Unicorn Children’s Foundation Announces Mindfulness Workshop for People with Special Needs and The Community

The Unicorn Children’s Foundation is delighted to announce 2 upcoming workshop series on Mindfulness Stress Reduction during May Mental Health Awareness Month.  These offerings are an addition to the virtual support and resource offerings for people with special needs and their families by providing access to information, guidance, learning, and social opportunities.

Iris Neil, M.Ed., facilitator of the workshops shared “With the bombardment of news about disasters, pandemics, crime, and uncertainty, our minds can create an unease, elevating stress and anxiety. Mindfulness based stress reduction helps to calm the chatter in our minds which is a crucial skill in the world we live in today. Mindfulness helps to build skills needed to manage stress, build resilience and cope with changes.”

The workshops will be offered weekly during the month of May.  One workshop will be geared to emerging adults, aged 16 – 30, who have one or more identified special needs.  These sessions will be conducted each week on Thursday from 3-4pm beginning on May 7.  There is a $10 required deposit which can be refunded upon completion of the program.  A second workshop will be open to the general public for a $150 “buy one, give one” fee that allows the Foundation to offer the workshop to students with special needs for free.  These sessions will be conducted each week on Wednesday from 3-4pm beginning on May 6.  There will be a maximum enrollment of 10 participants per workshop, so register early to secure your spot.

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), developed at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, is an effective-research based program for reducing physical and psychological stress. Research has shown that the benefits of mindfulness meditation increases the ability to cope with chronic pain, develops self-awareness, effective communication skills, and most importantly a non-judgmental awareness that enables us to respond with greater clarity, stability and understanding to life’s stressors, rather than reacting in unhealthy ways.

To register, visit https://www.unicornchildrensfoundation.org/mind.html or email info@unicornchildrensfoundation.org.  Be sure to sign up for the Unicorn Children’s Foundation newsletter to ensure that you are updated as we continue to expand our virtual program offerings at the virtual Unicorn Connection Center.  We continue innovating to ensure that the most vulnerable members of society have opportunities to find meaning and purpose as engaged members of the “virtual” community until we can re-open the doors of our physical location.