The Miami Lakes public library branch is offering general mediation classes every Friday from 11 a.m. to noon. On January 27, the library will present a special guest speaker, meditation specialist, Patrician Calhoun, to lead a presentation called “Stress RX,” a guide to reducing stress. Calhoun has had a lifelong interest in health and spent 20 years as a nurse practitioner in South Florida.
“My presentation is about how stress affects the body and mind and what we can do about it,” said Calhoun. “I will be discussing things like using breath, sleep, simple meditation and the power of connectivity with others.”
Dr. Kathy Shea, who typically leads the Friday morning meditation class, volunteers with Calhoun at the non-governmental organization, Brahma Kumaris Meditation Center, which has partnered with FIU’s medical program and Miami-Dade County Public Libraries to bring the education of meditation to the public in targeted areas where FIU has noticed trends of families with certain health conditions, or those without insurance, in an effort to bring holistic wellness to the community.
FIU is able to target these communities and introduce the work of the Brahma Kumaris Meditation Center due to the Green Family Foundation’s grant to the medical school.
The form of meditation discussed at the meetings is raja yoga meditation. Shea first encountered meditation following a stroke she suffered in front of her students at the University of Miami two decades ago. After a friend noted how stressed she was, Shea began studying mindfulness and meditation and is pleased that these concepts are now more widely accepted and mainstream than they were when she first stumbled upon it.
“It’s a service to the community that we believe in so much that we offer it to the community absolutely free,” said Shea.
The Miami Lakes public library branch is located at 6699 Windmill Gate Rd. and the Stress RX component is a one time event taking place from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on January 27. For more information contact the library at 305-822-6520.