Jill Harrison, NLP Master Practitioner, Manager of Next Generation Health and a Healthy Lifestyle Coach within the NHS. She is also a mum and delivers her own fitness classes.
‘…surveys suggest that more children and young people have problems with their mental health today than 30 years ago. That’s probably because of changes in the way we live now and how that affects the experience of growing up.’
– Mental Health Foundation
The Context
Gone are the days when your back street, the local park, and a handful of real-life friends, made up your experience of the world. The younger generation of today is struggling to cope in this age of social media, academic pressure and the relentless bombardment of global information to which they are subjected.
If anything is to change, we must acknowledge that young people are not responsible for the environments in which they live and learn. Just because they can master the latest technology in the blink of an eye does not mean that they are mature or ready for what it reveals. Their vulnerable, developing brains are exposed to information and stressors that OUR generation has created, and they are crumbling under the pressure…
Here are the facts:
75% of all mental health problems are established by the age of 18.
75% of those young people do not receive treatment, largely due to the lack of available services.
No child should have to reach crisis point to get help with their mental health. And yet many of our CAMHS (Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services) are not able to offer treatment to a young person unless they have actually made an attempt to end their young life. This is NOT acceptable, but neither is placing the sole responsibility at the door of these services.
Once we acknowledge that Pandora’s Box is now well and truly open, and that the social media monster is not going away anytime soon, we must look to other means of addressing the ills causing such issues in our young people.
Being at Cause – a cause for real change!
Is it not ironic,
That in this brand-new age of technology,
Which fosters addiction, emptiness and lack,
We turn to the ancient wisdoms and practices
To bring fulfilment, balance and bliss?
Our young people live at effect of their environments, on social media, at school and amongst their peer groups. In order for change to happen, and for them to have any sense of self-mastery, we must take a generative approach, so that new skills can be developed and practiced. And those skills are neither complex nor new. Rather, they are simple and ancient. The brains of our young people are primed for change and we already have the tools to help them to thrive. What we might perceive as inherent, and therefore fixed traits, that lead to anxiety or depression, are, in reality, natural internal reactions to their external world. Under the right kind of guidance, the skills to thrive can easily be developed.
Happiness is a skill
Emotional Balance is a skill
Compassion & Altruism are skills
Like all skills they have to be developed
That’s what education is about
– Matthieu Ricard
Curiosity and Flexibility – Tools to Foster Resilience
The age-old practice of mindfulness is gaining momentum in the modern world and has a plethora of evidence science to support its application, from improving mental health to enhancing wellbeing for us all. Mindfulness has the real potential to help us to feel alive, and to fully live in the moment, which is, in reality, all that we have.
Increasingly, young people and adults are learning how to practice mindfulness in order to develop the skills to live well alongside life’s ups and downs. Mindfulness can help us to regulate emotions, to manage anxiety and depression, and it can help us to focus better, to prevent our feelings from running away with us. It offers a pause between our emotions and our behaviours, enabling us to respond, rather than react, to situations.
If you change the way you look at things,
The things you look at change
Wayne Dyer
For those young people who turn to substances or to self-harm to avoid difficult feelings, or for those experiencing chronic anxiety, practicing mindfulness has the potential to allow them to tune into and allow those unwanted feelings to just-be, in the present, without allowing them the power to overwhelm. With consistent practice, they can learn to go beyond ‘sitting with the feelings’ and approach their emotions and thoughts with curiosity and affection, and ultimately develop self-mastery.
If every 8-year-old in the world is taught meditation, we will eliminate violence
from the world within one generation
– Dalai Lama
How Does it Work?
Mindfulness means: Deliberately paying attention to present moment, without judgement
It’s free, it’s flexible and it’s easy to do.
Like any skill, the most benefit is felt with consistent practice.
Many people run the belief that they cannot meditate. But mindfulness does not necessarily mean sitting cross legged in silent meditation for hours on end (although some people do practice in this way). We can be mindful when seated or lying down; when walking or eating; in fact, we can be mindful at any time of the waking day, even in the busiest of lives, with mindful moments. What is crucial for lasting changes to the brain, and consequently to fully engaging with life, is consistency, and with this in mind we leave you with a 30 second practice, that can be done at any time and in any place.
30 Second Mindfulness Moment
- Bring your attention to the present moment. Noticing your breath is a great place to start
- Look around and focus on any object
- Name the object “I see a Pen” (for example) (internally – not aloud – strange looks!)
- Now take three deep breaths in…and out
- Next focus on a new object. In the same way, name the object without ancillary information
- Take three deep breaths in…and out
- Now a third object
- And breathe…
You get the idea.
This can be done any time and any place. You may find that your breathing slows, along with your heart rate. If you have more than 30 seconds, you might engage other senses:
- Listen.“I hear traffic”
- Take three deep breaths
- Repeat for three sounds
- Feel.“I feel my feet on the floor”
- Take three deep breaths
- Repeat for three sensations
If you would like to further your mindfulness practice, there are many ways to approach this. There are free apps for phones, such as ‘Insight Timer’, which offers a vast range of practices. To take your practice to the next level, search providers who offer eight-week programmes for adults, and these generally focusing on mindfulness for stress or for health.
Next Generation Health is a collective of like-minded health professionals compelled to take action for the good of young people and families.
Along with training to teach the Youth Mindfulness Programme, they have decades of NHS and external experience with children and families, and a host of qualifications in nutrition, behaviour change and fitness.
They deliver the 16 session Youth Mindfulness programme as open courses for children and families in the north west of England.
For more on Next Generation Health, and to learn about family open courses:
https://www.facebook.com/nextgenhealthuk/
‘The Intention Impact Conundrum’ Reviewed By Georgia Cooper, aged 16…. and future Prime Minister!26th October 2018 - 10:38 am
Young Minds in Crisis and A Surprisingly Simple Solution!10th October 2018 - 10:45 am
Young Minds in Crisis and A Surprisingly Simple Solution!
/by flomaddenco‘…surveys suggest that more children and young people have problems with their mental health today than 30 years ago. That’s probably because of changes in the way we live now and how that affects the experience of growing up.’
– Mental Health Foundation
The Context
Gone are the days when your back street, the local park, and a handful of real-life friends, made up your experience of the world. The younger generation of today is struggling to cope in this age of social media, academic pressure and the relentless bombardment of global information to which they are subjected.
If anything is to change, we must acknowledge that young people are not responsible for the environments in which they live and learn. Just because they can master the latest technology in the blink of an eye does not mean that they are mature or ready for what it reveals. Their vulnerable, developing brains are exposed to information and stressors that OUR generation has created, and they are crumbling under the pressure…
Here are the facts:
75% of all mental health problems are established by the age of 18.
75% of those young people do not receive treatment, largely due to the lack of available services.
No child should have to reach crisis point to get help with their mental health. And yet many of our CAMHS (Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services) are not able to offer treatment to a young person unless they have actually made an attempt to end their young life. This is NOT acceptable, but neither is placing the sole responsibility at the door of these services.
Once we acknowledge that Pandora’s Box is now well and truly open, and that the social media monster is not going away anytime soon, we must look to other means of addressing the ills causing such issues in our young people.
Being at Cause – a cause for real change!
Is it not ironic,
That in this brand-new age of technology,
Which fosters addiction, emptiness and lack,
We turn to the ancient wisdoms and practices
To bring fulfilment, balance and bliss?
Our young people live at effect of their environments, on social media, at school and amongst their peer groups. In order for change to happen, and for them to have any sense of self-mastery, we must take a generative approach, so that new skills can be developed and practiced. And those skills are neither complex nor new. Rather, they are simple and ancient. The brains of our young people are primed for change and we already have the tools to help them to thrive. What we might perceive as inherent, and therefore fixed traits, that lead to anxiety or depression, are, in reality, natural internal reactions to their external world. Under the right kind of guidance, the skills to thrive can easily be developed.
Happiness is a skill
Emotional Balance is a skill
Compassion & Altruism are skills
Like all skills they have to be developed
That’s what education is about
– Matthieu Ricard
Curiosity and Flexibility – Tools to Foster Resilience
The age-old practice of mindfulness is gaining momentum in the modern world and has a plethora of evidence science to support its application, from improving mental health to enhancing wellbeing for us all. Mindfulness has the real potential to help us to feel alive, and to fully live in the moment, which is, in reality, all that we have.
Increasingly, young people and adults are learning how to practice mindfulness in order to develop the skills to live well alongside life’s ups and downs. Mindfulness can help us to regulate emotions, to manage anxiety and depression, and it can help us to focus better, to prevent our feelings from running away with us. It offers a pause between our emotions and our behaviours, enabling us to respond, rather than react, to situations.
If you change the way you look at things,
The things you look at change
Wayne Dyer
For those young people who turn to substances or to self-harm to avoid difficult feelings, or for those experiencing chronic anxiety, practicing mindfulness has the potential to allow them to tune into and allow those unwanted feelings to just-be, in the present, without allowing them the power to overwhelm. With consistent practice, they can learn to go beyond ‘sitting with the feelings’ and approach their emotions and thoughts with curiosity and affection, and ultimately develop self-mastery.
If every 8-year-old in the world is taught meditation, we will eliminate violence
from the world within one generation
– Dalai Lama
How Does it Work?
Mindfulness means: Deliberately paying attention to present moment, without judgement
It’s free, it’s flexible and it’s easy to do.
Like any skill, the most benefit is felt with consistent practice.
Many people run the belief that they cannot meditate. But mindfulness does not necessarily mean sitting cross legged in silent meditation for hours on end (although some people do practice in this way). We can be mindful when seated or lying down; when walking or eating; in fact, we can be mindful at any time of the waking day, even in the busiest of lives, with mindful moments. What is crucial for lasting changes to the brain, and consequently to fully engaging with life, is consistency, and with this in mind we leave you with a 30 second practice, that can be done at any time and in any place.
30 Second Mindfulness Moment
You get the idea.
This can be done any time and any place. You may find that your breathing slows, along with your heart rate. If you have more than 30 seconds, you might engage other senses:
If you would like to further your mindfulness practice, there are many ways to approach this. There are free apps for phones, such as ‘Insight Timer’, which offers a vast range of practices. To take your practice to the next level, search providers who offer eight-week programmes for adults, and these generally focusing on mindfulness for stress or for health.
Next Generation Health is a collective of like-minded health professionals compelled to take action for the good of young people and families.
Along with training to teach the Youth Mindfulness Programme, they have decades of NHS and external experience with children and families, and a host of qualifications in nutrition, behaviour change and fitness.
They deliver the 16 session Youth Mindfulness programme as open courses for children and families in the north west of England.
For more on Next Generation Health, and to learn about family open courses:
https://www.facebook.com/nextgenhealthuk/
Are you looking for time and space you can dedicate to understanding how you can lead a fulfilling life and be the best version of yourself?
/by flomaddencoAs I look out over the countryside and see the sun shining and the leaves flourishing in rich colours, I am reminded that we are moving into a new season.
For many people this time of year is one when we start to reflect on what we’d like to achieve next, and we may consider changes we’d like to make.
If you’re currently seeking change to help you lead a more fulfilling life and would appreciate time and space to help you identify your next steps, you’ll love the Connected Development event I’m organising with Adam Hulme.
During the event you’ll hear from two inspirational authors, Florence Madden and Steve Marriott, who will guide you through the process of transformation. Adam and I will support you during the day, and we’ll ensure the environment is a supportive one that will encourage you to stretch your comfort zone whilst still feeling safe and secure. You’ll leave the day with a renewed sense of enthusiasm, clarity over your next steps, and a strong support network to help you.
The event is taking place at The Federation, an inspirational space in central Manchester, on Monday 5th November. Ticket prices include lunch, and we’ll have plenty of snacks to keep your energy going – all you need to focus on whilst you’re here is how you can begin to lead the life you want to lead.
We’re really looking forward to having you join us on this journey to fulfilment. To book click:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/connected-development-a-self-discovery-experience-tickets-48480107306
P.S. The price will go up on 26th October to the standard price of £197; make sure you book by 26th October to take advantage of the discounted early-bird rate of £147
Website: https://jowalley.co.uk
You might be interested in…………
/by flomaddencoYou might be interested in…………mine and Eleni’s other new books, both of which are now available on Amazon !!
The Intention Impact Conundrum
Perception Projection
Coming Soon…….
Congratulations!
/by flomaddencoCongratulations to all of those who gained NLP Coaching Diploma qualifications this summer:
Open Course at Ullswater June /July
Baxi Group Daventry June /July
‘Everyday NLP’ …Update!
/by flomaddencoIt started as a joke, I said to Eleni we should write our own NLP book………..unexpectedly she said yes…….so in January this year we got started……….in February I joined her in Kuala Lumpur to pull our ideas together, (and have some pictures taken as you can see !). We wanted to explain the key concepts of NLP through our own stories and take away the possible mystique. NLP is relevant to our everyday life and experiences ……..so that is what we have set out to show.
Since then we have met up in London, Thessaloniki and now Toulouse to bring our ideas together. Thank you to all of those who have read drafts and given us feedback so far………we are very close to the finish line and expect to go to print in September!
You might be interested in…
/by flomaddencoThe Intention Impact Conundrum
Perception Projection
My New Book, ‘The Intention Impact Conundrum’ on Amazon from 26 April 2018 !!!
/by flomaddencoFirst all of some ‘thank yous’ to friends and clients who have become friends……..and all now my editors: Sue Knight, Claire Bradshaw, Chris Bray, Laura Cadman, Maureen Tallis, Dr Jo Verrill, Nicky Ellis, Alyson Renwick, Eleni Sarantinou and Dr David Fraser.
Thank you for your help and feedback that have got the book to this point ………and your generous testimonials.
A little taste of Chapter 1: The View From Here
When you stand inside a building usually you can see what is in there, you know the quality of the light, the temperature, the furnishings – and something of what it is like to be in there. People outside can only glimpse through the windows or other openings and see only a little of what you can see. They can only guess what it is like to be in there, based on what they observe. From inside we don’t have their perspective either, we don’t know the overall picture that they can see or interpret how it looks to them.
That is how it is for us too as people. We know what it is like on the inside because that is our main view. Sometimes we don’t even know what is in some of the rooms yet because we have to make the effort to explore to know that. We don’t know what people are seeing from the outside unless we go out and join them there, and ask them questions about what they are seeing. So our view if we stand still is naturally limited. In NLP* a key pre-supposition is that:
Everyone has a different map of the world
If on the other hand we are curious enough to explore, paying attention to what is happening around us, willing to shift our perspective and respectful enough to ask for and listen to others’ viewpoints, then our map of the world will expand and change! With it, our relationships with others, and indeed with ourselves, shifts too.
That is what this book is all about
….. being curious
….. being willing to look from new perspectives
….. being open to feedback verbal or observed
…. and helping others to do the same……
So how can we get a handle on the impact we have on others…..and what to do about it?
* NLP – Neuro Linguistic Programming is an approach to communication, personal development, and psychotherapy created by Richard Bandler, John Grinder and Frank Pucelik in California, the United States in the 1970s. Their work was based on the work of thinkers in 1960s and 1970s operating in the fields of cybernetics, therapy and philosophy.
Click on the link below to see the full Conference programme:
www.nlpconference.com
Coming soon ‘Everyday NLP’ Goes on Sale In June !
/by flomaddencoIt started as a joke, I said to Eleni we should write our own NLP book………..unexpectedly she said yes…….so in January this year we got started……….in February I joined her in Kuala Lumpur to pull our ideas together, (and have some pictures taken as you can see !). We wanted to explain the key concepts of NLP through our own stories and take away the possible mystique. NLP is relevant to our everyday life and experiences ……..so that is what we have set out to show.
Watch this space for more details !!
In the meantime find out more about Eleni on:
http://www.life-spheres.com/
Or join us on the lovely Greek isle of Amorgos this August for the NLP Business Practitioner (In English with Greek exclammations and Irish sayings !!)
You might be interested in…………
/by flomaddencoYou might be interested in…………Eleni’s other new book, which is available for pre-order this month too !!
Look Out For ‘The Intention Impact Conundrum’ Book Launch in April 2018
/by flomaddencoThe book: The Intention/Impact Conundrum is also the subject of my session at the NLP International Conference in May ! For details follow the link below. What it it is about, is beautifully summarised by Sue Knight NLP Master Trainer and author of NLP at Work:
“A great ‘bringing together’ of ways of thinking that result in simple, practical ways of learning and living in harmony with the world. What more could you ask?”
My second book ‘Everyday NLP’ is being co-authored with my friend and associate Eleni Sarantinou of Life Spheres and we expect to have our book also available for the NLP conference in May. The book looks at the key concepts of NLP, and as the title suggests, applies them in everyday situations. Find out more about Eleni on:
http://www.life-spheres.com/
Click on the link below to see the full Conference programme:
https://www.nlpconference.com/
And even better come and join me on my Sunday session:
I would love to see you there !!!