Group Workshops
Sarah is passionate about bringing groups of people together. The effect of being around others who are interested in working on themselves and exploring deeper aspects of life is very powerful. Learning from one another is supportive, makes things practical, and offers outside perspective. Rather than taking patterns and tendencies personally, we can learn about the shared human experience and compassionately learn to relate to our minds, together.
Sarah has facilitated groups in addictions centres and in the community, and loves coming up with creative ways to teach, encouraging healing playfulness and community. The format is that the same group meets each week for 2 hours for 6-8 weeks, to build trust and comfort over time. Sarah is sensitive to individuals' needs in the group, and aims to keep things fair, enriching, and positive. Group workshops include group discussions, experiential learning, and group meditations. She teaches on a range of topics such as Relating to Emotions with Wisdom, Living with Self-Compassion, Beginner's Meditation, among others.
You can register your interest in the Contact form.
Sarah also offers workshops in corporate settings upon request.
6-week Workshop - Mindfulness Meditation for Inner Calm - Apr. 16 - May 21st, 1330 Fairfield Rd, Victoria, 6:45pm-8:30pm - Cost $280 + GST
The aim of this workshop is to support participants develop a regular mindfulness meditation practice to enable them to train the mind to come back to the present moment and meet what is here with kindness and courage. To come together with the same group of people over 6 weeks who can offer support, understanding, and accountability to practice the strategies between sessions. The type of meditation taught comes from the Insight Meditation tradition which is also called Vipassana. It allows for greater connection with self, others, and one’s surroundings. It also creates insight into one’s patterns, triggers, and the capacity to connect with deeper values and make more conscious choices aligned with these values.
Emotionally we will be exploring how to find the middle path between suppression and numbing on the one hand, with adding fuel to the flames on the other hand. This balance brings deep healing. Because Sarah is a Registered Clinical Counsellor, she also weaves in complementary strategies from Western Psychology. The strategies presented come from cutting-edge theory and research in neuroscience, mindfulness meditation, and psychology.
Even with just 10 minutes a day of regular mindfulness meditation there is now research that suggests that this training of the mind can change structures in brain that allow us to be more empathic with ourselves and others, more concentrated, and experience more joy and inner peace. These practices promote integration between left and right hemispheres, and as well as up and down in the nervous system. Practical strategies that can be applied in daily life are offered.
The structure of the workshop is that there will be instruction from the facilitator, guided meditations, and group discussions. The maximum group size is 12 participants allowing for depth and trust to build over time. Experiential, engaging, and fun learning emphasized.
Some benefits of the workshop are:
• Managing stress levels
• Feeling more connected with oneself through carving time in one’s week to go inward, furthering or established a regular self-care practice.
• Building compassion and perspective
• Feel more grounded during the workshop and then between sessions due to the practical nature of the workshop – leave with strategies to utilize in daily life.
• Build community with others interested in the inner life
• Accountability to set up a regular meditation practice
Here are some people who might benefit from this workshop:
• Those with health conditions exacerbated by stress
• Those going through a transition feeling the many accompanying emotions
• Those wishing for greater inner peace for whatever reason
• Those who are hard on themselves
• Those who have been told by loved ones that they lack connection with their emotions and their resulting vitality, seeking to regain passion for life
• Those who feel their emotions control their lives
• Those with anxiety, depression, and/or past trauma
• Those with a desire to work on letting go of unhelpful patterns
• Those who are curious about the mind/body connection
Beginners and experienced meditators welcome. Something for everyone to learn. The cost for the 6 weeks is $280 including GST. To register full payment is due, however if you need to pay in instalments, speak to Sarah and an arrangement can be made.
Sarah Sinray, MSc., RCC is a Registered Clinical Counsellor and a Meditation Instructor with a passion for helping people attain greater life balance and fulfillment. She has two Master's degrees in Psychology and has an on-going curiosity which leads to lifelong learning. She has practiced Vipassana meditation for 11 years and attends several meditation retreats every year. She is under the mentorship of a Senior Teacher in the Insight Meditation tradition. She has offered group workshops such as these in Vancouver and Montreal, and is excited to offer them here on Vancouver Island.
For questions or to register, contact Sarah at 250-668-4847 or sarah@enlivencounselling.com
Testimonals from Past Workshop Participants:
"Prior to attending the workshop my only self awareness extended to the fact that I was that I was consistantly and debilitatingly anxious as well as extremely emotional but I had never thought to explore or understand the source of these feelings and my reactional patterns to them.
From the concepts and practices learnt in the workshop I am now able to acknowledge and observe my emotions a little more objectively and compassionately therefore feeling less and less the need to run away from them or the situation that I perceive to be the cause , more often able to make decisions based on logical assessment, common sense, and trusting my innate wisdom rather than fear. Overall I feel more confident due to these new skills.
Prior to beginning the workshop I had been unsuccessfully seeking a support network just like this to connect and share with and it was such a blessing to finally discover such a safe space, like-minded fellowship and to be embraced into the community." - A.
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"I learned that there are a lot of things that I was/am doing to prevent myself from experiencing emotions if I didn't like them. Although by doing this prevention I don't experience emotions that I don't want, I learned that it doesn't allow me to experience the emotions that I want. I feel like it's greatly helped in allowing me to understand my emotions and how I can respond to them in a more healing, positive manner.
The most effective parts of the workshop for me were the partner exercises and the group check-in. It was extremely interesting to see others' candid relationship to their emotions. It's not a topic that I think I've ever discussed with people before, and it was very helpful to understand how others interpreted things." - S.
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"I was fortunate enough to attend Sarah’s 6-week Mindfulness Meditation Workshop recently and it was a wonderful experience. The meditation techniques I learned leave me feeling connected, hopeful, aware, and awake. I learned a great deal about myself. She is a wise, gentle, and trustworthy teacher and I am thankful to her for being a part of my journey.” - K.
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"Sarah your voice, your energy, the space you hold is so very beautiful and tender. You are the real deal! Absolutely adore you and what you helped me and the group with. What a special powerful synergy we all experienced." - L.
Over 8 weeks we will cover 4 powerful heart practices to deepen a mindfulness journey into wisdom and inner peace - lovingkindness, compassion, joy & gratitude, and equanimity. In my 6-week workshop people often commented that they wished we had more time to practice, so in this workshop we will spend 2 weeks covering each of the 4 heart practices to have time to sink deeper into understanding. It is deliberately stretched over time rather than a weekend format to facilitate integration and learning, allowing a new routine of regular mindfulness practice to be developed.
In the 8-fold path of Buddhist philosophy the first steps are to generate an ethical lifestyle of generosity and non-harming of self and others, the next are to concentrate the mind/heart, and finally cultivating wisdom from these foundations. In this 8-week workshop we will follow this structure, creating the building blocks that deepen and support our mindfulness practice.
This time of year is so lovely to come together in a supportive way to have structure to develop regularity in our mindfulness practice, and to practice holding space for ourselves that is kinder and kinder. People often remark that they have capacity to offer patience and compassion to others, but this is more difficult for themselves. No matter where you are starting from, with conscious effort and practice, this can change. Furthermore, when the days are shorter and mood can slip, these heart practices can soothe spirits. If our mindfulness lacks a warm tone, it is not really mindfulness.
Suitable for those who have taken the Inner Calm workshop or who have practiced mindfulness in some other capacity before. Call Sarah to see if your needs might be met by this workshop. (250-668-4847)
Each 2-hour session will involve meditation practice for approximately 40% of it, group discussion about home practice, instruction and exercises for the remaining 60%. Because this space has many yoga props, there will be the option to enter into suggested restorative yoga poses if a participant wishes to. This is not required, it's always okay to meditate in a chair or sitting on the floor as well. For those who have chronic pain, it is also okay to meditate laying down or standing.
Come together with those who are committed to their mindfulness practice to make deepening a priority in the start of the New Year! Sarah wrote a blog describing more about the rationale of the workshop here.
Send Sarah an email at sarah@enlivencounselling.com to ask any questions or to register. Maximum enrollment of 12.