tonight's pint - 

22 MAY

Pint of Science - Happy Healthy Minds

What do you do to keep your mind healthy? People do lots to improve their physical health - eat more fruit, drink less alcohol, exercise. But what, if anything, do you do for your mental health? Tonight's talks explore whether mindfulness meditation can bring you inner peace. Plus whether the way we try to cope with stress and unhappiness could be causing problems

What is mindfulness, and what are its benefits? Michael Atkinson (School of Medical Education, Newcastle University)

Michael's talk will introduce you to the science and practice of mindfulness meditation. This technique, a method of calming the mind and focussing on the present has become hugely popular in recent times to reduce stress and improve well-being. Michael will give an introduction to some of the key research related to mindfulness and take the audience through some guided practices. There will be lots of opportunity for discussion and questions.

Bipolar disorder and Emotions. Dr Alyson Dodd (Psychology, Northumbria University)

People with bipolar disorder experience periods of feeling very low (depression), periods of feeling super high (mania) or perhaps both at the same time. No one understands the causes but there do seem to be some factors that make a person more likely to develop the condition. Join tonight's speaker Dr Alyson Dodd as she describes her research looking at how we deal with our emotions and how this might put people more at risk.

Doors open at 7pm. Event starts at 7:30pm.