Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Course

Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) online course

What Is MBSR?

MBSR is an evidence-based 8-week program developed by Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. MBSR is not an alternative to medical or psychological treatments but complements those approaches. MBSR is an instructor-led program where you are guided in practices that you can use to manage stress more effectively. This path creates a space for more healing, vitality, and joy amongst the demands and stressors of daily life.

When and where:

Wednesday Evenings  6:30 pm to 9 pm (EST) via Zoom 
September 18th – November 6th, 2024
Day Session will be held on October 19th from 9:30 am to 2 pm (EST)

Cost of the course: $550

Discounts are available.  If you are eligible for any discounts listed below, call 202-833-5055 to apply your discount.

  • GWCIM providers: 40% off
  • GWCIM current patients: 20% off
  • GWU faculty, staff, and students: 20% off
  • Clinical Professionals: 20% off
  • First Responders (EMT’s, Firefighters, Police): 20% off
  • Couples: 25% off
  • Non-GW students: 10% off

Certificates of completion are available.

Instructors:

Why is MBSR helpful?

Learning to practice MBSR can help you bring your mind back to the present moment – a crucial part of reducing stress and managing mental or physical pain. You will learn meditation and gentle yoga practices in a supportive community and gain insights that will allow you to modify behaviors to manage everyday stress and chronic illness.

What To Expect?

Join us for this 8-week MBSR Program taught online by Nina Paul and Cynthia Powell, Qualified MBSR Teachers, and Health Coaches, through the GW Center For Integrative Medicine. Participants will meet for 2.5 hours once a week and for one all-day session online session.

Sessions will include:

  • Guided activities, including body scans, mindful yoga, stretching, and other
    movements to learn how to listen to your physical bod
  • Teacher-led instruction in mindfulness meditation practices
  • Exercises to improve awareness in everyday life
  • Interactive learning with group dialogue and mindful communication
  • Daily at-home assignments, reading materials and guided audio meditations.

Participants receive a certificate of completion

Mbsr certificate completion

Testimonials 

“The MBSR class was a great learning experience. It allowed me to expand my current meditation practice, and it gave me tools to incorporate mindfulness into my daily life. The camaraderie and support from others in the class was a wonderful surprise!”  – 2024

“I experienced an unanticipated breakthrough during the 8-week session which led to an improvement in my outlook towards my disease condition.” – 2024

“The MBSR course was enormously helpful in teaching me how to slow down and exist in the present moment. I now know that when anxiety starts to rise up in my body and mind that I can return to the present, focusing on the rise and fall of my belly and breath. The guided body scans helped me to release some of the trauma that I have held in my body for 50 years. ” – 2024

“The course was an effective way to begin a practical meditation practice that you can carry forward in your life.  I can’t recommend it enough.”   -Dr. Mehret Mandefro, CEO Truth Aid, Spring 2023

“The MBSR class made an incredible impact on my mental wellness and life. The instructors are very knowledgeable and also truly compassionate. I had never found meditation to be approachable until taking this course”. – a participant, spring 2022

“This class surpassed my expectations. I came to the class because I was very stressed and overwhelmed with work and home challenges (on top of this pandemic). I have been able to relax, have learned how to respond to stresses, and it has made my life far less stressful than it had been. My husband has seen a big difference in my moods and how I interact with him. This is an amazing program! “- a participant, fall 2022

“Thank you so much for holding the MBSR class for all of us. It was truly a great experience and I have become more in tune with myself then ever before. My senses are aware of every noise, smell, and touch and I have even been able to feel when a friend is about to call me before the phone even begins to ring! ” — Rupa, 2022

“The MBSR class has been so transformative in helping to regulate my emotional states.  I can be very emotionally labilt at times.  Learning to be mindful and aware of the present, through formal and informal practices, has made me less reactive.  I think before I act, and my relationships have better because of that.”  — Christina, 2021

“I registered for the MBSR class in hopes of finding relief for the anxiety I was experiencing and my inability to sleep soundly at night.  The class provided helpful techniques that I now practice on a daily basis, which have reduced my overall feelings of stress and anxiety and helped my ability to sleep at night.  I now fall asleep each night feeling calm and relaxed.  I sleep deeply and wake each morning feeling rested and stress-free.” — Steve, 2021

Below is the recorded orientation class for those who cannot attend live zoom orientation.