Who is Bridgeen?
Bridgeen is a pioneer of mindfulness and mindful self-compassion classes for the general public in Northern Ireland. She first began sharing the practice from her wee flat in Jordanstown in May 2007, when she started a 'sangha'. An enthusiastic student of mindfulness to this day, she has a Masters in Mindfulness Based Approaches (Msc) from Bangor University, Wales. Is an accredited and trained Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) Teacher, a qualified yoga teacher (YFNI), Reiki Master and despite being very busy a great admirer of the slow down movement. You can watch her 2014 TEDx talk here.
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A proud member of Thich Nhat Hanh’s Order of Interbeing with the dharma name: True Profound Happiness. She has studied extensively with the international Plum Village mindfulness community since July 2005.
Bridgeen was Centra‘s Mindfulness Ambassador for 2017 and 2018 and an associate trainer for the HSC. She got married in 2017 and added her husband’s Turkish surname Kaya to her name. She became a mum, giving birth to Bediha (known as Beddy) in June 2021 a month before her 47th birthday!
See Bridgeen’s Instagram page for lots of pictures of the beautiful Beddy and her son Buddy (a white furry cockapoo, born in July 2020).
Bridgeen in 2007 on her first pilgrimage trip to Vietnam as part of the Thich Nhat Hanh Sangha
Bridgeen has an MBA and a BSc in Communications, Advertising and Marketing, from the University of Ulster, Jordanstown. Her foray into holistic business began back in 2005 when she began teaching yoga, following a 2-year yoga training with the Yoga Fellowship of Northern Ireland (YFNI) and one year Yoga training with Satyananda Yoga Australia.
Immeasurable Minds was originally a part-time business but she gave up her safe Civil Service job and went full-time with it from January 2014.
Bridgeen’s personal motto is “There’s no need to run, strive or struggle: just be.’
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​Bridgeen’s more detailed bio
I am a dedicated and enthusiastic student and teacher of mindfulness meditation, self-compassion and positive neuroplasticity. Since I ordained as an Interfaith Minister on the 20 July 2024 I'm also a celebrant of weddings, funerals, baby blessings and I offer spiritual counselling. Check out Immeasurable Minds sister business www.immeasurablehearts.co.uk
I first began practicing mediation seriously in 2003 when I went on a 10-day silent Vipassana course in Victoria, Australia. Prior to this, I had some meditation experience through yoga practice and study. My interest in yoga stemmed from the result of a serious accident when I was 21. I was knocked down by a car and suffered severe injuries, ending up in hospital for 22 days and being on crutches for six months (even having time in a wheelchair). When I recovered I couldn’t really do much exercise and yet I wanted some movement so I learned about yoga.
I still suffer from the effects of that accident including restricted movement in my left arm, a muscle hernia in my left leg and stiffness in my left hip – but I still love and need movement practice, especially mindful movement! If you come to one of my residential retreats you’ll have the chance to practice the amazing outdoor exercises of ‘Khi Cong with a stick’ with me. I’ve been given the transmission by Brother Phap Linn from Plum Village :)
In 2003 in a yoga retreat in Rocklyn, Australia I discovered the book Peace is Every Step by the venerable Thich Nhat Hanh, a Vietnamese Zen Buddhist Master who is world renowned for his teachings on mindfulness and author of over 100 books. He founded the wondrous mindfulness practice centre of Plum Village, France, which I call my ‘happy place’. I fell in love with Tháy (pronounced ‘tie’) as he is known to his students, his monastics and the environment there on my first visit in 2005. I retreated to Plum Village at least once a year, every year from 2005 - 2019. Thay sadly passed away on 22 January 2022, but his presence and legacy are very much alive in all of his students and practice centres.
I visited Vietnam with Tháy and the international Sangha twice (in 2007 and 2008). As well as travelling to France I’ve attended Plum Village retreats in New York (Blue Cliff), San Diego (Deer Park), Nottingham and Kilarney! I invited Tháy to Belfast and in April 2012 where he addressed an audience in Parliament Buildings and led a walking meditation down the famous Stormont mile.
In organised visits by Plum Village Monastics to Northern Ireland from 2009 when I first organised for Sister Jina to give a free public talk in conjunction with the NI Interfaith Forum at Rosemary Street Church. I’ve went on to organise for Brothers to give talks at Queen’s University, Belfast and for Sister Insight to give a talk Queens Psychology Department. I also organised the very first Plum Village retreat in Northern Ireland at Corrymeela in 2015. We did it again in 2016. In 2015 70 people attended and in 2016 there was 100 people including 14 children. In 2016 I also helped organise public talk for Sister Insight in Sligo and a retreat for 50 people in Cavan.
I have had a Sangha since 2007, sangha is group of people who come together in harmony to practice and discuss mindfulness. You can find out more on the Mindfulness Ireland website which I belong to.
In June 2012, in Plum Village I was ordained by Sister Chan Khong as member of the Order of Interbeing (OI) or Tiep Hien with the Dharma name is ‘True Profound Happiness’. The OI is a group of monastics and laypeople who have committed to living their lives in accordance with the 14 Mindfulness Trainings.
Bridgeen with Thay when he gave his talk at Parliment Buildings, Stormont in April 2012.
So it’s clear I am very inspired and enthused by the practice of mindfulness as taught by Tháy and the Plum Village monastics – but I also studied and got properly qualified in the secular field of mindfulness. I spent five years (part-time) studying for a Masters (MSc) in ‘Mindfulness Based Approaches’ at Bangor University in North Wales. My thesis which I completed in 2015 is on the experience of silence in mindfulness practice. I am a big fan of quiet! Which is a bit harder now that I'm married with a young child and dog who thinks he is my child too!
I studied with and attended lectures by many of the great mindfulness teachers and authors including Jon Kabat-Zinn, Mark Williams, Rebecca Crane, Dusana Dorjee, Melanie Fennel, William Kuyken, John Teasdale, John Peacock, Chris Cullen, Christina Feldman, Vanessa Hope, Judith Solsbury, Sarah Silverton, Trish Bartley, Cindy Cooper, Taravajra, Michael Chaskalson,Vidyamala Burch, Tony Bates, Padraig O’Moran, Eckhart Tolle, Ruby Wax and Sharon Salzburg.
As a qualified and experienced teacher of mindfulness, I adhere to the Good Practice Guidelines for teaching mindfulness-based courses, developed by the UK Network for Mindfulness-Based Teachers.
I have studied and am qualified to teach Mindful Self-Compassion and have trained directly with Paul Gilbert, Choden, Chris Germer and Kristen Neff. I am accredited and listed with The Centre for Mindful Self-Compassion.
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I studied directly with the famous Rick Hanson taking his Postive Neuroplasticty Teacher (PNT) training course in June 2016. I am registered as a PNT teacher with his organisation and teach this unique class once per year, in January.
I am also a qualified yoga teacher with the Yoga Fellowship of Northern Ireland, and I completed a one-year course in Yoga Studies at Mangrove Yoga, NSW. I also have Certificate in Counseling (Level 2) from the Northern Regional College in Newtownabbey.
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I have a BSc (Hons) in Communications, Advertising and Marketing (2:1) and a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) both from the University of Ulster at Jordanstown.
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I spent almost 20 years working as a communication professional in the public and private sectors (including the Driver and Vehicle Testing Agency, easyJet Airlines and the Northern Ireland government’s Executive Information Service), before deciding to pursue full-time mindfulness teaching in Janaury 2014, I had been teaching part-time for several years prior to this. See my professional profile on LinkedIn.
Mindfulness enriches and enhances my life in immeasurable ways and I have met so many wonderful people and friends through the practice – I really enjoy teaching and sharing it with others. I see it as a vocation rather than a job and for that reason I feel really lucky and grateful to have found what I’m to do with ‘my one wild and precious life’!
If you have any questions about my courses or experience please call me on 07981 623 566, email me on mindfulmind@outlook.com or use the Contact Me form on this website.
Since becoming a mum in June 2021 I’ve discovered a whole new level of challenge to my mindfulness and compassion practices but its the best challenge yet… X
Click below to find out more information:
Biography and teaching experience of Immeasurable Minds mindfulness teacher, Bridgeen.
How to meditate. What are the benefits of mindfulness? Learn more about mindfulness practice.
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Help your people to be more productive and focused with mindfulness training. I offer tailored courses specialising in stress management.
Mindfulness training for students in the classroom to enhance learning, attentiveness and performance.
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Discover the many ways you can enhance your physical and mental health with a mindfulness course.
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Interviews and media reports about mindfulness, including interviews with Bridgeen in the news and on YouTube.
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An explanation of the four Immeasurable Minds, and what they mean.
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