Reflective Journal on Mindfulness and Meditation Practices

This reflective journal discusses the author's experience with mindfulness and meditation practices during weeks 18-22 of their coursework. It covers various programs and exercises, such as Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction and Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy, and how they helped the author improve their awareness and focus. The journal also discusses the importance of research methodology and clarity of research objectives in the coursework.

Reflective Journal

Week 18
Reflective journal 1
For the given week’s session which was an introductory session of the coursework, several
programs were based on mindfulness for learning new ways or methods to respond to emotions,
physical symptoms, thoughts and sensations. Throughout the week various programs including
the Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction program and Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy
was being presented. For the week’s study, we were taught about having changes in the
experiences of an individual by making relative awareness about each moment in the life being.
This can enhance the experience and relative effects that can be caused by the personality of an
individual. In the weekly learning, there were several learnings and understandings which were
built with respect to mindfulness of the breathing meditation which helps in increasing
awareness of my mind’s chatter and distractibility.
In the given coursework introduction to mindfulness with its historic roots as well as clinical
applications, raisin exercise, mindfulness of the breath & mindful inquiry, automatic pilot and
3-minute breathing space were provided. I gained a better understanding of these tasks for
which the quality of the performance was driven with respect to clarifying on an effective basis
of working in the workplace environment. Throughout the session, at first, the learning material
made available to me appeared to be a bit confusing. I was able to gain quality skills
development that related to communication and decision-making. This was backed up by
reflecting on several workplace activities that were performed during the course of the module.
This consists of communicating or discussing the tasks with the module leader and with my
group mates. In addition to this, a variety of decisions were being made that related to
coursework and performing each task with appropriate use of resources and completion of tasks
within the desired period of time.
Reflective journal 2
Several programs were built on mindfulness for learning new ways or strategies to respond to
emotions, bodily symptoms, thoughts, and sensations for the given week's session, which was an
introduction session to the coursework. Various programs, such as Mindfulness-based Stress
Reduction and Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy, were offered throughout the week.
During the week's study, we learned about how to influence an individual's experiences by
becoming more conscious of each moment of their lives. This can improve the experience and

relative impacts that an individual's personality might have. Several learnings and understandings
were established in the weekly learning with regard to mindfulness of the breathing meditation,
which aids in improving awareness of my mind's chatter and distractibility.
The delivered curriculum included raisin exercise, awareness of the breath & mindful inquiry,
automatic pilot, and 3-minute breathing space, as well as an introduction to mindfulness with
its historical roots and therapeutic applications. I obtained a deeper knowledge of these duties,
which were motivated by the quality of the performance in terms of defining an effective
foundation of functioning in the professional environment. During the session, the learning
materials made accessible to me initially looked to be a little unclear. I was able to obtain
valuable experience in the areas of communication and decision-making. This was supported by
a review of many workplace tasks completed throughout the course of the module. This entails
negotiating or debating the tasks with the module leader and other members of my group. In
addition, a number of decisions were made on coursework, including how to complete each
assignment with the best use of resources and in the shortest amount of time possible.
Week 19
Reflective journal 1
The provided weekly journal delivered quality information and knowledge with regards to the
understanding difference between trait mindfulness and dispositional mindfulness which can be
acquired through practicing mindfulness. This included Session 2; the handout various lessons
were being taught that related to the aspect of breathing. In addition to this, there were several
relative tasks that were being produced that appreciated the issues which surround the construct
of dispositional mindfulness and acknowledging the self-assessment mindfulness measures.
Furthermore, various learnings were being drawn with respect to building on self-assessment
mindfulness measures and their approaches to measuring mindfulness.
Throughout the week multiple tasks were being produced that relate to learning new things and
drawing on relative findings of the materials available throughout the module. It included key
learnings about evaluation over dispositional personality traits, dispositional mindfulness and
relative western psychological approaches. For the week, I was tasked by my tutors to perform
cognitive exercises which explored the connection between feelings, thoughts and various body
sensations. For the week analysis of validity and reliability was also being taught with regard to

the given questionnaire. The descriptive understandings were being made with respect to
delivering a quality understanding of the module concepts and developing crucial knowledge
about relative terms of content validity for the coursework of the module. Throughout the week,
I was delivered with better knowledge about the physiological concepts of content validity. I
was able to understand the technical knowledge of the concept of measuring cortisol and equip
myself with better productivity of mine for performing a variety of tasks as guided by the module
leader. For the given week doubt session was also being asked by the mentor to be conducted
that will classify acquiring the quality of understanding throughout the lesson plan. I was really
convinced by the format of the teaching by our module leader and developed effective potential
through which learning was made much easier. This established an effective standard through
which innovative mind-sets and stable mental health can be ensured by me.
Reflective journal 2
The offered weekly notebook gave high-quality material and knowledge on the differences
between trait and dispositional mindfulness, which may be learned via mindfulness practice. In
addition, various related tasks were being developed that acknowledged the problems
surrounding the idea of dispositional mindfulness as well as the self-assessment mindfulness
measures. In addition, several conclusions were formed on how to improve self-assessment
mindfulness measures and their techniques for evaluating mindfulness.
Several assignments relating to learning new things and drawing on relevant findings of the
resources accessible throughout the curriculum were completed during the week. My tutors
assigned me cognitive activities for the week that probed the relationship between feelings,
ideas, and various physical sensations. Validity and reliability analysis were also taught over the
week in relation to the presented questionnaire. The descriptive understandings were developed
with the goal of providing a thorough understanding of the module topics and creating critical
knowledge regarding relative content validity for the module's coursework. I gained a better
understanding of the physiological ideas of content validity during the course of the week and
valid explanations were being provided with regards to measuring cortisol. As directed by the
module leader, I was able to grasp the technical understanding of the subject and equip myself
with improved productivity for accomplishing a range of jobs. The mentor also requested that a
doubt session be held for the provided week, which would characterise gaining the quality of
knowledge throughout the instructional plan. The manner of our module leader's instruction

convinced me, and I established effective potential through which learning was made much
simpler. This built an effective criteria through which I may assure inventive mindsets and
steady mental wellness.
Week 20
Reflective journal 1
The experimental session 3: handout described coping with stress: Responding VS Reacting was
being taken into consideration. This was the third session of the coursework which was regarded
as week 20 in which I was engaged with practicing the mindfulness of thoughts and feelings
meditations at least 5 times. I performed meditation and was guided to write a reflective journal
through which a better recording of various feelings and relative emotions being developed was
initiated. During the initial coursework of performing meditation, I faced a lack of concentration,
dedication and was unable to continue the mindfulness for a desirable period of time. Over the
week, I was also provided with mp3 audio in support to perform meditation which also aided in
coping with the stress during the personal or professional workings.
There were several elements during the course of practice that motivated me throughout the
process. These included factors that were made available to me from the side of the university
and relative factors that helped me to stay motivated during the coursework. For various days in
the week, I performed a variety of tasks for the week in which stability of mind was being taken
care of along with acquiring learnings of several materials throughout the module. However,
during the week, I sometimes missed the tasks in which I was unable to perform the scheduled
task of meditation as provided in the module tasks. I have gained a better understanding of the
learning outcomes and was able to relate the tasks and activity which was provided to me in the
coursework module.
Throughout the week, I was engaged in a variety of activities and relative tasks which were
related to mindfulness and brain structure on the basis of which better learnings were being
obtained during the coursework. In addition to this, the basics of fMRI and large-scale brain
network was also being evaluated. I was tasked with certain tasks and activities for which
creativeness and innovative ideas to present the findings were being entertained. This provides
with effective basis through which effective learnings were being initiated that also guided

critical pathways for which future-oriented goals and career polls can be attained.
Reflective journal 2
This was the third session of the coursework, which corresponded to week 20, during which I
engaged in at least 5 awareness of thoughts and feelings meditations. I practised meditation and
was instructed to keep a reflective notebook in which I could better document the many feelings
and emotions I was experiencing. During my early meditation courses, I struggled with attention
and devotion, and was unable to maintain awareness for a long amount of time.
There were various aspects of practising that kept me motivated throughout the process. These
comprised both university-provided resources and personal considerations that helped me stay
motivated during my studies. I completed a number of chores for the week that included
maintaining mental stability as well as obtaining learnings from various resources throughout the
module on various days of the week. During the week, however, I occasionally skipped
assignments because I was unable to do the scheduled meditation work as specified in the
module tasks. I got a better knowledge of the learning objectives and was able to connect the
assignments and activities presented in the coursework module to the learning outcomes.
Throughout the week, I was involved in a number of activities and related assignments, as a
result of which I was able to improve my understanding throughout the coursework. I was given
specific chores and exercises to do, and I was encouraged to use my imagination and come up
with new ways to convey the findings. This provides an effective foundation on which
successful learnings may be begun, as well as crucial paths for achieving future-oriented
objectives and career polls.
Week 21
Reflective journal 1
In the provided week I was provided with a psychological journal through which relative
materials of instructions and sample tests were being provided. Throughout the module creative
learnings were being established that correlated with the quality of workings for the module
tasks. This defined a better understanding of the coursework which created a critical pathway
through which an effective learning basis was being formulated.
During the coursework key activities with regard to performing research journals and adopting
the proper methodology can be taken into consideration. This created better terms for which

research aims and objectives were being attained by developing critical standards through which
learnings can be obtained. It was in regards to developing critical standards that determined
crucial aspects under which qualitative terms of functioning were being determined. It enabled
me to qualify effective working standards for which professionalism of work can be enabled.
This allowed me to formulate better standards on the basis of which effective learnings were
being polished and quantify the variables as per research aims and objectives.
I was provided with a journal through which I was tasked to read the journal and clarify the
research aims and objectives. With the process, I was tasked to undertake better efforts on the
basis of which clarity of the research project was being drawn and delivered to me with a clear
understanding of the research motives. This enabled me to perform effective tasks through which
my research skills were being enhanced and I was equipped with various tasks which were
performed with regard to completing the project work. From the analysis, I was able to build
effective terms of workings through which clarity of understanding was being built through
gaining knowledge about the concepts of psychology.
Reflective journal 2
During the week, I was given a psychological diary in which I was given related items such as
instructions and example exams. Throughout the module, creative learnings were established that
were linked to the quality of the module assignments' workings. This defined a better grasp of
the coursework, which paved the way for the formation of an effective learning foundation.
Even during coursework, key activities such as conducting research journals and using
appropriate methodology can be considered. Defining critical criteria by which learnings may be
achieved, produced better terms for which research aims and objectives were being met. It was in
the context of establishing vital criteria that essential parts of qualitative parameters of
functioning were identified. It allowed me to define effective working standards that would allow
me to maintain a high level of professionalism in my job. This helped me to develop better
criteria on which to refine useful learnings and quantify variables in accordance with study goals
and objectives.
I was given a journal and given the responsibility of reading it and clarifying the study goals and
objectives. With the procedure, I was given the task of putting in more work on the basis of
which the research project was built and provided me with a clear grasp of the study objectives.
This allowed me to complete productive activities that improved my research abilities and

provided me with a variety of tasks to complete as part of the project work. I was able to
construct effective terms of workings based on the analysis, and I was able to achieve clarity of
understanding by learning about psychological principles.
Week 22
Reflective journal 1
This session of week 22 focused on learning about meditation practice including practice of
mindfulness of breath mindfulness of the body and mindfulness of the feelings and thoughts. I
had to practice meditation on alternative days and practice mindfulness of feelings and thoughts
to be aware of what is already there in the experience in order to improve my ability to complete
mindfulness practices. I learned about the concept of formal meditation and alternative
meditative practices I completed during week number 22 have helped me improve my
mindfulness and focus on daily activities. In addition to this I was able to clear my mind I
dedicate myself to my goals after completing meditative practices and formal meditation
activities. Improving my meditative practices formally during the week introduce challenges
with specific practices while others I was able to completely understand and follow through.
I was able to effectively follow through the meditative practices of mindfulness of the thought
which involved remembering and becoming aware of own thoughts feelings and body sensation
during daily activities and interpersonal relations and interactions. From my ability to easily
adopt meditative practice which focused on mindfulness of the thought I have understood that it
is easy for me to clear my mind and focus on understanding the feelings behind specific actions
during my daily work.
Throughout the coursework Experiential Session 3: Home practice were being provided.
Mindfulness of the thought is an important area of meditative practices which helps individuals
clear their mind and focus on their goals by understanding the go root of various actions and
their inner consciousness. I even remembered my meditative practice surrounding my influence
of the thought and was able to write up my thoughts in order to clearly understand the feelings
behind them so that I am able to utilize the mindfulness practice of thought into something useful
and take the information gained from this meditative practice to improve on my personal feelings
and thoughts.
Reflective journal 2

Formal meditative practices are not easy to learn and I have understood this area of meditation
by completing formal meditative practices in week 22. This session tested my ability to easily
learn and adapt to new meditative practices surrounding breathing as I was not able to
completely follow through with breathing meditative practices and easily adapt them to gain the
best result. Mindfulness of breath is a central concept of meditative practices which helps
individuals improve their breathing while also focusing on the concept of mindfulness.
Mindful breathing is a very basic yet powerful mindful meditation practice where the mean
concept is to get the attention of an individual on the breathing practices and enable them to
follow their natural rhythm and flow of breathing. The main challenge I faced while completing
breathing meditation was associated with controlling my breath as I was not able to concentrate
my attention on mindfulness while also taking efforts to control my breathing movements. I
practice a 3-minute breathing space on alternative days of the week in order to continuously
work on my meditative breathing but I am still not able to completely master the art of
mindfulness breathing.
Reflecting on Experiential Session 3: Home practice experience I have understood that I was
able to complete my breathing also focusing on meditation ended his need for improvement in
this area as I need to improve my level of control on more breathing so that I am able to keep
my attention elsewhere. In the future, it is important to continue three-minute breathing practice
without any external distractions such as music or another form of media so that I am able to
focus on mindfulness while also clearly and accurately following breath-focused meditation.
Week 23
Reflective journal 1
This was session number 4th of the experience which occurred on week 23rd and was focused on
the concept of mindfulness neuroscience and clinical applications. Experiential session
number four has been very lightning for me because I was able to learn about mindfulness of
feelings and thoughts along with various neuroscience topics such as cognitive exercise and
breathing meditation. I was most excited for this session because it included completing a
question and answer round with doctor Elena Antonova. The experimental study included open
monitoring/ choiceless awareness through which several reflections were being made.

Reflecting on this experience I have been able to understand my good for June that I have been
able to attend a session with doctor Elena Antonova which has helped me improve my
knowledge of the concepts related to neuroscience as well as mindfulness and will help me in my
future professional application of these concepts. The best part of the challenge was the question
and answer round because I was able to ask the doctor questions along with other students and
individuals which help me understand how my peers have attended these sessions.
From the question and answer round, I am now able to understand that my peers also faced
similar problems to me when learning about new concepts salute to neuroscience, mindfulness,
meditation and many more. This has given me the assurance that I’m on the right path and
increase my confidence to further practice improving my skills related to meditation and other
activities and concepts learned in these sessions. The knowledge and confidence I have gained
too the experiential session quote and week number 23, will always be valuable to me whether it
be in my professional career or personal life. The main benefit I gained from the decision was
my improved knowledge and confidence along with new information surrounding neuroscience
and mindfulness which I can utilize to face my breathing problem when conducting breath-
focused mindfulness.
Reflective journal 2
During the 23rd week and the experiential session number 4, I participated in the lecture given
by block leader and lecturer doctor Elena Antonova. This lecture included various topics
including mindfulness of feelings and thoughts negative events calendar acceptance and change
cognitive exercise and choiceless awareness meditation. I’ve learned new areas of mindfulness
and neuroscience from this lecture which was effectively completed by doctor Elena Antonova.
The experimental study included open monitoring/ choiceless awareness through which several
reflections were being made. I also gained better instruction on how to complete a reflective
journal which improved my ability to reflect on the past experiences and ensure that I am able to
learn from these experiences. In addition to this session number four in week number 23 hours
included a hand-out on expectations and change. This is a very important handout because it
helps individuals understand the advantages of awareness acceptance and mindfully responding
to the situation. In the future, I will be utilizing this hand out to improve my professional as well
as personal practices and face various challenging situations in my professional and personal life
effectively. The hand-out covered the concept of acceptance and change and how mindfulness

can be adding opted to skilfully accept change in the inner and outer world of individuals.
The skills and knowledge I gained from this experience only add to my professionalism and
good personal behaviour as I will be able to utilize the concept of mindfulness to accept change
and get the best of my life. I will be able to utilize this experience shell session for hand-out to
maintain dignity and control in various situations and make conscious decisions to accept
changes that cannot be controlled by me. I have already noticed that using the handout given
during this fourth session and utilizing the knowledge from the hand-out has improved my ability
to take up stressful situations and handle various challenging aspects of such situations easily as
I’m able to accept change and overcome a sense of helplessness by choosing not to react against
factors which are beyond my control.

Week 24
Reflective journal 1
The 5th experiential session focused on the concept of mindfulness neuroscience and clinical
applications and started on week number 24. The module outlined loving-kindness as a mindful
practice being covered under the experimental session 5 handouts. This week was an important
week in improving my mindfulness knowledge as the main focus of mindfulness in week 24 was
to improve loving and kindness as a mindfulness practice. Attending this week, I have learned
that loving-kindness is an important part of mindfulness as it helps individuals create an attitude
of open unconditional friendliness which Involves sending kind, compassionate and loving
intentions to several different categories of individuals including the self a cherished person or
mentor. These actions not only help improve interpersonal relationships but also play an
important role in improving mindfulness while also improving the empathy of the individual.
By following the loving-kindness mindfulness techniques, I was able to gain a positive outlook
on my life and create an optimistic environment surrounding myself which continuously
motivates me to become a better person in all areas of life. The most effective part of the
kindness-loving mindfulness practices was that I was able to improve my relationship with
important people in my life which created a positive environment for me and reduced huge stress
so that now I am able to completely focus on my professional progress. Completing loving and
kind exchanges with the cherished individuals of my life has been very rewarding for me as it
has made me emotional and gain inner motivation to work on my floss whether they are
professional or personal weaknesses. I will utilize the knowledge gained from the 5 experiential
session to continuously improve my ability to act in a mindful manner and improve my empathy.
Reflective journal 2
During the 24th week and exponential session number five I learned about noodle effects of
mindful emotion regulation along with neural correlation of empathy and compassion. I have
now gained a knowledge about different between emotions feelings and moods along with the
six basic emotions humans feels during their daily life. This knowledge has helped me adopt
kind and loving mindfulness practices in my daily life as I am more aware of whether my
actions are based on my emotions, moods, or feelings. After the completion of this week, I am
now able to apply the wheel of emotion which is a categorical classification of primary
emotional dimensions along with its advanced emotion to understand what the main emotions

behind specific feelings are. This has not only improved my ability to effectively engage in
mindful practices but also become aware of the relationship between my body States and
emotions.
I also learned the difference between emotional reactivity an emotional regulation so that I am
able to appraise my emotions and feelings during an experience to reach the stage of mindful
awareness and act responsibly by understanding the core of my emotions. This week was very
beneficial for improving my theoretical knowledge as I learned about various concepts such as
emotional regulation networks and the neural dynamics associated with reappraisal and
suppression of emotion which will help me in my professional activities as I will be able to
apply this knowledge to help me and care users. I learned about hypothesis temporal dynamics in
the prefrontal context which is associated with top-down emotional regulations which have
helped me understand how my mind annual biologic works during the practice of emotional
regulation.
Week 25
Reflective journal 1
The final session which was experiential session number 6 was completed during week 24 and
was an effective way of completing the exponential sessions on mindfulness as it helped me gain
motivation to continue my mindfulness journey for a lifetime. I was able to identify my
intentions and commitment to continuing mindfulness practice for the rest of my life along with
the strategies and obstacles which I will face while completing the specific mindfulness
commitments. This was an effective way of completing the final week of the experiential
sessions as it helped me take immediate action on adopting mindfulness practices learned
throughout the six weeks in my daily life and ensure that I will follow the course of mindfulness
throughout my life. I was also given inspiration quotations deleted to mindfulness during the
final week which improved my commitment and motivation towards making a full effort to
adopt mindfulness in my daily life activities.
Now I am very excited to ensure that mindfulness practices become part of my daily habit as for
the past six weeks I have seen a huge improvement in my personal and professional attitude and
work because of the various mindfulness techniques I learned during the experiential sessions.
During the final week, I was able to refresh the previous knowledge I gained each week and the

ways it has improved my personal as well as professional life. I also looked back at the
challenges I faced with various mindfulness practices and techniques so that I am able to identify
a general challenge that affects my ability to achieve the highest form of mindfulness. Looking
back at the challenges has helped me understand my strengths and weaknesses in the context of
mindfulness so that I am not able to make the same mistakes in the future and successfully adopt
mindfulness as a part of my daily routine and habit to improve life in various aspects.
Reflective journal 2
During the final week of the exponential sessions, I was really happy with the progress I made
throughout the sessions and how this progress has helped me make improvements in various
areas of life. I was given further reading resources which can help me adopt a mindful way of
living life including online as well as physical sources. These resources included mindfulness
websites and meditation apps along with books on mindfulness which can help me improve my
theoretical knowledge and practical application of mindfulness techniques and practices.
Reflecting upon this experience I’ve understood that this was the most suitable way of ending the
experiential sessions as it provides all the individuals attending sessions along with me resources
through which they are able to take further action fully improving their mindfulness instead of
leaving the mindfulness techniques and practices learned during the sessions here without any
further improvement.
I have taken an aim to optimally use the mindfulness resources including websites and books so
that I am able to develop a better understanding of mindfulness in the context of neuroscience
which will improve my personal outlook on life as well as my professional knowledge related to
neuroscience and mindfulness healthcare. In addition to this, I will also download the
mindfulness application to ensure that I am able to follow through with my commitments to
improving my mindfulness abilities and also gain guidance in the systematic adoption of
mindfulness in my daily life instead of acting out on specific goals without much direction
towards achieving so specific improvement under the time. Reflecting back on this experience I
have understood that I am very grateful for participating in these experiential sessions because
they have helped me not only improve my personal life but also ensure that in the future, I will
be able to become a more aware and mindful professional to completely help healthcare users.