Mind-Body Skills Sessions

"What I have grown to recognize about myself is that I spend a great deal of time taking care of everyone...This class...taught me about my origin and my environment, and the role it all played in how I have learned to survive and cope with life. I feel better about my existence and it has allowed me to engage in self care.”
—Recent Participant

Instructor: Vera Moura, MD

Courses are offered year-round in the mornings (9:30AM-Noon) and evenings (6PM-8:30PM) for health care professionals and the general public, including individuals with stable chronic conditions.

2.5 CEU credits are available!

For more information, email to: vera_moura@med.unc.edu

Upcoming Courses for 2012:

• February 1 through April 3, 2012 from 6:00 PM to 8:30 PM
• February 9 through April 12, 2012 from 9:30 AM to 12:00noon

Sessions are 2 1/2 hours, held once a week for ten weeks, focused
on experiential practice and self-reflection. The tools can last a lifetime.

Download our new Mind-Body brochure from UNC Health Care.

Location

200 Timberhill Place
Suite 204
Chapel Hill, NC 27514

About the Program

Mind-Body Skills Group (MBSG) is a meditative group process, and is one among a variety of programs worldwide involving Mind Body Medicine theory and practice. MBSG is based on principles identified in Dr. Jim Gordon’s book, Manifesto for a New Medicine. According to Dr. Gordon, a psychiatrist and founder of the Center for Mind- Body Medicine in Washington DC, “self care is the true primary care” and “health promotion is a way of life”. Dr Gordon advises health care professionals and patients to embrace a holistic, individualized approach to health and draw upon the wisdom of ancient medical traditions.

The mind-body skills group program is an educational program designed to help people embrace a unique approach to health and wellness and adopt new attitudes about health and healing. In this program, group participants have the opportunity to learn and practice a variety of mind-body techniques:

Meditation Guided Imagery Breath Work Movement Journal Writing Drawing Autogenic Training (self-hypnosis) Biofeedback (using the body's natural abilities to relax)

This program has also been proven to assist medical students and health care professionals in “preventing burnout, re-instilling fresh purpose in their work, understanding their purpose in serving and healing their patients, and providing a transformational experience” for them within a safe peer-support group.

A symbol of energy belonging to a specific individual

More testimonials from participants:

"Deep concentrated breathing and meditation allows for me to be in the here-and-now and focus on what is really going on in my body. I have been using the techniques to allow me to be able to cope with very stressful situations. I feel that I have become more tolerant of others and their expressions of self awareness.”

“This group has meant...a return to...my older wiser intuitive self...I will be anticipating being part of a group again in the future after this fulfilling experience.”

“The growth I experienced in the group was somehow an enhancement of self esteem and also a new reverence for the spiritual power inherent in sharing and opening up to self, to others, and to the unknown. I feel grateful and empowered by the experience of being in the group. The techniques were mostly known to me, but now I am more and more comfortable sharing them with others in my practice and in my personal life.”

“Listening to everyone in the group talk about themselves, I realized how different what they said was from what I thought I might hear...I know that I have grown, mostly in my ability to look inside myself, but also in my ability to really hear other people.”

“… I was able to feel comfortable being myself and sharing what I was truly feeling. I enjoyed hearing the other group members’ experiences with the practices and felt accepted and respected by everyone in the group, which in and of it self was healing.”

“…The group process was magical. Not only were the tools that were taught useful to me at various times during the program, but my life’s experiences seemed to be heightened and intensified...These life experiences were not always easy or enjoyable, but they were definitely learning experiences. I am sure I have much more to learn, but this was a big step along the way.”

Inquiries and Registration

Contact Vera Moura, MD, at 919.240.7022 or vera_moura@med.unc.edu via email. A personal interview is required before admission to the program. Each group is limited to eight participants.

Deposits and Tuition Fees

The cost for the program is $425.00. Partial scholarship available. (No one will be turned away for financial difficulties.)

About the Facilitator

Vera Lucia Moura, MD is a Brazilian psychiatrist/psychoanalyst with over 20 years of clinical practice in Brazil prior to immigrating to the US in 1990. While working at the University of Michigan Medical School (1995-2006), Dr. Moura completed the Professional Certification Program in Mind-Body-Spirit Medicine offered by the Center for Mind-Body Medicine, Washington DC. At the University of Michigan Integrative Medicine, she facilitated Mind-Body Skills groups of medical and other students from the health professions, as well as groups of women with history of abuse; she also conducted research on Mind-Body Medicine and Ancient Ways of Healing. Currently, she is working as a faculty member in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation’s Program on Integrative Medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Dr. Moura is skilled in various ancient healing methods derived from indigenous cultures, including Andean (Kichwa), African, Brazilian and Native American. Dr. Moura is committed to educating groups and individual clients on mind-body-spirit integration skills.

About the Program on Integrative Medicine, Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation

The Program on Integrative Medicine (PIM) was founded in 1998 with the mission of enhancing health through the informed integration of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) with mainstream health care. Faculty, staff and affiliates collaborate on CAM-related research, education, clinical practice and community initiatives, with the aim of understanding theoretical and philosophical bases of CAM systems; exploring efficacy of CAM practices; improving access to patient centered integrative care; furthering communication and collaboration with CAM providers; and disseminating evidence-based information on CAM and integrative care. Funding for PIM currently is provided through a state appropriation that originated with the UNC Division of Health Affairs in 1997, as well as federal and foundation grants. For more information, please see the PIM website.