Chatterminds

If you live in Bristol and have a child with additional needs, maybe you are interested in this course that I will be running with my friend and colleague Claire-Louise from Mindful Parenting & Community Project in Sept. Please comment for more info. x

Hmmmmm

You may well have heard me talk about my Chatterminds feelings bears. Well, here they are!

Here is a free resource that I have created for you to use within your family.

The suggestion is that you track which feeling bears are visiting (this is an important word as feelings 'visit' they don't stay forever).
It can be helpful to notice feelings around in the morning,

afternoon and evening. This can normalise feelings and illustrate how they are changing all the time (just like the weather).

If everyone in the family does this, it can provide a great platform to discuss feelings and what's going on in everyone's life.

https://freebie.chatterminds.com/freebie3

Enjoy! Please get in touch if you have any questions. xx

So 2 very exciting things are happening for me in my Chatterminds world this week!

On Thursday Oli and I are heading to London because I have been invited by Hampden Gurney C of E School (Rated no. 1 State school in the country), to give a Chatterminds presentation to parents at their coffee morning. This is with a view to working with families and also running an online afterschool mindfulness club.

Then in the afternoon, we head to Covent Garden where I am having a meeting with Randolphs to discuss me potentially training their nannies in my Chatterminds course!

All very exciting, so I am busy, busy getting organised (as well as my new kids course starting on Wednesday). Luckily I have mindfulness in my tool kit, which helps me ride the waves!

I will let you know how it all goes! xx

A few spaces on my online kids course starting next Wed. 9-12 yrs mindfulness and emotions. PM if interested x

Do you see these responses in your children (or yourself?)

What triggers these responses in your family?

Getting out of the house?
Bedtime?
School?
Screens?
Siblings?
Friends?

It can be helpful to be familiar with our triggers (and our children's).
At Chatterminds we learn all about our triggers and how our stress builds up (and then overflows) and what to do about it.

Mindfulness can help us to pause and check in with how we are d**g and what we need.

If you are interested in your child grabbing a place on my new Zoom course for 9-12 yrs (It is starting on the 24th), please get in touch. x

Making candles in my session at Chatterminds today ❤️ Alyson Hurst

From living as if camping for the past 3 years, we have finally moved into our house.

It's not really finished and we have run out of money but we have heating, a bathroom (and a kitchen as of April 8th).

There are also snags (it's funny how our minds tend to focus on the things that are wrong rather than the things that are right). I am consciously trying to focus on the things that are good (like being back together again as a family after being in a different house to our teen).

The whole process has been a huge lesson for me and my family. It has made us realise that we used to take simple things for granted (hot water, toilet, drains) and that we can live with less. Much less.

We have mostly been very happy living simply, in the beautiful countryside with our log burner and our camping way of life. Despite the stress that comes with building a house, it feels like a different stress compared to when we were in the rat race.

And last weekend we got all our worldly belongings out of storage. SO MUCH STUFF! We haven't unpacked it yet and I wonder what it all is? And whether we will keep it. It's easy to gather clutter throughout our lives (and this was after culling everything before we moved!)

But for now, we are happy to be closer to our original goals from 3 years ago:

- Having a slower pace and not rushing all the time
- Being in nature, lunchtime dog walks
- Being in charge of our own time
- Being able to spend more time with the children and my parents

Do you have a goal or a dream that you are working towards?

My lovely colleagues at Mindful Parenting & Community Project are running this workshop! Grab your space!

Apologies if you are no longer interested, please ignore the tag.

But, if you do still have a child who would like to learn some mindfulness tools to manage the ups and downs of life - a toolkit to manage big emotions and to feel happier, please take a look at the course details in the comments.

Please feel free to comment below as I am running a new course after Easter. It says it is for 9 -12 year olds but I can be flexible on the age range.

If you have any friends who might like to hear about this please feel free to share

If finances are a struggle please get in touch and we can have a chat.

Umm Habeeba Tracey Trent Joanne Barnett Amy Moran Andy Petrov Anupreet Attridge Emma Louise Lisa Gardener Jackie Wadsworth Jenna Louise Maclean Joanna Abrahan Dawn Smith Paula Johnson Sarah-jayne Slaughter Gemma-Jane Lizzie Tschornow Kirsty Hewett Tamsin Broster Sharen Carinus Robinson Laura Caine Mesha Silvera-watson Victoria G Young Siobhan Duivenvoorden Laura Jane Savickas Kelly Evans Hannah Louise Happy Bathe

Spaces on my next Mindfulness and Emotions Zoom course 9-12 years. Details in comments. Get in touch to book a free call

Do you have a child who struggles with their emotions?

Is there anger or anxiety around in the family?

Would your child like to learn lots of tools to help them feel calmer and happier?

If so, I am running a new mindfulness and emotions course after Easter.

Please get in touch if you have any questions or if you would like to book a free call. :)

9-12 years Mindfulness and Emotions (Zoom) — Chatterminds This 6-week Zoom course provides young people with a toolkit of ideas to look after their wellbeing and mental health. Examples of things covered in the course includes: Mindfulness and how it can help in life Ways to manage emotions, including anger, worry and anxiety Tips to manage the u

Haha!

Credit: Learning and Exploring Through Play

Ice bath anyone?

Haha! I have never done an ice bath before, but I have a few close friends who do them regularly and talk about the huge benefits to their mental health and they feel amazing afterwards.

And then our plumber (who customises them out of barrels) offered to make me one! Do you like the colour he chose to paint it?! (lol) He makes these amazing barrels for Whisky Barrel Brothers

So I am actually quite up for it now. I have bought Wim Hof's book and when we move into our house really soon, I am going to put this Infront of the kitchen and plan to incorporate regular dips into my morning routine.

Do you dip? How does it make you feel?

Credit: TeacherGoals

And this is exactly why I set up Chatterminds ❤️

Making worry dolls.

Talking about our worries can make them feel smaller and more manageable. It can be good to spend some time talking to your child about any worries that they have.

My son said this morning 'I hate school at the moment' I asked him if it was because of the work or friends and he said, 'both.'

Note to self: I need to sit down with him at the right time, when all is calm, and provide some space to try and untangle his worries.

Often children feel big feelings and can't put words to them so they can come out as behaviour.

We can use phrases such as:
❤️'I wonder if you are feeling...'
❤️'I wonder if that could be because of this or that...'

I made this doll with a child that I am working with. To find out ways you can work with me, please get in touch.

Kids eat free over half term. x

Half term is coming up in many parts of the UK. Here's a helping hand!

❤️It's 'Children's Mental Health Week' this week

💚The theme is 'My Voice Matters'

I am going to try and make sure I really listen to my children this week! I do try but sometimes my mind is elsewhere when they are speaking to me. Does that happen to you? Our body in one place and our mind miles away, caught up in our endless 'to do' lists!

Taking a moment to pause when our children are talking, and fully listening to them can actually feel really nice.

Have you noticed that we sometimes don't listen to our children at all? We can even look like we are listening and reply but then have no idea what they said! I get frustrated when my husband does this to me, so it must feel frustrating to them when they realise I have no clue what they said.

And when we do listen do we actually hear them? Often we have our own agenda of what we want them to do or not to do. We often want things to be a certain way, not as they are.

Noticing this has been a game changer for me. Hearing my children's voices, allowing things to be as they are and also noticing 'my stuff' has all been useful in our family.

I often suggest to parents to take time in the evening to connect and be fully present with their children and see what appears.

Really hearing them does wonders for their mental health :)

Following on from the huge amount of interest we had from our managing emotions workshops, we have put together a new 4- week course for parents, starting after half term.

Please follow link for more details and to book:

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/mindfully-manage-big-emotions-course-for-parents-and-carers-tickets-795443993397

For busy parents who haven't got time to gather craft resources for the work I do with their children, I am now sending everything to your door!

Indeed.

Sitting in hospital with my mum who has just had a hip replacement.

It's a routine operation but it's still been challenging for us all. She was in a lot of pain yesterday and quite anxious (as were we). They are keeping her in for an extra night. My lovely dad has been wobbly too...

Last night in bed my mind went to some dark places, have you noticed that's what our minds do? Especially at night.

I was in A and E on Thursday too, unable to wee (bladder retention). It was awful and I had to have a catheter put in. I need to have further tests.

I am also scared to death of hospitals and have always had health anxiety where my mind spirals and I presume I am dying.

So, it's been a barrel of laughs here!

But why am I sharing this with you?

Because this page is all about mindful living, and what that means is bringing mindful awareness and acceptance to what is here in the present moment (good or bad). And that is what life is like, full of good and bad bits.

And it helps. I have been noticing my dark thoughts, leaning into my fear, breathing, finding a little space to be brave and let go of what I can’t control.

I have been allowing myself to ask clients to reschedule so that I don’t feel overwhelmed, and I have been able to settle some of the stress around.

Thank you mindfulness

How are you all doing? In the middle of a good bit or bad bit?