Maria Teresa Jaureguizar began practicing zazen meditation in 1995 and took refuge and the Five Precepts from Gyokoko Carlson in 1996 at the Dharma Rain Zen Center in Portland Oregon.  Upon moving to Florida with her spouse, and finding the Florida Community of Mindfulness (FCM) she  became a student of Fred Eppsteiner in 2012 and will be ordained in the Order of Interbeing in 2019.  Maria Teresa completed the three year Dharma Transmission Program in 2018 and finds great joy in chanting, serving as bell master, and mentoring. 

Andrew Rock and his wife Nancy Natilson have been members of FCM and students of Fred Eppsteiner since 2004.  He was ordained into the Order of Interbeing by Thich Nhat Hanh in 2011.  Andrew has served on the FCM Board, and as a bellmaster, presenter and Head of Meditation Hall in FCM’s Tampa Practice Center, and as a mentor and small group leader in FCM intensives.  He has led workshops for FCM’s Mindfulness Institute on mindful consumption, engaged Buddhism and mindfulness for activists, and is a founder of the Buddhist Climate Action Network.  Andrew and Nancy live in Seminole Heights, Tampa and on the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia.

Twenty-six hundred years ago, the Buddha’s teachings showed that the way in which people think and behave contribute to their happiness or unhappiness. He also laid out the means by which negative patterns can be changed and positive ones encouraged. These teachings are the core of Buddhist psychology. While subsequent generations of Buddhists have developed them further, the essence of Buddhist psychology remains the same. Deceptively simple on the surface, it offers not only a deep understanding of human behavior, but also an effective means of change.

In this workshop, following a general overview of Buddhist psychology, we will explore:

1. how it is a positive psychology, seeing all beings as intrinsically pure or unmarred and having the goal of increasing personal happiness;
2. how our misunderstanding of the nature of reality is the root of our suffering; and
3. how the teachings help us identify and transform problematic habits of the mind

This workshop will meet the needs for both laypeople and professionals to deepen their understanding of the basic tenets of Buddhist psychology.

Workshop Instructors

Diane Powell, Ph.D.,  became a student and practitioner of the Dharma after attending a Thich Nhat Hanh retreat in Key West in 1997. As a long-time member of the Florida Community of Mindfulness, she teaches workshops and classes on a variety of mindfulness topics, serves as a mentor to new members, presents regularly at FCM sanghas, and assists with organizing FCM’s Dharma programs. Before retiring, Diane was a faculty member in Child and Family Studies at the University of South Florida, where her work focused on research, training, program development and policy analysis in early childhood development and family support.

Sharon Miller, Ph.D., is a member of the Florida Community of Mindfulness and a student of Buddhism. Previously Director of Family Psychiatry at the University of South Florida, she is now in private practice. She finds the clinical application of Buddhist psychology invaluable.

* Florida Community of Mindfulness, Inc. is approved by the Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage & Family Therapy and Mental Health Counseling to provide continuing education credits through CE Provider # 50-14766. Total in-class time is 4 hours.

Mindfulness Institute Grievance Procedure

Mail a statement describing your complaint to: Director of Continuing Education, 6501 N. Nebraska Avenue, Tampa, FL 33604.

Questions? E-mail us at info@floridamindfulness.org or call 813-237-0746.

The afflictive emotion of anger – including the range of emotions from low level irritation, frustration, resentment and jealousy to full blown rage – is one of the most destructive forces we face as human beings. This is true of anger experienced in our personal lives as well as societal anger that wreaks so much havoc upon people everywhere.

We have each acquired our own personal anger patterns due to our conditioning in life; we certainly don’t consciously choose to be irritable, resentful or angry. Thus, we can be gentle and understanding of ourselves as we are today, while at the same time knowing that with mindfulness we can create new conditions that will help to uproot anger and bring more joy into our lives.

Buddhist psychology offers much wisdom for working skillfully to transform anger through the practices of mindfulness and the cultivation of understanding and patience. These teachings have proven beneficial for over 2600 years in helping individuals to uproot anger and experience more joy in their lives. 

In our workshop we will explore the following fundamental principles essential for loosening the knots of anger, including:

• What is anger
• The destructiveness of anger and how it has manifested in our lives
• The sources and causes of anger
• Is anger ever useful
• Using understanding to unknot anger and cultivate patience
• What to do when anger has already arisen in the mind

The workshop will include instruction, reflections and practice opportunities through interactive exercises.

The workshop will be held at the FCM Practice Center, 6501 N. Nebraska Avenue, in Tampa from 8:30 am to 3:30 pm on Saturday, April 14. The cost is $75. If you have questions, please email us at info@floridamindfulness.org.

Workshop Leaders

Betsy Arizu has been interested in Buddhism for over 30 years as a counselor and artist. Her formal study began in 2011 when she became a student of Fred Eppsteiner and a practicing member of the Florida Community of Mindfulness. In 2015 she was ordained as a member of the Order of Interbeing, a community of lay and monastic practitioners established by the Venerable Thich Nhat Hahn. She leads mindfulness workshops for educators, psychologists, school and mental health counselors and social workers. 

Andrew Rock took refuge as a Buddhist in 2003, and has been an active member of Florida Community of Mindfulness and student of its teacher Fred Eppsteiner since 2005. He is an ordained member of the Order of Interbeing, and has led numerous workshops and programs at FCM. Andrew is a co-founder of the Buddhist Climate Action Network, and also practices within the Earth Holders Sangha of the Plum Village community.

We want to be happy. To enjoy our life, our relationships, our work, our time off. Yet, in spite of our best intentions, ease turns into frustration and confidence turns into anxiety. So, what’s going on? Where is this misery coming from?

Class participants will learn:

• The mind is the source of our experience;
• How past conditioning arises in mind & develops into positive or negative mind states
• How to use feelings as indicators of the presence of conditioned reactive states
• How to recognize the choice point where new behavior is possible
• Specific mindfulness practices for:
  - Recognizing & stabilizing negative mind states 
  - Recognizing & nourishing positive mind states.

This class is approved for 5 Continuing Education Credits for LMHC; LCSW; LMFT 

Workshop Leaders

Darlene Stewart, LMHC, is a retired Florida Licensed Mental Health Counselor.  She’s worked in counseling psychology since 1970.  She specialized in providing trauma services for children and adults suffering from the effects of childhood abuse & neglect.  She’s incorporated mindfulness into daily life and work since 1997. 

Charles Stewart, LMHC is a retired Florida Mental Health Counselor.  He’s worked in counseling psychology since 1970.  He specialized in providing substance abuse & mental health counseling for people suffering the effects of chemical addiction.  He’s incorporated mindfulness into daily life & work since 1997.

Digital Detox

Save the date!

More information to come in early 2019.