Guided Practices

“Ancient trees are precious. There is little else on Earth that plays host to such a rich community of life within a single living organism.”

— Sir David Attenborough

Using photosynthesis, a tree combines a little water with carbon dioxide from the air to produce the building blocks for its own growth, as well as oxygen for us. We breath in the oxygen and breath out carbon dioxide. The tree breaths in our carbon dioxide and draws it back in to itself to grow. Over time, as this exchange occurs, the tree records history in each ring in its wood.

As you pass an urban tree in Glasgow, or where ever you are, maybe pause for a breathing space and share a few breaths.

As you pass an urban tree in Glasgow, or where ever you are, maybe pause for a breathing space and share a few breaths.

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In May, when we were able to go out for an hour a day during lock down, we recorded some of our walks in the parks and lanes of Glasgow. As we began to do this and pay attention to the soundscapes around us we were struck by how rich this dimension became and began to recognise the diversity and quality of sound.

We plan to add a series of these in the practice section of this app. Here is an morning walk in a Glasgow park (approx. 60 minutes) and an afternoon walk along a tree lined pathway (16 minutes 40 seconds).

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This week we have added another practice led by one of our mindfulness therapists/teachers : sound and breath meditation (approximately 20 minutes). Guidance within any practice is merely offered as a support, we can follow the direction, or listen to the rhythm and tone. The same mindfulness teacher offers a 10 minute sound and breath practice for those of you looking for a shorter practice.    

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As part of our series exploring local soundscapes we have added two more sound recordings from evening walks in a Glasgow park in May (40 minute, 60 minute) .  When we were recording these and working on transferring them to this app we noticed how the very act of trying to capture sounds around us changed our awareness of sound, we became more intricately aware of the sound environment in general. If your phone is able to record, e.g. voice memos, it might be interesting to explore familiar sounds around you and see what happens if you were to try and capture sounds within a familiar environment (Do remember to ask permission if you are recording anyone speaking in advance). 

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We are aware from feedback that as well as the 'What's new ' section, that the practice section of this part of the app is popular. We are thinking about how we can develop this in a helpful way. In the interim, our mindfulness therapists and teachers are working with us to record new practices we can share with you. All of the practices are led by local NHS clinicians trained to teach mindfulness. We will keep building this library for you to use.  We hope that among them you will find a voice and a style of leading that supports your practice. Here is a link to the newest led practice, sitting with difficulty.

Practices from live on line NHS GG&C mindfulness groups

We are recording the meditation practices at some of live on line NHS groups and adding a section to the “Guided Practices’ page within the community section of this app. The recordings are presented as is, recorded via a laptop's microphone and speaker, with the odd phone alert and other background noises occasionally intruding in the background.....but we hope you find something here that might be useful for your personal practice.

We are keen for feedback from those of you attending groups to help us shape this app and our YouTube page to best meet your needs. For those of you who have found this app and are not inked to any of our groups , we wish you well on your journey of exploring mindfulness and hope the resources we offer can support you in a helpful way. We will add new practices each week, so please come back regularly and see what's new.

 

Last updated: 06/09/2023