A live 8-week Compassionate Mind Training (CMT) course on Tuesday evenings 21 January – 11 March (online).
Course dates: 21 Jan; 28 Jan; 4 Feb; 11 Feb; 18 Feb; 25 Feb; 4 Mar; 11 Mar.
Course time: 6.00pm – 8.30pm.
Course facilitators: Jen Wood and Chloe Scott, Certified CMT Facilitators, Balanced Minds.
Free taster sessions: 7 & 14 January 2025 (6:00 – 6:45pm).
Course Description
This evidence-based 8-week course (Irons & Heriot-Maitland, 2020) guides participants in developing their ‘compassionate minds’. Each session offers a carefully curated blend of:
- Informative taught content
- Practical experiential exercises and practices, including:
- Mindfulness techniques
- Guided imagery
- Compassionate mind skills development
- Engaging group discussions
- Insightful video presentations
- Reflective written work
As the course progresses, participants will learn to:
- Develop and access their ‘compassionate minds’
- Apply compassionate thinking to reduce self-criticism
- Use compassion-focused techniques to balance strong negative emotions (e.g., anger, anxiety, shame)
- Cultivate greater compassion towards themselves and others
This course aims to provide practical tools and insights that participants can apply in their daily lives, fostering personal growth and improved emotional wellbeing.
Further information
This 8 Week Compassionate Mind Training (CMT) programme course was developed by Irons & Heriot-Maitland (2020), adapted from the ground-breaking work of internationally renowned psychologist and creator of Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT), Professor Paul Gilbert.
- During the course, participants will learn:
how our minds are naturally susceptible to getting caught up in negative thinking-emotion ‘loops’ - about the ‘three emotion systems’ model, and how many of us can get stuck in emotional imbalance
- what compassion is, what attributes help to facilitate it, what can block it, and how we can train our minds in it
- that compassion can come in three different ‘flows’ – to others (compassion for others), from others (compassion from others) and to ourselves (self-compassion)
- to develop skills to balance their emotions by developing skills in mindfulness and compassion
Participants will have the opportunity to develop skills in:
- Mindfulness – we will explore the power of attention and awareness, and practice a variety of mindfulness exercises that can help people to develop greater attentional stability
- Breathing – practising how certain types of breathing rhythm can help to soothe and calm the body, and consequentially, the mind
- Compassion – we will explore how to develop your ‘compassionate mind’ through a variety of practices, including those involving memory, imagery/imagination, embodied action, emotion and thinking.
Participants will be invited to practise skills between each session, supported by audio files and clear written guidance.
Accessibility: This course will be offered in a neuro-inclusive way, allowing for different processing preferences. Movement will be encouraged during the session and there will be a break to allow for moving away from the screen.
Find out more details about our Compassion Focused Therapy trainings here, and our self-compassion resources here
This course is in part build upon the wonderful work of Professor Paul Gilbert
