We are delighted to report that u3a members John, Mike and Ruth were Finalists in the ‘Innovations in Mindfulness’ awards. John, Mike and Ruth are about to start their ninth series of online events which have attracted over 1000 u3a members. Mindfulness and Meditation subject advisers John and Mike travelled to the Mindfulness Awards in Manchester to accept the prestigious prize. Judges praised the team’s creativity, the events’ accessibility for new audiences and impact over time. 

This u3a series is designed to introduce u3a members to mindful ageing and to the principles and practices of mindfulness and meditation. It aims to support members as they age and to enable them to deal with challenges that might be faced such as avoiding falls and dealing with ageism.  The content focuses on self-care and enable members to take part in meditations, mindful movement and self-massage. 

The team has created an accompanying website for the series of events which includes presentations, guided meditations, mindful movement videos and supporting documents. Members can use the website content to help revise and deepen their practice.   

The benefits for u3a members as they age are many, for example, practising mindfulness helps to ease anxiety and depression, improves attention and ability to focus and improves sleep and physical health. Members have reported that:  

“(I am) more composed and have more energy,””  

“(I have) found ways of dealing with anxiety associated with surgery,” and 

“(I have) found techniques to help me get to sleep.” 

You can try out some of the videos, audio recordings and presentations at: 

Mindful Ageing - u3a Series