August 2022
News & Upcoming Events
  • IMP Certificate Program **UPDATED**

  • IMP Dharma Practice and Clinical Discussion Group

  • IMP Certificate Program Graduate Drop-In Group

  • IMP "Noble Mind" Podcast: Episode 64 **UPDATED**

  • Mindfulness In Clinical Practice: A Conversation Series

  • IMP Online Course: The Power of Therapeutic Presence

  • IMP Member New Publication: "Alphabreaths Too" **NEW**

  • IMP Members' Ongoing Offerings **UPDATED**

  • IMP Community Happenings **UPDATED**

IMP Certificate Program
** Now accepting applications for 2022-2023 **
Limited scholarship funding is now available to support minority/POC applicants.
ENGAGE

Immerse yourself in an intensive program of personal and intellectual study

  • 9 months, 120+ hours with distinguished faculty interaction
  • Weekly live group interactions for conversation with faculty, clinical consultation & ongoing meditation support
  • Two retreats (totaling 9 days) for scholarly and meditation instruction, and community building
  • Continuing Education credits for most professionals

CONNECT

  • Enjoy intimate engagement with distinguished faculty each week
  • Enhance your personal meditation practice through 1:1 and small group instruction
  • Discover a community of mutual support, investigation and connection with like-minded professionals

TRANSFORM

  • Change your life through a deep experiential understanding of meditation practice and Buddhist psychology.
  • Establish the foundation to teach or apply mindfulness personally and professionally.

COURSE DESCRIPTION

The oldest and most comprehensive training in mindfulness and psychotherapy, this course consists of weekly 'live' online events including:

  • Interactive live discussions with faculty
  • Small group moderated live discussions, case consultation, and presentations by students
  • Web-based lectures and readings by international experts, viewed at your convenience, from any time zone
  • Active online discussion forum on course material
  • Active online meditation discussion forum
  • Ongoing meditation instruction and support from seasoned meditation teachers
  • Two retreats for didactic instruction, community building, and meditation instruction/practice

WHO SHOULD APPLY

Admission is by application. Psychologists, psychiatrists, palliative care professionals, social workers, nurses, licensed mental health counselors, marriage and family therapists, and other professional caregivers are invited to apply. Other professionals will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Students should have some experience with mindfulness or other forms of Buddhist meditation practice.

Admission is limited to approximately 45 students. Because of the intimate and interactive nature of this program, admission will be granted to professionals motivated to actively engage with the curriculum and with fellow students, on and off the cushion.

IMP Dharma Practice and Clinical Discussion Group
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First Tuesday of each month
8:00am to 9:30am EST
with Douglas Baker, LICSW

The Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy offers a group for clinicians interested in nourishing their meditation practice and applying mindfulness in therapy. In a supportive and compassionate environment, the group will practice together to begin each meeting, and then explore mindfulness-based approaches to members’ clinical work.
 
We’ll explore secular Buddhist psychology frameworks and how they can apply to both clinician self-care and self-regulation, as well as mindfulness-based therapy, cognitive therapy, and other frameworks. Obstacles to consistent meditation practice, difficulties leading mindfulness experiences as a therapist, and other clinical challenges will be explored.

Meeting Logistics
The group will meet monthly, the first Tuesday of each month, 8:00am to 9:30am EST.

The group is virtual for the time being and is likely to remain so, as our current group is scattered across the US. The group will be limited to about 15 members initially with the possibility of eventually adding more.

Contact group leader Doug Baker with questions at doug@cambridgemindbody.com

IMP Certificate Program Graduate Drop-In Group
Please join us for a drop-in monthly sit and gathering open to all Certificate Program graduates. The structure will include 30 minutes of meditation, followed by an opportunity to share, reflect, and water seeds of joy. Please come for part of the meeting or stay for the entire hour. We look forward to practicing together and having a chance to connect with one another. We go as a river. There is nothing to prepare. Come exactly as you are.

Meetings will take place on the last Wednesday of each month, except during the months of November and December when the meetings will take place the 17th and 22nd, respectively.

We are offering these events on a dana basis. All donations will help fund our BIPOC scholarship fund. Donate here.

Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83867113460 (Meeting ID: 838 6711 3460)

Group Leaders: Jorge Armesto & Susan Fairchild

IMP “Noble Mind” Podcast
Episode 64

  • Episode 64: Alfie Wishart on Addiction Recovery, Spirituality, and Healing from Narcissistic Relationships

Mindfulness In Clinical Practice
Meditation cushions
Enjoy the opportunity to sit in on conversations between IMP board members as they discuss various topics related to mindfulness and clinical practice:

  • Beyond Cultivating Moments Of Calm 
  • Integrating Mindfulness Into The Hospital
  • Integrating Biofeedback And Mindfulness
  • Using Mindfulness-Based Therapy For Pain
  • The Four Exertions
  • Cultivating Joy
  • Yogic Techniques To Settle The Attention In Meditation
  • Bringing Mindfulness Concepts to Clinical Settings
  • Psychotherapy During The Pandemic

IMP Online Course
The Power of Therapeutic Presence
Presence is a gift, to both our clients and ourselves.

Yet many clinicians like you are unsure about how to enhance therapeutic presence to improve outcomes.

We've brought together leading clinicians from The Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy and faculty from Harvard Medical School including Christopher Germer, Ron Siegel, Christopher Willard, and Susan Pollak to share with us 10 enlightening sessions on deepening Presence, to enhance both your professional practice and personal wellbeing.

The Power of Therapeutic Presence is a unique online course filled with practical meditative and mindfulness exercises and tools that will cultivate presence deeply into your clinical work and life.

Through ten comprehensive sessions, this online course will inform and enhance your practice in all four key areas of therapeutic presence:

  • Being grounded in a healthy sense of self
  • Being immersed in what is poignant in the moment
  • Expanding awareness
  • Being with and for clients in the service of healing

You'll first learn about the neuroscience behind therapeutic presence, and how it impacts clinical work, before diving deep into clinical applications for difficult client issues such as challenging emotions and pain.

Each and every session provides practical tools and key strategies that establish greater therapeutic presence in your work and your life.

IMP Member New Publication
Alphabreaths Too: More ABCs of Mindful Breathing

by Christopher Willard, Daniel Rechtschaffen, and Holly Clifton-Brown
Sounds True (September 2022)

Teach children the basics of mindful breathing—along with their ABCs—in this playful and interactive picture book. 
 
In Alphabreaths Too, children learn their ABCs along with the basics of mindfulness through fun exercises and illustrations they’ll want to come back to again and again. Each letter of the alphabet teaches a simple mindfulness, or compassion-based, practice to help kids focus their thoughts, feel calm, express gratitude, and hold positive feelings for others. A great standalone title or a companion volume to Alphabreaths: The ABCs of Mindful Breathing, this is a perfect book for the classroom or home library.

Breaths like Astronaut Breath and Fireworks Breath help children use their imaginations, while breaths like Gift Breath and Kite Breath help them fill their hearts with gratitude and send good wishes to others. They can breathe with a partner using Drawbridge Breath, relax with Ocean Breath, or get their wiggles out using Pirate Breath.
 
Alphabreaths offers a meaningful introduction to mindfulness for children, all while keeping them delighted with imaginative inspiration and hours of fun. It’s as easy as A-B-C!

IMP Members’ Ongoing Offerings
If you are an IMP member and would like to share an ongoing offering with the community, please let us knowmail@meditationandpsychotherapy.org

Daily
Please check the “Live Online” schedule for timing of specific programs
with CHA/CMC “Live Online” Teachers

Monday - Friday
10:30am - 11:15am ET
with Susan Morgan, MSN, RN, CS, and Bill Morgan, PsyD

Every 2nd Sunday
11:00am - 12:30pm ET
with Yasemin Isler, MA

8:30am - 8:45am ET
with Lauri Klein, LICSW

with Ann Saffi Biasetti, PhD, LCSWR, CEDS, C-IAYT

with Christopher Willard, PsyD

with Christopher Willard, PsyD

with Christopher Willard, PsyD

with Trudy Goodman, PhD, and Jack Kornfield, PhD

with Christopher Willard, PsyD

IMP Community Happenings
If you are an IMP member and would like to share an upcoming event with the community, please let us know: mail@meditationandpsychotherapy.org

August 9 - September 27
with Lisa Kim, MA, and Susan Fairchild, MA

August 10-19
with Christopher Germer, PhD, and Kristin Neff, PhD

August 15-19
with Ronald Siegel, PsyD

August 25 - October 27
with Jorge Armesto, PhD

September 7 - October 26
with Jessika Scogland Bailey, MA, PsyD, and Teresa Yeh, LCSW

September 13 - November 8
with Jody Daniels, MBA

September 15-18
with Janet Surrey, PhD

September 30 - October 5
with Susan Morgan, CNS, and Bill Morgan, PsyD

October 6-10
with Susan Morgan, CNS, and Bill Morgan, PsyD

The Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy (IMP) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the education and training of mental health professionals in the integration of mindfulness meditation and psychotherapy. 

The vision of IMP is practice-based, and all teaching faculty have extensive personal and professional experience in the practice of mindfulness meditation or other mindfulness practices. Most educational programs offer CE credit for psychologists, social workers, licensed mental health counselors, licensed marital and family therapists, and nurses. Secondary activities of IMP include psychological consultation to meditation centers, clinical supervision, psychotherapy referrals, and networking for interested clinicians.