An upcoming nine-week course promises to teach participants how to diminish stress and pain while improving physical and mental health.

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction, developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn, Ph.D. in 1979, is used in schools, hospitals and other institutional facilities worldwide. Kabat-Zinn’s eight-week MBSR curriculum has been completed by more than 19,000 people since its creation.

As a pilot program, the course will be offered free of charge to approximately 35 individuals. It is geared for UO faculty and staff but is open to everyone.

The instructor is Lisa Myobun Freinkel, a UO literature professor and lay-ordained Zen Buddhist. Trained in MBSR and Zen mindfulness meditation techniques, she has taught meditation in prison, hospital and university settings since 2007.

Classes will be held on the UO campus, Wednesday evenings from April 24 to June 12, plus one full-day workshop on Saturday, June 1. To register, please review the course requirements at http://healthyoregon.uoregon.edu/Events/MBSR.aspx.

Spaces are extremely limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis. Submitting a pre-registration form does not guarantee enrollment.

-- by UO Office of Strategic Communications