Mindfulness Based Living Course
An 8-week beginners course
The Mindfulness Based Living Course (MBLC) is a weekly mindfulness course for beginners, with kindness and compassion at the centre. It is an 8-week course, each session is two hours long, with a specific area of focus (see programme below). Along with the MBSR, it is one of the main recognised courses for beginners.
The course is held in a small group on Zoom run by two of our trained mindfulness facilitators. The course is largely experiential and home practice is an integral and important aspect of the course.
COURSE DATES
Please email Daniel (admin) on highlandmindfulness@gmail.com to be notified of the next course starting in 2026.
We have developed an MBLC specifically for people with long-term health conditions and we are actively looking for funding so that we can offer that course for free.
COST
TBC.
Please do not let affordability be a barrier as half price concessions are available for those on low/no income and we can also offer a flexible payment plan to pay by instalments. Payment to our charity can be via PayPal or bank transfer.
Benefits of Mindfulness
Mindfulness can bring more awareness, gratitude, kindness & compassion into our lives and can help us feel more relaxed and able to cope. It can also help to build resilience. Mindfulness is a well validated scientific approach which can help with stress, anxiety, depression, isolation and chronic pain. Teaching mindfulness in a group helps individuals to develop compassion and self compassion through shared experiences and an understanding of our common humanity.
What’s included:
- 8 x 2-hour group sessions on Zoom with 2 trained mindfulness facilitators
- Course manual in PDF format (sent out weekly)
- Audio recordings of the guided meditations
- A certificate of completion can be given to anyone who attends at least 6 of the 8 sessions.
Course participants are welcome to join in with the regular free drop-in sessions offered by the Highland Mindfulness Group to help people maintain their practice.
Feedback from previous course participants:
‘Excellent, would definitely recommend to others.’
‘This is a journey and I have the tools to sustain myself.’
PROGRAMME
Session 1 – Starting where we are – allowing us to recognise the unsettled mind and practice how we might settle the mind.
Session 2 – The body as a place to stay present – looks at mindfulness in every day life, exploring kindness and awareness of how the body can anchor us to the present moment.
Session 3 – Introducing mindful support – during this session we will practice the 3 minute breathing space, we explore using sound as a support to our practice, topics for this session also include what we mean by non striving and responding to pleasant and unpleasant events.
Session 4 – Working with distraction – we explore using the support of the breath and mindful walking.
Session 5 – Exploring the undercurrent – looking at the undercurrent as a constant steam of thoughts, emotions and physical sensations, topics for this session will also cover loving kindness in our lives.
Session 6 – Attitude – we continue to look at kindness for ourself and others, learning more about the attitude we bring to the undercurrent as we observe the flow of thoughts, emotions and physical sensations
Session 7 – Self Acceptance – the main theme of this session is looking at self acceptance and drawing on the work of Professor Paul Gilbert. We explore practices in self compassion and practice self acceptance with the RAIN practice (Recognising, Allowing, Intimate attention and Non identification).
Session 8 – A mindful based life – during this session mindfulness support will be revisited – review of the journey so far and where do we go from here.
Highland Mindfulness Group 