It gives me great pleasure to open my new medical practice focusing on mind-body therapies.

I have just returned from two wonderful and invigorating courses in Boston, both sponsored by Harvard Medical School. The first was a 2-day course titled  Meditation & Visualization Practices for Everyday Living & Well Being and to Enhance Peak Performance, taught by Daniel Brown, PhD. Dr. Brown is a dynamic and inspiring teacher. I thoroughly enjoyed his guided visualizations and have been practicing them daily. It is no coincidence that I’m running quite a bit faster.

The second course was Building Resilience: The Mind Body Revolution in Health and Healing offered by the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital. The faculty and course content were outstanding. I am so grateful for the scientific research conducted by the Benson-Henry Institute. One of their more recent studies revealed that subjects who practiced the “Relaxation Response” for 8 weeks had blood cell gene activation that led to reduced oxidative stress and less pro-inflammation.  In other words, researchers are unraveling exactly how mind-body practices activate health promoting, anti-aging genes! For more on this and other research from the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine, please visit their research website: http://www.massgeneral.org/bhi/research/.

Currently I am reading a wonderful and wise book on ADHD titled The Family ADHD Solution by Mark Bertin, M.D. Dr. Bertin is a developmental pediatrician with a special interest in ADHD and mindfulness practices. I recommend it highly to parents and teachers who work with children who have been diagnosed with ADHD. It will certainly inform my care in evaluating and treating children and adolescents with ADHD.

Finally, on the subject of mindfulness: I am excited to announce that I will be collaborating with Martha Abbot, E-RYT 500 to teach Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR).  PLEASE NOTE NEW DATES FOR THE MBSR PROGRAM. There will be a free informational session on Tuesday, January 31, 2012 from 7:00 to 9:00 PM at the The Yoga Barn in Chilmark, just past Alley’s General Store. The eight -week class, which will be held at the same time and location, begins February 7, 2012 and runs through April 3, 2012. There will also be a half-day workshop, tentatively scheduled for March 25, 2012.  Class will not meet during the school vacation week. Please check back for details and/or feel free to give me a call with any questions regarding MBSR or any of my other services including meditation, yoga, and biofeedback.

With wishes for joy and ease,

Wendy