Join Workshop Leader Darlene Stewart in a gentle yet transformative exploration of the stories and narratives that limit us and cause us pain.

Who would you be without your story?   Is it true?

Most of us live with painful and self-limiting stories and narratives about ourselves and others that are never challenged. We have thoughts and stories about our relationships, body image, addiction, fear and more. This daylong experiential workshop is based on "The Work," a method of self-inquiry developed by teacher and author Byron Katie (Katie) to help us identify and question the truth of these stories so there is more joy and ease in our lives. 

Katie, in the midst of a 'normal life', sank into a debilitating 10-year depression that become so severe she required in-patient care. Then one morning in 1986, Katie woke up to find that her suffering was gone, replaced by a deep joyous clarity. In that clarity Katie realized that every painful feeling – anger, loneliness, fear – is the result of believing a thought that isn’t true.

“I discovered that when I believed my stressful thoughts, I suffered, but when I didn’t believe them. I didn’t suffer and that this is true for every human being.  Freedom is as simple as that. Suffering is optional.  I found a joy within me that has never disappeared, not for a single moment.  That joy is in everyone, always.”     --Byron Katie

Katie’s realization resulted in a method of questioning the validity of stressful thoughts so we can see for ourselves if what we believe is actually true or not. Katie calls this process of self-inquiry, “The Work”.

The Work asks 4 questions:

1. Is this stressful thought true?  
2. Can I know absolutely that it’s true?
3. How do I react when I believe this thought? 
4. How would I be without this thought?

The 5^th step is called The Turnaround. This is a fascinating process for examining the thought from 3 different perspectives. The Turnaround reveals hidden inconsistencies, projections and conditioning in a way that, if we are open to it, is utterly freeing. This workshop will introduce the “Judge Your Neighbor Worksheet”, which each participant will complete with a stressful thought of their own to provide a template for the day’s work of self-discovery.

“As long as you think that anyone or anything else is responsible for your suffering, the situation is hopeless. It means that you are forever in the role of victim, that you can’t help but suffer. Behind your suffering is an unexamined thought. So examine your thinking and begin to set yourself free.”     --Byron Katie

Our FCM workshop presenter, Darlene Stewart, has attended workshops with Katie since 2012. In 2017, she attended the 9-Day School For The Work, which focused on learning to do The Work for oneself as well as how to facilitate it for others. Darlene does The Work regularly for herself and has facilitated Worksheets for many others who have found it particularly helpful in resolving conflicted, stressful situations.

Learning Objectives:

• Participants will be introduced to the “Judge Your Neighbor Worksheet from “The Work” of Byron Katie
• Participants will learn how to: 
• • Identify one stressful thought
  • Ask 4 clarifying questions about that thought
  • Turn the thought around 3 ways to test for validity

This class is approved for 6 Continuing Education Credits for LMHC; LCSW; LMFT 

Darlene Stewart retired as Vice President of Clinical Services for Children’s Advocacy Center of Volusia & Flagler Counties, where she worked for 16 years supervising clinical trauma services to child victims and families of abuse and neglect. Before that, Darlene worked as Clinical Supervisor and Mental Health Counselor providing direct services to clients in outpatient mental health centers in Oregon and Florida, working with children & families, alcohol/drug treatment and general mental health issues. Darlene has practiced mindfulness in her daily life and at work since 1997. 

*Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage & Family Therapy and Mental Health Counseling Provider Number 50-14766. This course is approved for 6 CEU’s. Credit will only be awarded with verification of attendance.

*Grievance Procedure: Mail a statement describing your complaint to Director of Continuing Education for Mental Health Professionals; 6501 N. Nebraska Avenue, Tampa, FL 33604

Many consider Yogacara to be the pinnacle in the development of Buddhist philosophical and psychological thought in India and the basis of the Buddhist meditative tradition. It posits that it is our mind or consciousness that constructs our reality, not the events of the ‘external world’. Although the meaning we give to events and our emotional responses to life are all arising in our minds, we mistakenly believe that our thoughts and beliefs about life are the same as life itself.

The profound psychology of Yogacara is based on viewing the mind as having eight levels, involving the six sensory consciousness, the sense of a self consciousness, and the storehouse consciousness. Our life experiences are patterned on our deep attachment to the largely unobserved self/ego, which constantly contaminates our experiences and creates an endless flow of misperceptions. As well, through ignorance we continue to water unwholesome seeds of suffering in the storehouse consciousness, rather than watering wholesome seeds which bring happiness.

In this workshop, Dharma teacher Fred Eppsteiner will offer teachings, meditations and analytical reflections from the Yogacara methodology intended to uproot distorted views and endless mental and emotional projects so we can see things as they really are and wake up. Transformation and freedom is the heart of Yogacara. This workshop will meet the needs for both laypeople and professionals to deepen their understanding of the basic tenets of Buddhist psychology.

Workshop Instructor

Fred Eppsteiner has been a student of the psychology of Buddhist meditation for over 40 years, and was a psychotherapist for more than 30 years. He has trained extensively in the Buddhist meditative traditions the U.S. and Asia. He received permission to teach from Thich Nhat Hanh in 1994 and is the editor of two books: The Path of Compassion and Interbeing.

* 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 4:00 pm on Saturday, April 20. 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. 

Bill Mac Millen has been a practitioner with the Florida Community of Mindfulness and a student of FCM's teacher Fred Eppsteiner since 2013. He is an aspirant in Thich Nhat Hahn's Order of Interbeing (OI) and a student in FCM's Dharma Transmission Program. Previously Bill worked in law enforcement with the Tampa Police Department and as an investigator in the communications industry before retiring in 2016.