Ongoing support
Support continues
after the program
The practices you have learned in the mindfulness and somatic trauma reprocessing (MASTR) program have been scientifically proven to help people suffering from the effects of trauma. There is persuasive evidence that after 8 weeks of using the practices, symptoms will probably improve. Furthermore, there probably will be positive changes in your brain and in the rest of your nervous system that can be demonstrated. The evidence also shows that continuing to practice trauma-sensitive mindfulness will probably lead to further improvement. In the same way that we need to keep exercising to be physically fit, we need to continue practising trauma sensitive mindfulness to be mind-fit. Therefore, I offer follow-up sessions that you are welcome to attend. I suggest attending monthly, however, you are welcome to attend more frequently. You can book into these sessions below.
There are many benefits of attending the follow-up sessions. Importantly, you become part of a supportive, mindful veteran community. I will keep you up-to-date with the latest developments to help trauma-related symptoms. You will be taught new practices and changes to the existing practices based upon the most recent scientific developments in the trauma field.
Many participants have told me how much benefit they receive from being a member of the mindful veteran community. People say the follow-up sessions keep them motivated to use trauma-sensitive mindfulness and that these sessions reinforce the principles they learned during the MASTR program. This helps maintain the integrity of the trauma-sensitive mindfulness practices. Many members of the mindful veteran community say they are motivated by hearing about developments in the field of trauma.
This is for people who' ve done the program
Lorum Ipsem
I began teaching an 8-week trauma sensitive mindfulness-based stress reduction course 2 years ago. Based on neuroscience and clinical experience, I improve the course. There is a considerable overlap between the neurobiology of mindfulness and PTSD. I also thought that mindfulness was central to a number of interventions that help PTSD including mindful self-compassion, trauma sensitive yoga, somatic experiencing and EMDR.
In 2018, Boyd and Lanius noted an emerging and rapidly growing literature showing that mindfulness-based interventions show considerable promise in treating PTSD. They wrote “the studies reviewed here suggest that mindfulness-based treatments are effective in reducing symptoms of PTSD, with medium to large within-group effect sizes.”
I developed the 8 week Mindfulness & Somatic Trauma Reprocessing course, or as I call it the MASTR program. Mindfulness based interventions target several core features of PTSD including avoidance, hyperarousal, emotional numbing, negative emotions such as shame and guilt, and disssociation. There are a number of components of mindfulness that promote recovery from trauma related symptoms. They include attention, emotional training and a mindful way of thinking. Training your attention gives you the ability to determine where to place your attention
Join the mindful veteran community
I have been deeply touched by what people have told me after completing the MASTR program. Most of this feedback has come from the people who have completed the program, but many family members of participants have also shared the improvements they have noticed in their loved ones.
The reduction in symptoms and suffering and the increased functioning after the program are consistent with the scientific research supporting the components of the program. The improvements reflect our understanding of how trauma affects us and they also reflect our understanding of neuroplasticity (how the brain can change itself).
Many people have told me how much benefit they get from being part of the mindful veteran community that follows the MASTR program. People speak about, camaraderie, connection, support, belonging and common humanity. This community is available to everyone who has completed the MASTR program.
I hope you will join us.