Introduction to Mindfulness - Dean Amory

they had achieved were the reason they were in this program and a
fundamental part of their motivation to learn a new skill and avoid
relapse.
Asked why they were continuing to “stay clean”, they described
previous relapses and how much they realised that relapse can happen
very quickly and destroy whatever life they had built for themselves in
recovery. They talked about “fear” as an important element of their
motivation to stay clean. Some of them believed that if they relapsed
again, there wouldn’t be a “second recovery” in them.
Others focused on how much they would lose (Table 5) if they
relapsed. They described the feeling of being free of “something big”;
the experience of seeing the world in a new way and feeling they had
a place in the world; and the sense that they were now growing in a
way that wasn’t possible before.
When asked what they had learned in this course to help them stay
clean, many people talked about slowing down and experiencing what
was actually happening at any given moment in their life, rather than
creating stories about how unsatisfactory life was or how they might
dream it could be different. Some referred to feeling more at ease
with painful emotions, and how attending to painful feelings had
changed these emotions.
Supporting their practice beyond this course
There was a strong feeling in the group that they wanted to have
some opportunity to continue to practice in a group setting. Clive
offered to return for an hour each week and lead a sitting meditation
for whoever might show up, it would be a simple exercise, with
mainly silent practice and not too much discussion.
The team also identified mindfulness classes that were held weekly in
the Sanctuary and Orla was happy for any of them to attend her
formal Yoga courses in the city centre.
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