Flourishing In Stressful Times - With Tara Brach

Transform anger & anxiety into resilience & creative energy through the practice of compassion, mindfulness & meditation

What you'll learn

Know your habitual, automatic reactions to stress

Access the resources of mindfulness and compassion

Make more conscious choices in pressured situations

Grow stronger and wiser right in the very midst of stress

Experience a larger, more empowered and joyful way of being in the world

Requirements

There is no prerequisite to taking this course.

Description

When stressful events come our way, evolution has hardwired us to go into the fight-flight-freeze response. This automatic process served us well in surviving across millennia as a species, but in modern life, unconscious reactivity often is counterproductive and even harmful to the things that matter most to us.
In reality, stress – the actual experience of tension, of demand – though it may be uncomfortable, doesn’t have to be a problem. In fact, a certain amount of stress is necessary to bring out our full intelligence, creativity and care. It’s the essential ground for us to wake up to our own full potential: to who we really are. When we cultivate our capacities for mindfulness and compassion, meeting the challenges of life actually helps us grow mentally & emotionally stronger, as well as physically healthier thanks to reduced inflammation responses.
A critical inquiry for us as humans is: When we get triggered and reactive, how do we shift from flight-flight-freeze, into “attend and befriend”?  This is the evolutionary shift that reconnects us to ourselves and each other; and, globally, can help to end violence and heal our precious earth.
In this short course packed with practical teachings and scientifically validated meditation exercises, students will work directly with their real-life negative patterns and learn to relate to stress with an empowering, clear and caring presence.

Overview

Section 1: Bringing Presence to Stressful Situations

Lecture 1 Course Overview

Lecture 2 We Don't Have to Figure it Out

Lecture 3 The Oak Is in the Acorn

Lecture 4 Practice Exercise: Skillfully Attending to Discomfort

Lecture 5 Practice Exercise: Ordinary Stressors

Section 2: Stress and Evolution

Lecture 6 Stuck in the Mud

Lecture 7 Benefiting from Stress

Lecture 8 Major Stressors

Lecture 9 Practice Exercise: How Did it Change You

Section 3: Intention and Attention

Lecture 10 Intention

Lecture 11 Practice Exercise: May This Serve

Lecture 12 Attention - and a Shift in Identity (with Case Study)

Lecture 13 Practice Exercise: Our Path is Through

Section 4: Building Heartwood

Lecture 14 Less Lag Time

Lecture 15 Big Squeeze

Lecture 16 Mindfulness Counteracts Stress-Induced Inflammation

Lecture 17 Case Study: Offensive Banter

Lecture 18 Case Study: Parenting an Addicted Teen

Lecture 19 Practice Exercise: Your Future Self Calling You

Section 5: Everyday Nirvana

Lecture 20 3 Ways to Cultivate Evolutionary Potential

Lecture 21 Practice Exercise: Getting Familiar with Everyday Nirvana

Lecture 22 Bonus Lecture: Additional Resources & Acknowledgements

Anyone who feels plagued by stress,Anyone troubled by ongoing, mild-to-moderate anxiety,Anyone caught in repeating destructive behaviors,Anyone who'd like to handle relationship challenges more successfully