Managing Stress and Anxiety and Finding Pace through Mindfulness was the topic of the April 22 program and was the fourth event in the Heights High School Family and Student Engagement Enrichment Series. The program was coordinated by Gladys McCauley and featured three speakers from the Cleveland Clinic.
David Brocket, Cleveland Clinic Intern with the Chronic Pain Rehabilitation Program spoke to the audience about his struggle with a painful neurological condition which resulted in hand tremors and severely impacted his career as a musician. He told the group that the practice of mindfulness meditation helped him through this stressful period in his life. He led the group though a mindfulness exercise and encouraged attendees to explore using the technique in their lives to assist them in addressing pain, stress and anxiety concerns.
The presentation by Alicia Monaco, Licensed Professional Counselor and Rebekah Bryson, Licensed Social Worker with the Cleveland Clinic Children’s Center for Behavioral Health focused on how adolescents and children could benefit from mindfulness. Alicia and Rebekah provided concrete examples of mindfulness practices that families could employ to reduce the stress and anxiety and to promote a heathier and happier family life.
All attendees received a free copy of the book Mindfulness An Eight Week Plan for Finding Peace in a Frantic World, by Oxford Professor Mark. A pizza and salad dinner was enjoyed by attendees before the program began.