My name is Lucy Watkinson. I am a mental health nurse and a mindfulness teacher. I run my own therapy business and teach mindfulness in schools. I would like to report on a recent 10 week mindfulness course I am about to finish with a local secondary school. Prior to starting the course I took some pre-measures to determine anxiety and depression levels. I was very surprised to find that 3/4 of the students scored as having a moderate anxiety disorder and a moderate depressive disorder. I have now nearly finished the 10 week mindfulness course where I have been teaching grounding techniques such as paying attention to sensations in the feed then moving up to the breath and breathing techniques.
These techniques and the course has really helped these students feel less stressed in the lead up to their exams. Anxiety and depression is a very worrying problem in teenagers today especially with the pressure of exams. I am now keen to deliver this 10 week mindfulness course for teenagers to other schools in the area as it has had such a positive difference to this particular school. I am pleased to report that the anxiety and depression scores dropped considerately at the mid way point and these scores will be repeated on completion of the course later this week.
