Each class has instructional meditation practice as well as a mindful movement component (gentle yoga, walking, or qigong). Through lectures and discussions you will learn how your own habitual reactions to stress create anxiety, depression and illness, as well as how to change your responses to stress.  Each class includes a group-support element of personal sharing and question-and-answer time to round out this intensive eight week experience of mindfulness meditation.

Upon completion of the seminar you will be able to:

• Identify signs and symptoms of stress in your body and mind
• Practice specific meditation practices as a routine to improve the management of symptoms and quality of life
• Practice mindful movement skills as a routine to improve the management of symptoms and quality of life
• Demonstrate new coping skills related to illness, pain, and stress-related conditions
• Demonstrate communication skills to improve relationships with family, friends, health care providers, and the work environment
• Identify the relationship between stressful thoughts and uncomfortable body sensations in their own bodies
• Explain the physiological effects of stress
• Describe where and when the use of mindfulness techniques is appropriate to manage difficult situations
• Practice mindful meditation or mindful movement to manage stressful feelings Demonstrate meditation on the breath
• Demonstrate meditation on physical sensations
• Demonstrate meditation on sound 
• Demonstrate meditation on mind-states/thoughts/emotions
• Demonstrate walking meditation
• Demonstrate concentration practices
• Demonstrate meditation techniques designed to create conditions for personal insight into your habits, personality, and cognitions

Eliza Morton is a master’s level licensed mental health counselor and certified nutritionist.  She received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Bastyr University where she later spent four years as an adjunct faculty. She completed the Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Professional Training Program with Bob Stahl, PhD who collaborated with Jon Kabat-Zinn to develop the widely researched MBSR program that is being offered in medical and private institutions of health all over the world today.

Eliza practices the recommendations she gives to others in her own life and has undergone intensive study of Vipassana meditation. In addition to a daily meditation practice, Eliza has completed 108 days of silent meditation retreats in Washington, California, Massachusetts, Burma, and Thailand.  As a counselor, she commonly helps her clients through anxiety, depression, life transitions, emotional eating, relationship struggles, grief and loss, or interests of self inquiry and personal evolution.

In Eliza’s words:  “With all of my heart I believe we are all in this thing together, and the work that we each do to understand ourselves more, to learn to love and honor ourselves, each other and the earth more, and to develop compassion for all beings is the most selfless and respectable goal to undertake. Thank you for the work you are doing, keep it up; and I will keep up mine.”For more information about this instructor go to: www.ElizaMorton.com

Course Notes

Dress comfortably and bring a yoga mat.

Location: Class is located at the Bastyr Center for Natural Health Clinic, room N192
3670 Stone Way North Seattle, WA 98103

Parking in the Bastyr lot is reserved for Clinic patients. You may park on the street or in the lot on the corner of 38th & Woodlawn (if you arrive after 5:30).

Location Sunday:  Daylong retreat on Sunday June 2 9:30-4:30pm, room 1062 at the Bastyr University Kenmore campus.  You may park anywhere in the lot.  A parking pass will be sent to you via email.

Dress in layers as the building is old and heating is unpredictable.

The optional book, Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Workbook by Bob Stahl & Elisha Goldstein, is available in the Bastyr Bookstore.

Continuing Education Units (CEUs, PDAs, CMEs, CPEUs):

CEUs available for NDs (except CA & OR)
CEUs available for marriage & family therapists, mental health counselors, and social workers licensed in WA
CEUs available for LMPs licensed in WA
CEUs available for physical & occupational therapists licensed in WA
NCBTMB CEs pending approval for LMPs
CEUs available for ARNPs and RNs licensed in WA
CEUs available for DCs licensed in WA
Category II CMEs available for MDs and PAs licensed in WA