Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction
The 8-week Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Program uses
intentional, present-moment awareness to help us experience whatever is happening in our life as it unfolds with curiosity, non-judging attention and compassion for ourselves and others.
Engaging with our life in this manner helps us become more skillful and creative in our responses, while gaining insight into how to free ourselves from habitual patterns of reacting such as anxiously anticipating the future, chronically focusing on the past or just going through the motions of living, missing what is actually occurring right now.
This kind of awareness, cultivated by the practice of mindfulness meditation, enables us to wake up to the pleasures in our lives and enhances our ability to tap into our wisdom and internal resources in difficult times.
The practice of mindfulness is accessible, universal and can be practically integrated into your everyday life.
The program can be a complement to current medical care as well as promotion of health and well-being.
The Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program has been offered at 
the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics since 1996. It is sponsored by the Department of Psychiatry and UI Behavioral Health and is modeled after the well-known program developed at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center by Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD.
Upcoming MBSR classes:
- Tuesdays, January 19–March 9, 2010 from 5:30–7:30 p.m.
- Wednesdays, January 20–March 10, 2010 from 9:30–11:30 a.m.
(Deadline for registration is January 13, 2010) - Thursdays, February 11–April 1, 2010 from 4–6 p.m.
(Deadline for registration is February 4, 2010) - All-day session (part of MBSR program) is February 27, 2010 from 9 a.m.–3 p.m. for all sections
Attend an information session (required)
Attendance at an informational session is required prior to registering. There is no fee for this information session, nor is there an obligation to sign up. It is not necessary to pre-register for the information session, just attend:
- Tuesday, December 15, 5–6 p.m.
- Wednesday, January 6, 2010, noon–1 p.m.
- Thursday, January 7, 2010, 4–5 p.m.
- Monday, January 11, 2010, 3:30.–4:30 p.m.
- Tuesday, January 12, 2010, noon–1 p.m.
- Wednesday, January 13, 2010, 5:30–6:30 p.m.
Additional information sessions for 2/11–4/1 section:
- Thursday, January 28, 2010, 5–6 p.m.
- Wednesday, February 3, 2010, noon–1 p.m.
- Thursday, February 4, 2010, 4:30–5:30 p.m.
If you choose to participate in the MBSR program, you will be asked to 
register at this time and pay the fee with cash, check or credit card.
All information sessions are 1 hour and held in the Adult Outpatient Psychiatry Clinic at University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics (1st floor Pappajohn Pavilion, West Entrance, 2nd door on right).
MBSR Fees
The fee for MBSR is $400*. It may be paid by check, cash or credit card at the information session.
- Anyone is welcome to participate, whether or not they are affiliated with the University of Iowa
- Scholarship applications are available for non-UI affiliated people who do not have the financial resources to pay the full fee
- UI employees may be eligible for 75% fee support through UI Wellness
- House Staff at UI Hospitals and Clinics may also contact liveWELL re: fee support
- Currently registered UI students receive a 50% discount bringing the fee to $200 to be paid at the required information session
- MBSR is not covered by insurance at this time
* The fee includes:
- One hour group informational session prior to registering
- 23 hours of instruction
- Two-CD set of guided meditation and yoga/mindful movement practices
- Readings, hand-outs and other materials to support your practice and understanding of
mindfulness - Invitation to participate in classes for on-going instruction and support upon completion of the eight-week program
- Invitation to participate in all-day sessions of Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction groups in the future upon completion of the program