Move Pause Restore

06/07/2025

We assume beating ourselves up helps us to change, but the opposite is true.

Real lasting change happens when we start from acceptance, not shame.

Join us for midweek mindfulness this Tuesday to learn how.

7pm Tuesday 8th July
Zoom link available on request.

If you can’t make it, all our sessions are uploaded to YouTube.

30/03/2025

Meditation isn’t always peaceful—and that’s okay. The greatest challenge is often facing what we’ve been avoiding. Instead of resisting, we can reframe difficulty as part of growth.

Self-compassion practices like RAIN and Metta help us navigate tough emotions, offering support when we need it most. By tending to our inner space, we cultivate a peace that doesn’t rely on the outside world.

Join us for Midweek Mindfulness. 💙

03/03/2025

Living through the eyes of judgment—whether from ourselves or others—is an unnecessary chain we carry. It weighs us down, shapes how we see the world, and keeps us stuck in cycles of self-doubt and criticism.

But here’s the truth: judgment isn’t reality. It’s just perspective. And more often than not, it’s based on old fears, conditioned beliefs, or insecurities we’ve picked up along the way.

Recognizing where our judgments come from helps us loosen their grip. We’ve punished ourselves enough. We don’t have to keep playing this game.

So what if we stopped taking judgment so seriously? What if, instead of resisting it or believing it, we got curious about it?

Judgment will come and go, but we don’t have to live by it. When we soften, when we meet ourselves and others with understanding instead of criticism, we make space for something far more natural—connection, growth, and the freedom to just be ourselves.

16/02/2025

02/02/2025

Have you noticed.....

We live in a world that constantly nudges us toward pleasure—notifications, sugar, sex, entertainment, validation. This pursuit of feeling satisfied is hard wired into our brains. Yet it is also hard wired that the feeling doesn’t hang around, it’s not sustainable. Each hit of dopamine feels good, but it comes with a cost. 

The brain balances pleasure with pain, like a scale. The more we chase highs, the more we experience lows.

Modern neuroscience, particularly the work of Dr. Anna Lembke, reveals that when we overstimulate dopamine, our brain counteracts with an equal measure discomfort—boredom, restlessness, even anxiety. This is why binge-watching, scrolling, or indulging in comfort food often leaves us feeling worse afterward. 

The pursuit of more can make us feel less.

What if we stopped chasing?

Instead of running toward easy pleasure or running away from discomfort, mindfulness invites us to pause. To notice. To sit with the craving, the boredom, or the urge and ask:

What do I truly need in this moment?

Not want. Need.

The answer might not be another dopamine hit. It might be rest. Movement. Connection. A deep breath. Or simply to feel an emotion rather than distract from it.

When we accept discomfort without reacting, we reset the scale, we rebalance. 

We regain control, allowing pleasure to be nourishing rather than numbing. We learn that temporary pain—like exercise, deep work, or silence—often leads to deeper satisfaction.

So today, try this:
    •    The next time you feel the impulse to check your phone, eat out of boredom, or escape discomfort—pause.
    •    Name the feeling. Sit with it for just 60 seconds.
    •    Ask yourself: What do I truly need right now?

True freedom isn’t found in chasing more and more dopamine—it’s in mastering our response to it.

What’s one habit you’d like to reset? Hit reply and let me know!


Yours Mindfully,

Paul

18/01/2025

In Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT), we learn how our threat, drive, and soothe systems influence our feelings and actions. By growing our capacity for self-kindness and empathy, we balance these systems and foster greater inner peace.

Ready to explore these ideas in action? Join me this Tuesday at 7PM for a midweek mindfulness session where we’ll practice simple techniques to ease stress, cultivate self-compassion, and deepen connection.

Interested? Send me a DM for the link—and take a step closer to wisdom through compassion.

07/01/2025

New Year, New You? Pause for a moment.

Before diving into resolutions, take a breath and reflect: What’s driving my desire for change?

Many goals come from a sense of lack, like believing we’re not enough as we are. But that story we tell ourselves is more than often not true.

Ask yourself:
• What am I seeking through this goal?
• Is it rooted in self-love or fear?
• Does this align with my values or generated by external pressures?

When our goals stem from self-compassion—not judgment—they become an act of honouring ourselves, not “fixing” who we are.

This year, let your goals be an invitation to grow with love and acceptance. You’re already enough

07/01/2025

New Year, New Goals? Pause first.

Before diving into resolutions, take a breath and reflect: What’s driving my desire for change?

Many goals come from a sense of lack, like believing we’re not enough as we are. But what if that story isn’t true?

Ask yourself:
• What am I seeking through this goal?
• Is it rooted in self-love or fear?
• Does this align with my values or external pressures?

When our goals stem from self-compassion—not judgment—they become an act of honoring ourselves, not “fixing” who we are.

This year, let your goals be an invitation to grow with love and acceptance. You’re already enough.

17/11/2024

🙋🏻‍♂️I would like to invite all men in the Norfolk area to a special event taking place at MensCraft tomorrow evening at 7pm. ⁣
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Please DM if you are not already on the MensCraft regulars list as to help manage numbers on the night. ⁣⁣
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This is a workshop around transforming our current but outdated models of masculinity. It is for men only at this stage. There will be further dates provided for everyone - because this isn’t just a man problem, it is a cultural one.⁣⁣
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NOTE: We will discuss su***de. It is a sensitive subject and we will create a safe space for this. You will be supported, and the information is powerful - however if it may not be the right time for you so please listen to your inner wisdom and strength on this and if you need someone to speak to please reach out.⁣⁣
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Date: Mon 18th November 2024 ⁣⁣
Time: From 7pm - 8:30pm (doors open 6:45pm)⁣⁣
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Location: MensCraft Dojo, 6 The Cottage, St John’s Alley, Maddermarket, Norwich NR2 1DR. ⁣⁣
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Yours Mindfully,⁣⁣
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Paul