UCLA Mindful

11/26/2025

For Dena and Richard, UCLA Health is not just a medical team, it’s become family. “Dr. Chi and the whole team are one in a million,” said Dena. “They helped save both of our lives.”

11/25/2025

After an early-stage lung cancer diagnosis, lifelong surfer Paul Hendrix — a longtime UCLA Health patient and UCLA alum — turned to our oncologists at UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, trusting they could provide alternative treatment options to surgery.

Paul was concerned about losing his lung capacity, which is vital for surfers and a passion he hopes to continue for life. Pursuing a less invasive, he opted for radiation therapy known as “SBRT,” an outpatient procedure that delivers precise targeting. For Paul, just three outpatient sessions, each lasting less than 10 minutes, was sufficient.

Read his story this Lung Cancer Awareness Month:

When Paul Hendrix was diagnosed with early-stage lung cancer in 2023, he knew exactly where to turn. A longtime UCLA Health patient and alumnus of UCLA's film and television program, Hendrix had previously beaten throat cancer with the help of UCLA.

11/24/2025

Join us live-online Dec 6 2025 for a Day of Mindfulness: Cultivating Self-Compassion. Can't make it live? You'll get lifetime access to recording!

Link in bio to register

11/21/2025

A back-to-back win brings celebration. From our medical experts supporting the Los Angeles Dodgers, to the care teams who make miracles happen, to the little legends beginning their own stories, here’s to the wins that unite our community. 💙💛

11/21/2025

A recent luncheon celebrated UCLA Health Auxiliary's 70th anniversary, featuring a "fashion show" with donated items found in our very own UCLA Thrift Shop.

Auxiliary volunteer hours vary from strolling kindness carts around the hospital with coffee and snacks, to bringing creative projects bedside, staffing gift shops and providing a furry cuddle with friends at the UCLA People-Animal Connection.

All proceeds from the UCLA Thrift Shop support patients through UCLA Health. On December 10, 11, and 12, their Holiday Event brings out a curated collection of rare, fine items received throughout the year. Reserved shopping times are required.

Read more about our volunteer celebration: https://ucla.in/43FFL1g

11/21/2025

The new department will drive the next generation of discovery and patient-centered care by integrating advanced imaging and therapy, accelerating scientific discovery and advancing precision health at UCLA Health.

11/19/2025

Every minute matters when a stroke occurs. That’s why UCLA Health's Mobile Stroke Unit partners with fire departments, like Torrance Fire Department and Long Beach Fire Department, across LA county to deploy life-saving medical intervention immediately.

Equipped with state-of-the-art technology, including a compact brain scanner, and staffed by stroke experts, these specialized units deliver treatment up to 30 minutes faster than standard ambulance response—improving patient recovery, outcomes, and saving lives.

Read more: https://ucla.in/3Y4lQq2

Los Angeles Fire Department
City of Torrance CA Government
Los Angeles County Fire Department
Culver City Fire Department
Santa Monica Fire Department
Beverly Hills Fire Department
Compton Fire Department

11/14/2025

11/14/2025

Researchers at the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center have long been committed to fighting cancer. Their determination has driven the development of lifesaving treatments that bring hope to those diagnosed and in need of care. Click to see, and read more by the University of California: https://bit.ly/41od5sF

UCLA

11/13/2025

At UCLA Health, we face every challenge with heart, determination and the belief that better days are always ahead. Whatever you’re facing, keep on rising.

11/13/2025

Exercise might be the surprising weapon in the fight against Parkinson’s disease symptoms, according to new UCLA Health research. The study was a joint effort of the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health and the UCLA Neurology Department, and included researchers from the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Learn more about the research and what it means for patients:

11/12/2025

The hardest conversations are often the most important. Dr. Eve Glazier and end-of-life planning experts discuss how advance care planning can guide families through difficult decisions. Listen on the Medically Speaking podcast :https://youtu.be/_4TT3CJh7Jo?si=5UVc5c1DFyhFjzEc

11/09/2025

10/16/2025

This course will help you train your attention as a choice engine and equip you with practical tools to shift from survival mode (reactive, scarce, fear-driven) to choice mode (aware, intentional, creative).

Each session blends guided practice, teaching, shared insights, real-world applications, coaching, and Q&A—so you can carry mindfulness off the cushion and into the flow of daily life.

Live-Online via Zoom
Sundays, Oct 19 – Nov 16, & Dec 7, 1–2:30 pm, PT

09/15/2025

Cultivate the wisdom and compassion we need to carry forward into our lives. Join us for a five-night silent retreat in the beautiful natural setting of Big Bear Retreat Center, only two hours from Los Angeles.

We will spend our days deepening our meditation practice in the service of cultivating wisdom and compassion that we need in our lives. As we settle our minds, supported by nature, we can see ourselves and the world with deeper clarity and allow our inner wisdom to emerge.

The retreat will include sitting and walking meditation with ongoing guidance, lecture and instruction from the teachers. We will also have an opportunity to practice cultivating positive emotions, mindful speaking and listening, mindful eating, as well as experience the depth of stillness that can come through an extended period of practice. Daily movement practice will be led during this retreat.

This silent retreat is suitable for beginning or experienced students.

Register at our website www.uclahealth.org/uclamindful

04/23/2025

Free Weekly Meditation Class with Diana Winston and Guests

Join UCLA Mindful’s Director, Diana Winston, and other guest teachers live-online for a weekly opportunity to practice together and learn about different aspects of mindfulness. Each week we will explore a new theme or topic in mindfulness. Topics may include self-compassion, working with judgments, obstacles to meditation, dealing with difficult emotions, mindfulness in challenging times, the spectrum of awareness, and much more.

Each class will include a guided meditation, lecture, time for questions, and exercises related to the theme. Guest teachers will also visit the class. Check weekly for the schedule.

All levels of practice experience are welcome!

No need to register, just drop in any week, but please come to the full 90 minutes.

Upcoming Class Schedule:
April 23- Diana Winston

April 30- Special Event:
Film Showing of Three Short Mindfulness Films about Kids, Teens, and Mindfulness and Talk-Back with the Director, Julie Bayer Salzman

“Just Breathe”, “Release”, and “Into Light” are the first of three films in the Mindful Shorts series by filmmaker Julie Bayer Salzman. “Just Breathe” is an introduction to mindfulness with kindergarteners as teachers; “Release” offers middle-school kids a lesson in mindful breathing to help alleviate their stress and anxiety; and “Into Light” features four teens who use mindfulness tools to navigate depression. All three films, though designed with particular age groups in mind, are universal in their function.

We'll shorten our meditation to 15 minutes and then watch the films, followed by a discussion with the director on mindfulness for kids and teens, youth mental health, and the role of filmmaking in sharing mindfulness.

03/26/2025

UCLA Mindful is proud to present this six-week immersive course with Mitra Manesh, designed to help you move beyond survival mode and step into a more intentional, conscious way of living.

Built on the pillars of mindfulness and real-world application, each session includes:

📌Guided mindfulness practices to strengthen presence and awareness
📌Interactive teachings that bridge wisdom and daily life.
📌Live coaching and Q&A for personalized learning and support

🗓️Sundays, March 30 - May 4, 11:00 am - 12:30 pm PT

🎥 Recording available for registered participants

💵 Financial Assistance available

02/27/2025

Join us today online via Zoom and every week either in person at the Billy Wilder Auditorium or live-online. Thursdays 12:30-1pm, PT.

Thursdays not good for you? We now have free drop-ins Monday through Thursday every week!

Looking forward to practicing with you.

10/30/2024

✨ Need a midweek reset? ✨

Whether you’re at work, at home, or posted up at your favorite coffee shop, you can drop in anywhere for a mindful moment with UCLA Mindful and Diana Winston! 🌿💻

🗓 Every Wednesday
🕓 4 PM - 5:30 PM Pacific Time
📍 On Zoom

Join us each week for a FREE mindfulness session — open to all levels. Recharge, reconnect, and bring a little more calm to your day, right from wherever you are.

Tap the link in bio to join us 🌟 See you there!

09/27/2024

Mindfulness, Science, and Space

Mindfulness - Coming to a planet near you! 🤓

09/10/2024

Happy Tuesday UCLA Mindful Community 😃

Join us today (and every Tuesday) for a FREE drop-in Meditation class at Santa Monica Medical Center.

Facilitated by our knowledgeable and creative TMF grads 🫶🏼 .khetarpal and others!

Drop-Ins are available to staff, patients, and general public. All are welcome!

12:30-1pm
Santa Monica Hospital Auditorium
1250 16th St, Santa Monica, CA

07/29/2024

Dear Community,

Thank you so much for your patience during these past months when MARC has been undergoing a hiatus, a transition, and a restructuring process. We wanted to update you with the latest information.

As of 2024, the MARC remains at the UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience, where it is administratively housed in the Norman Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology.
Due to financial restructuring, Diana Winston and Serena Hoenig have migrated to the UCLA Healthcare System to create a new mindfulness education center, UCLA Mindful.
We thank you for your continued support to our organizations.

Stay tuned for exciting offerings coming from UCLA Mindful. Subscribe or view our newsletter by clicking link in bio.