Listen To This First is my offering for anyone who may enjoy simple, uncomplicated and brief guided meditations & discussions for stress resilience. Professionally, I am a clinical social worker, a mindfulness meditation teacher and someone who cares deeply about people having access to what they need for their sense of wellbeing. I started this podcast in response to requests from friends, colleagues, caregivers and my own children (both teenagers) during the rapidly evolving COVID-19 pandemic. No one has been untouched by the impact and, if we are among the fortunate, we are simply being asked to remain home and maintain (physical) social distance. I am presently well and humbled to have something to offer which may be helpful for those (including myself) who are experiencing waves of anxiety and other challenging feelings. I have a long time personal mediation practice and I suspect this keeps me sane. While I'll never be certain how I would function without this practice, I do know mindfulness & mindfulness meditation help me stay healthier, kinder and more responsive to life and the people around me. I like to assume we are all doing the best we can. So, maybe listen to this first and see what you notice. If my voice and any of my experiences, or the experiences of others I talk with & interview, help guide you to a closer, calmer and more compassionate experience of yourself and life in the moment, well... that would be terrific. Together, we will get better at this. Life. Being human. And for me, how to podcast. Thank you for your trust. ~Laura
About Laura
Laura Rice-Oeschger, LMSW, leads the Wellness Initiative at the University of Michigan Alzheimer’s Disease Center where she designs, implements and evaluates wellbeing and mindfulness-based programming. She is a founding member of the Ann Arbor Center for Mindfulness and serves as CEO for the Presence Care Project where she trains new facilitators in Mindfulness-based Dementia Care (MBDC).
Laura holds advanced professional certifications in aging, dementia and contemplative clinical care. As a long-time meditator she began teaching mindfulness meditation in 2010 and has extensive professional training in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Mindfulness-Based Dementia Care (MBDC). She is a national and state presenter on memory loss and caregiver wellbeing. She is committed to co-creating and sharing contemplative programs assisting care partners, adults living with memory loss and community members in their desire to live meaningful, connected and healthy lives.
Masters of Social Work Degree: University of Michigan School of Social Work (1997)
Specialist in Aging; Advanced Cert in Dementia Care: University of Michigan School of Social Work
Advanced Certification in Contemplative Clinical Care: Smith College of Social Work
B.A. – Sociology & Music: Alma College
Presence Care Project https://www.presencecareproject.com/
Michigan Alzheimer's Disease Center https://alzheimers.med.umich.edu/
Ann Arbor Center for Mindfulness https://www.aacfm.org/
Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD https://www.mindfulnesscds.com/pages/about-the-author
Mindfulness Center at Brown https://www.brown.edu/public-health/mindfulness/home
*artwork Chair - a painting in my home by Candace Compton Pappas (2008) - acrylic, ink, clay on board https://www.comptonpappas.com/
This is an entirely homespun podcast. Any sound issues or gaffes are completely my doing. Recording, editing and music are mixed in-house using a Tascam DR-40X recorder, various microphones, speakers and Logic Pro X for editing and production. All efforts will be made to edit out lip smacking, chewing, heavy breathing, swearing and the dog barking in the background. All complaints can be directed into a pillow at any volume of your choosing.