Making meditation and yoga accessible to all members of the community
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About us

Melbourne Mindfulness Foundation delivers the internationally recognised Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) course, Learn to Meditate courses, and other mindfulness courses and retreats in Melbourne and Preston. Our practical and accessible education and training programs teach tools and strategies that improve wellbeing and increase resilience, and bring calm and balance into life. Whether you are wanting to feel less stressed and anxious, be more present in life, form new habits, improve productivity and efficiency at work, sleep better and/or no longer be at the mercy of your thoughts, our courses can help. Our structured courses are based on science and research and relevant to contemporary life. 

We also partner with local government, community organisations and schools to deliver affordable, culturally appropriate and conveniently located meditation courses and yoga classes.

With a focus on offering courses and workshops to public housing tenants, culturally and linguistically diverse members of the community and the disadvantaged, we ensure cost, location and cultural background are not a barrier to experiencing the benefits of meditation and yoga.

About Alana Smith

Alana is a passionate and dedicated teacher and
practitioner of yoga, meditation and mindfulness. She was drawn to these practices – what she describes as life’s essential tools – in her early 20s when struggling with anxiety, depression and stress. Since experiencing the benefits of these practices firsthand, Alana has developed a real interest in teaching people how to meditate and be mindful so that they can live healthier, happier and more meaningful lives.

Alana has taught yoga and body balance in a range of community settings since 2012/2013, as well as 6-week Learn to Meditate courses and/or Introduction to Mindfulness workshops through Melbourne Meditation Centre in Berwick and Camberwell since 2014, and in Preston and Gisborne through Melbourne Mindfulness Foundation and Mind Body Health – Macedon Ranges since 2015.

In 2015 she decided to sign up for the internationally recognised 8-week Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) course developed by Dr Jon Kabat-Zinn and his team in 1979 because of the course’s impressive evidence base and emphasis on practicing meditation for a 45 minute period each day during the course . Fascinated by the MBSR course’s ability to help her manage stress and anxiety and relate to life’s challenges in a lighter, more curious and accepting way,  she undertook Level 1 study in Mindfulness Based Interventions through the Mindfulness Training Institute of Australasia in 2016 and taught her first MBSR course in 2016. Alana is currently undertaking Level 2 study in Mindfulness Based Interventions and looks forward to continuing to teach the MBSR course in 2017.

Alana is passionate about making yoga and meditation accessible to everyone, with a particular interest in culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities from low socio-economic backgrounds. Learn about the Mindfulness Without Barriers program delivered across public housing estates in Melbourne’s Carlton, Fitzroy and Collingwood here.

When Alana isn’t teaching or meditating, she works in community development and communications, bakes, reads, hikes, pats dogs and spends time with friends and family. She is also a big advocate for ethical clothing and consumerism, and is passionate about building socially inclusive and connected communities.

 

About Nicole Moore

Meet Nicole,  founder of MindfulBeing Melbourne and a qualified MBSR and MBCT facilitator through Mindfulness Training Institute Australiasia. Nicole brings a unique combination of insight and humour to her mindfulness teaching, opening participants hearts and minds with her energy and down to earth approach. Nicole is dedicated to both the science and experience of the body-mind connection, particularly the interface between pain and suffering and the arising potential for insight and growth. She is passionate about supporting others to overcome physical and mental suffering, to cultivate self compassion and create more space and balance in their lives. 

 

Nicole is also a physiotherapist and has specialised in the fields of neurology and pain management for the last 12 years. In her current work Nicole provides pain management consultation and physiotherapy as part of the pain team at The Royal Melbourne Hospital. This includes co-founding the ‘mindful movement group’ and running mindfulness sessions for people experiencing persistent pain and the comorbidities of pain such as depression, anxiety, stress and sleep disturbance.
Nicole was drawn to a personal meditation practice over 15 years ago and has undergone intensive training in Insight Meditation in retreat centres throughout Australia, England, India, and Sri Lanka.
“At the heart of Mindfulness is a commitment to a daily practice. A sitting meditation, mindful movement practice, or a mindful walk on one of Victoria’s beautiful trails are an integral part of my life. Practising on a daily basis enables me to live my life and work through difficulties with open-hearted awareness and mental flexibility. My practice allows me to come towards difficult encounters with a trusting, inquiring and gentle responsiveness, rather than with fearful, or regrettable reactions.”

 

MBSR & MBCT facilitator, MTI Level I
Nicole Moore B.PHTY, MPH(pain)
Pain Management Physiotherapist, The Royal Melbourne Hospital
Advisory Board Member & Educator, Yoga for Pain Care Australia
Member Australian Physiotherapy Association
Member International Association for the Study of Pain
Member Australian Pain Society

 

About Peter Elliott

Peter has been involved in meditation and mindfulness since 1999. He has been a professional meditation teacher since 2013 for Always Meditation. He brings a scientific scrutiny to teaching meditation & mindfulness having completed a B.Sc (Hons) at the University of Melbourne in 1987. 
PeterElliott_webphoto-150x150
Peter teaches in a positive and helpful style and people like the quality of his voice and the easy to follow instructions he uses during guided meditation exercises. People often say he makes learning meditation easy and fun, and reminds them that if they find themselves smiling and more happy during the day then they know they have previously been meditating well.
He says that meditation is like making a regular deposit of peacefulness into your internal bank account, where you can later safely make a withdrawal if needed to balance out your daily stresses. 

 

About Sabina Vitacca

Sabina’s professional experience working in the mental health field allowed her to repeatedly observe the relationship between health problems and stress. This motivated her to integrate meditation and awareness techniques into her professional and personal life.

photo-sabinavitaccaSabina completed her meditation teacher training certificate with the Melbourne Meditation Centre in 2008, has run courses in London, and currently teaches at the Melbourne Meditation Centre’s Yarraville venue.

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