The Ark of Mindfulness - Your Teacher

A few words about your teacher Dominique Girardini

Professional Profile

I am a qualified and experienced psychotherapist (PGDip in Psychosynthesis Counselling) and mindfulness teacher (Master’s in Science in Mindfulness-Based Approaches).

I completed Teacher Training Level I and 2 with the Centre for Mindfulness Research and Practice at Bangor University, where I also gained a Master Degree in Mindfulness-Based Approaches.

I trained to teach the Mindfulness for Life 8-week course and the Mindfulness: Taking it Further programme at the University of Oxford Mindfulness Centre.

I am a member of BAMBA (British Association of Mindfulness-Based Approaches) and adhere to their Good Practice Guidance for mindfulness teachers, which means that I attend a week-long silent retreat at least once a year to nourish and deepen my meditation practice and engage in ongoing professional development, through further training and keeping informed of new mindfulness-based research. Although not an expert, I am interested in the findings of neuroscience which shed light on the interface between our lived experience and our biology.

I also receive regular supervision from a qualified mindfulness supervisor on my teaching.

Although in the past few years I have let go of my psychotherapeutic practice in order to concentrate on mindfulness teaching and mentoring, I am still a member of BACP (British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy). From my days as a psychotherapist, I bring into my mindfulness teaching a large body of knowledge on psychological matters, ranging from psychopathology to working with trauma, as well as relational skills and an understanding that human beings to heal and thrive need both to work with their wounding/distress/dysfunctional patterns and to nourish all that promotes flourishing of life and well-being in themselves.

A bit more about me as a person…

I am a long-term meditator and yoga practitioner. Having explored different forms of meditation over the years, I have found my home in mindfulness practice.

I am by nature a seeker, a wanderer of psycho-spiritual paths, and like so many in these professions, very much of a wounded healer.  I have been on a quest for self-knowledge, exploring ways to alleviate suffering (my own and hopefully others) for as long as I can remember, searching for greater understanding of what it is to be human and how we can find meaning in our lives and realise our own unique way of actualising our potential.

Over the years and all the challenges and joys they brought, I have developed a reverence for life in all its forms and feel called to contribute in my small humble way, through my mindfulness teaching in particular, to bringing about more harmonious ways of living with ourselves, with each other and with the natural world. 

One more thing… I am bi-lingual (French, English) and bi-national.