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Interview with Fidelma Farley who teaches Mindfulness meditation at Oscailt. Fidelma specialises in Mindfulness for people who suffer from chronic pain or a long term illness. She also teaches a weekly drop in meditation and a course on the Loving Kindness meditation practice.

How did you come to be teaching Mindfulness?
I was a lecturer in film studies for 15 years and I was working the last two years in Galway University when my contract came to an end. There were very few jobs out there and at that point I realised that this was the opportunity to explore other things. By this stage my heart wasn’t in teaching film and I wanted to find something that I could feel passionate about. I had learnt how to meditate 2 years previously at the Dublin Buddhist Centre, originally to deal with stress, but as time went on, I found that meditation was helping me to work through some very difficult personal issues. Experiencing first hand how Mindful meditation can transform difficult circumstances, I wanted to pass those benefits on to others. 

So what kind of training did you do and where?
I trained with Breathworks, a not-for-profit organisation based in the UK who run Mindfulness courses for people with pain, illness and/or stress. The training was very experiential, based primarily on your own practice, with intensive retreats providing guidance on how to teach Mindfulness. After that I assisted on Mindfulness-based courses for people with stress and pain and illness and in the past year I’ve been teaching my own courses. I really love the work and I especially like to see how people gradually change during the course. By the end of the course most people are sleeping better, are calmer, more relaxed and more open.
 
How does Mindfulness specifically help people suffering from chronic pain or a long term health condition?
In general, Mindfulness enhances people’s ability for self-care, by allowing them to draw on their own inner resources. For people with pain or illness, stress and tension, anxiety, grief or anger may often arise, or they may have difficulty sleeping, and their perspective of the world can come to revolve around the pain and illness. Mindfulness can’t get rid of the pain or illness but it can significantly reduce the ‘secondary suffering’ i.e. those difficult reactions to the pain or illness.

To give an everyday example, if you are stuck in traffic you may experience frustration, impatience, anger and anxiety. Mindfulness won’t get the traffic moving but will reduce those difficult reactions.

How does it do that Fidelma?
Mindfulness has three principal characteristics: Awareness, Being in the Moment and Kindness.

With Awareness we get to know ourselves, getting more in touch with our experience physically, mentally and emotionally. With that awareness, we can choose how to respond to our circumstances rather than reacting unthinkingly in our habitual manner.

Learning to be in the present moment works against the tendency to be either worrying about the future or looking back nostalgically at the past. If we are aware of what is going on right now, we are seeing things as they really are, rather than how we think things should be or how we’d like them to be. This means that any changes that we make will be sustainable.

Kindness is the quality that allows us to make the changes to care for ourselves better. So many people are hard on themselves, even when their lives are already difficult, and kindness allows them to give themselves a break.

In your experience, what kind of conditions are conducive to the Mindfulness for Pain & Illness course?

I have taught people with back pain, with MS, cancer, ME, fibromyalgia, post-operative pain and IBS, but Mindfulness can help people to live with pretty much any illness or condition. However, I always talk to people who are interested in the course beforehand to make sure that it is suitable for them.

When is the next Mindfulness for Pain & Illness course you are running? How long is the course and how much does it cost?
The next course starts Tuesday, 13th October at 6pm.

The course lasts 8 weeks with just over two hours sessions each week as well as a full practice day at the weekend on the 7th week. It costs €350 which includes course notes and meditation CDs.

What other courses do you teach at Oscailt?
I teach a 4 week course on Loving Kindness, a Mindful meditation practice. This is a beautiful practice that can really transform people. Through this practice we learn to accept and love ourselves more, to open our hearts to other people and in the long term to live more from the heart and from our deepest held values.

I also lead a weekly drop-in meditation on Monday evenings from 6.15-7.15pm. This is open to all, beginners as well as more experienced meditators. Generally we do a 30-40 minute guided meditation followed by a discussion. There is a very open and friendly atmosphere and all are very welcome.

And, when is the next Loving Kindness course?

The next course starts on Wednesday, 18th November from 6.30-8.00pm. I thought it was an appropriate course to teach coming up to Christmas as it can be such a stressful time for people.