simple truths powerfully distilled in a creative format that inspire the possibility of working transformatively with the mind.

Swirl is available from www.swirlzine.com for £6. Since publication, the booklet has  been donated for free to every secondary school pupil in the borough affected by the Grenfell Fire.