Mind, Body, Breath and Mental Health
Astute Counseling & Wellness Services is the FIRST to incorporate therapy and mindfulness practices into their overall vision of wellness and mental health. We have added new mindfulness and yoga experts to our team who will be conducting in-person and zoom classes to teach meditation, mindfulness and yoga. View our class descriptions, browse schedules, and take advantage of our limited time offer for class package bundles below.
Meet our Meditation, Mindfulness and Yoga Experts.
Jaci McCarthy
Jaci McCarty is both a Certified Yoga Teacher with advanced training and a Certified Mindfulness and Meditation Teacher serving Chicago and the surrounding suburbs. With over ten years of experience working with students/patients in many different settings, including private, mental health and addictions, and corporations of all sizes, Jaci has discovered a unique method that encourages safety and ease. By empowering people to manage their own stress response and be deeply aware, Jaci ensures mindful living and meditation become a part of each person’s peaceful inner life.
Instructor at Northwestern Medicine CDH in Behavioral Health and Addictions
Certifications
Certified Yoga Teacher (CYT) with over 200 hours of training
Certified Mindfulness and Meditation Teacher (CMMT), with over 200 hours of training
Trauma Sensitive Training
Mind/Body and Stress Management Expert
Mind, Body, Breath & mental Health
Mindfulness exercises are ways of paying attention to the present moment using techniques like meditation, breathing, and yoga. Training helps people to become more aware of their thoughts, feelings, and body sensations so that instead of being overwhelmed by them, they’re better able to manage them. Allowing the mind to slow and settle through meditation and present moment awareness. Also facilitating the mind-body connection. Creating a safe and supported posture with the use of props and blankets, calming and warm atmosphere, and guided relaxation. Conscious breathing practices that are calming for body, mind, and heart and activate the relaxation response and allow for emotional release. Attention to the qualities of Greater Good and Heart Centered Mindfulness Practices that soothe and calm the inner being, allowing for acceptance of emotions.
Data on the benefits of mindfulness & mental health
“Within the past few decades, there has been a surge of interest in the investigation of mindfulness as a psychological construct and as a form of clinical intervention. This article reviews the empirical literature on the effects of mindfulness on psychological health. We begin with a discussion of the construct of mindfulness, differences between Buddhist and Western psychological conceptualizations of mindfulness, and how mindfulness has been integrated into Western medicine and psychology, before reviewing three areas of empirical research: cross-sectional, correlational research on the associations between mindfulness and various indicators of psychological health; intervention research on the effects of mindfulness-oriented interventions on psychological health; and laboratory-based, experimental research on the immediate effects of mindfulness inductions on emotional and behavioral functioning. We conclude that mindfulness brings about various positive psychological effects, including increased subjective well-being, reduced psychological symptoms and emotional reactivity, and improved behavioral regulation. The review ends with a discussion on mechanisms of change of mindfulness interventions and suggested directions for future research.”