More About Kate...

What led you to teaching stress reduction and meditation?

Really it was through my own experience. I suffered from M.E. for many years when I was younger, which I believe was very much stress-related. I went to see a hypnotherapist and psychotherapist, who taught me to recognise how I was exhausting myself by putting pressure on myself to do everything ‘right’. He also introduced me to relaxation techniques and meditation, which I practised and began to see a real reduction in my levels of anxiety.

So meditation cured you?
No, I wouldn’t say that. I would say it provided me with the foundation for recovery, which I eventually achieved by combining a strict activity and rest programme and the principles of non-judgemental awareness and compassion. In short, in order to recover, I had to learn to let go of what was keeping me unwell.

What else did you learn from being ill, and your recovery?
That sometimes recovery – from stress, anxiety and ill-health – requires a degree of self-enquiry and taking responsibility that can be difficult and challenging, but for me at least was ultimately worth it a hundred times over. I would also say that when we are at our most vulnerable we are also often at our most authentic. That our bodies and minds create messages that need to be listened to, or what tends to happen is that they either shout louder, or find another way or symptom to get the message across.

So what do you think our bodies are trying to tell us through the symptoms of anxiety?
Put simply, that something needs to change. This could be an external situation, or more often our reaction to what happens, our internal dialogue if you like. And sometimes just becoming aware of our reaction is enough to let the symptom go.

What have you learnt from facilitating SR courses and groups?
I have learnt that although people may have different symptoms and experiences, and some may be better at hiding it than others, everyone has some business with stress and anxiety – and that discovering this is one of the most healing aspects that people find in our groups.

So it’s human connection that helps more than anything?
I believe it goes a long way, yes. Isolation can be very debilitating in itself, which is why I work a lot in ‘social inclusion’ projects. As far as what we do goes, people can learn stress reduction techniques from a book, but there is a certain powerful process involved in our groups that goes beyond that.

What do you and your clients get from you and Stephen facilitating groups together?
Working with Stephen is always fascinating and good fun. We have had different experiences but are very much singing from the same sheet. We have complementary personalities and therapeutic styles and what one of us may miss in a group, the other will pick up. We are also relaxed with each other and I feel that this helps to put other people at their ease too.

What do you enjoy about facilitating groups?
I enjoy getting to know different people and hearing their stories, and seeing people support each other. I also find that teaching the principles and techniques reinforces them in my own practice and serves as a useful reminder – always a work in progress!