This group meets during your lunch break, midday break, at 12:00pm ET. It’s a time for you to drop in on your phone, computer, or wherever you are.

Discover how to be present with yourself and the world around you. Practicing mindfulness allows us to relate to ourselves and others with greater care and wisdom. As we engage with our world differently, we notice our own experience of life shifting in fulfilling ways.

This is not a therapy group. This is a group that gives you a chance to show up how you are in the moment. A chance to be authentic to yourself and even others. It’s an invitation to a space to reflect and learn about yourself and others in a way that feels right for you. It’s a time to sit and learn meditation tools that can give you peace, joy, and curiosity within your deepest needs.

Daily practice makes you happier.
People who follow a daily mindfulness practice generally lead happier lives than those who don’t. Mindfulness is known to enhance the flow of constructive thoughts and positive emotions. Even a few minutes spent with yourself regularly can make a big difference. Scientific evidence supports this: extensive studies were conducted on a group of Buddhist monks to average united state citizens as they were meditating and practicing mindfulness. The pre-frontal cortex of the monk’s brains (the part associated with happiness) was found to be extra active.

Being mindful helps you manage anxiety, stress and depression.
The transformative potential of practicing mindfulness shouldn’t be underestimated. Studies conducted at the University of Wisconsin proved that meditation has physiological effects on the brain. For example, researchers found that the part of the brain that regulates stress and anxiety shrinks when mindfulness is practiced consistently. By focusing on moment-by-moment experiences, meditators are training the mind to remain calm, even in stressful situations. With this, they also experience significantly less anxiety due to uncertainty about the future.

Mindfulness benefits are almost immediate.
The numerous health benefits that result from meditation and mindfulness are another great reason to adopt the practice. Certain benefits can start making themselves felt very quickly after people start sitting. A sense of calmness and peace of mind are common experiences, even if this feeling is fleeting and subtle. In an article published in Forbes online, attorney Jeena Cho lists six scientifically proven benefits that you may not have been expecting, including a reduction in implicit race and age bias.
Some people worry that meditation is having the opposite effect because their minds seem busier than ever. My advice: stick with it and keep your sessions short. Being still with your present state isn’t about wiping the slate of your mind clean; it’s about being aware of what appears there. And you’re a step ahead: you’re already noticing how busy the mind can be!

A daily mindfulness practice helps you fall asleep.
Insomnia is a troubling condition – everybody dreads a sleepless night. Sadly, about a third of the American population suffers from some form of sleep deprivation, whether occasional or chronic. If you’re one of those misfortunate folks who stare at the ceiling and count sheep all night to no avail, meditation just might be a solution. An article in the Harvard Health Blog confirms that meditation triggers the relaxation response – which is why some people actually have the opposite problem: they fall asleep as soon as they begin to meditate!

A Personal Message from Ben

I was first exposed to mindfulness when I was a young adult and working as a wilderness field instructor at multiple wilderness therapy programs across the country. Mindfulness was used to help center the teens and family I worked with. By tapping into their present state they were to able to become more conscious of the reality of life and teach them tools that equip them for the future. I went on to practice mindfulness for many years and trained under some profound teachers within the world of mindfulness, spirituality, and psychotherapy. These amazing individuals include Tara Brach, Bill Plotkin, Malidoma Patrice Some` and Jack Kornfield. All of which taught me very specific parts of connections to myself, other people, spirituality, religion, and to the natural world. Yet, ultimately, I was inspired to look further into myself to find the intrinsic gifts that I was meant to share in this world.

Once I dove into daily mindfulness practice, I started to notice a shift in the way I related to myself and others. As well as how I prayed and carried myself throughout each day. Since then, I have spent the last 15+ years focused on bringing mindfulness to all of the jobs and clients I have worked with. I have taught mindfulness to students when I was used to be a Prek-12 school teacher; I have worked in hospitals leading mindfulness based stress reduction & severe trauma therapy groups; I have used mindfulness in IOP/PHP programs within the behavioral health field ; and now at Arise Counseling and Coaching I use mindfulness as a tool that helps my clients become present in their life and ultimately become free from the bonds that constrict them in order to find true happiness.

The way I see mindfulness is that it’s all about becoming aware of your moment-to-moment experience without judgment. Simple, but not easy. I understand how hard it can be to remain fully present in the seemingly ordinary moments of daily life. I am here to help you become this and much more. I hope to see you drop in and sit with me.