Mindfulness Practice Guidance – One-to-One

Would you like some support with your meditation practice? Whether you are new to the practice or already established and in need of some guidance, we are here for you.

For beginners and experienced meditation practitioners alike, this is an opportunity to benefit from a one-to-one consultation session with an experienced practitioner in the Plum Village tradition. You will receive deep and compassionate listening and mindful support in building and strengthening your meditation practice.

The purpose of these sessions is to support you with developing your mindfulness meditation practice and may assist you with self-enquiry into your personal aspirations and spiritual path.

Some of the ways in which these sessions might benefit you include:

Sharing about your current practice and considering ways to develop it
Having a space to share about personal suffering and considering skilful ways to respond
Considering how to deepen your practice

These are confidential, non-judgemental consultations and not a replacement for psychological therapy. We are committed to community safeguarding and may need to breach confidentiality if we believe there is a critical incident or risk of harm. All our consultants are supported with appropriately confidential supervision.

This is a by-donation service, based on trust. We would not prevent anyone from receiving the support that they might need through lack of funds. Consultants are listed in no particular order. To book a session with a consultant, please find their bio and booking link by clicking on ‘more‘ below their introduction.

Teri West

True Door of Virtue

Teri was ordained by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh in 2000 into the Order of Interbeing and as a lay Dharma teacher in 2016.

I have lived a long and eventful life, disengaging from school as a teenager, and taking on various means of bringing home the veggie-burgers as a single parent in Notting Hill, London, until the mid-‘80s. I escaped with the then teenage children and found rewarding work as a part-time teacher and fundraiser for an experimental secondary school founded by Satish Kumar, in North Devon.

The head teacher of the school had worked with Thay in the ‘70s to found Refugee Action. I joined him on a camping trip in France in 1988, and we were invited to visit Plum Village.

I have been active in Thay’s spiritual community ever since, receiving the 14 trainings in 2000 and the lamp transmission in 2016.

At the same time as developing stability in the practice I trained at Europe’s first School for Storytelling, with Nose to Nose clowning, and revived my musical skills. I worked professionally as a storyteller and member of an improvising clown group for over 15 years, then ventured onto the cabaret stage a few years back, enjoying the freedom cabaret offers to address edgy subjects while offering Dharma messages as entertainment, and taught courses in Clown and Mindfulness with Nose to Nose teachers at the EIAB and elsewhere.

Family deaths, then Covid, put stage life on hold. However, I enjoy opportunities to engage with practitioners online in many ways and look forward to meeting new Dharma friends.

Visit Teri’s SoundCloud via https://soundcloud.com/tj-fool

Teri is also on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/inbedwiththebuddha

Teri’s videos – Zen and the Art of Cabaret – https://vimeo.com/142889818 and https://vimeo.com/104751089

To select a date/time for a 30-minute online consultation with Teri, please book here.

Kesley Cage

Spiritual Friend of the Heart

Kesley received the Five Mindfulness Trainings in Plum Village in 2018, and practises for personal healing and social change.

Mindfulness meditation supports me to heal my mind and improve my relationships and well-being in daily life. It also assists me to accompany other people through their journeys of awakening and transformation. As a counselling therapist, I work with clients experiencing many forms of distress who benefit from a psycho-spiritual approach informed by Buddhist psychology and trauma-sensitive mindfulness practice. In some of my charitable work, I love to empower abuse survivors, refugees and young people to develop their spiritual strengths of calmness and compassionate awareness so that they can respond to their personal needs and callings, and find the courage and resilience required to thrive in these deep times that we are all living in together.

I offer an inclusive invitation if you’d like to talk with me about taking your next steps into applying mindfulness to your inner life, work or relationships. Whatever brought you here, you are wholeheartedly welcome to contact me to arrange a one-to-one consultation here where I’m based in Wells, Somerset, or by phone/video call. I offer this service as a way to share loving-kindness and joyful living and to raise awareness of the benefits of mindfulness and compassion for creating inner and outer positive change. All funds raised will support the Being Peace Centre Project and Plum Vilage UK.

Visit Kesley’s website and blog at: kesleycage.com

To request a 30-minute online consultation with Kesley, please use this form.

Gary Greenberg

True Essential Action

Gary Greenberg has combined family life, a career in business, and regular Dharma practice over the last 38 years. He and his wife have lived all over the world, raising two children and several dogs. His business career as a professional investor afforded himthe chance to promote ethical investing and mindfulness to the business community.

Gary began regular spiritual practice in 1972, and received the Five Mindfulness Trainings in 2005. He was ordained as a lay member of the Order of Interbeing by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh in 2010. He has been leading mindfulness groups for the last ten years and mentoring practitioners aspiring to receive Ordination for the past six.

Gary is originally from the US but has spent the last 22 years in the UK. He currently divides his time between the two countries

To select a date/time for a 30-minute online consultation with Gary, please book here.

Allison Fraser

True Essential Virtue

Allison discovered Thay in the 1980s and became an Order Member in 2010. The practice is central to her life and gives her huge support.

My name is Allison Fraser. I have worked in what was known as the voluntary sector and spent many years working in local government. To support myself and that work I trained as a counsellor and worked as a volunteer with CRUISE and a local doctors practice. In more recent years I have been a mentor for a number of individuals.

I am married with 2 children and 6 grandchildren. I live in the countryside just outside of Stratford upon Avon.

I discovered Thay in the 1980s and became an Order Member in 2010. The practice is central to my life and gives me huge support.

To select a date/time for a 30-minute online consultation with Allison, please book here.

Br. Thich Chan Phap Vu

True Dharma Rain

Br. Phap Vu was ordained in 2003 by Venerable Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh in Plum Village, France, and in 2011, he was ordained as a Dharma Teacher.

Presently, he is committed to the monastic path, delving into Buddhist psychology as well as Buddhist history. He also enjoys connecting with people and communities, helping them along their path however he is able.

To select a date/time for a 30-minute online consultation with Brother Phap Vu, please book here.

Jane Coatesworth

True Flower of Awakening

Jane was ordained by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh in 1995 into the Order of Interbeing and as a lay Dharma teacher in 2004.

Jane’s Initiation Gatha:

I sing to the tree
The silence between phrases is vast and arresting.
The tree, graceful and steady,
does her best with what she has.
Grateful, my heart is refreshed.

Thay’s Gatha:

The flowers of enlightenment are blooming everywhere,
The breeze floats the perfume of Zen far and wide.
So many members of the Sangha are gathered together.
The Buddha mind whether in the North or South,
past or present, is the same.

To select a date/time for a 30-minute online consultation with Jane, please book, here.

Sita Brand

True Lotus Wisdom

Sita received the 5 Mindfulness trainings in 1999, and the 14 Mindfulness Trainings from Thay in 2006.

Sita began her spiritual journey with the Church of North India and Quakers. In her teens she began to practice meditation and learn more about Buddhism. In the late 90s, she travelled through Malaysia and was ordained briefly as a Buddhist nun in Northern Thailand. She met Thay in 1999 and received the 5 Mindfulness trainings. She received 14 Mindfulness Trainings from Thay in 2006, with the name True Lotus Wisdom. She is a trained in Postive Impact Coaching. She regularly leads creative and mindfulness retreats. She started teaching meditation and Buddhism in prisons in 2005 as a Buddhist Prison Chaplain. She is also a storyteller.

To select a date/time for a 30-minute online consultation with Sita, please book, here.

Robbie Campbell

Deepening Understanding of the Heart

I received the 5 Mindfulness Trainings in 2020, and recently began my Order of Interbeing aspirancy in Plum Village.

Hello, my name’s Robbie.

I was born and grew up in North London. Having struggled in school (but loving music outside), I rather unwittingly began a career in the television industry, aged 19. I had the opportunity over the next 13 years to experience and document many wonders and hardships around the world. In 2010 I finally left the industry, discovered I was dyslexic, returned to education, and went on to complete a PhD in music and dyslexia. Since 2021 I’ve been living as a long-term volunteer in Plum Village, France.

I went on my first meditation retreat in 2009, and some years later began more formal Buddhist practice and study at the London Buddhist Centre. I then discovered the profound beauty and simplicity of Thay’s teachings and began practising with Heart of London Sangha, before joining Wake Up London. I went on to serve on the Wake Up London Care Taking Team during the rather challenging covid period.

I’ve found sitting meditation, and often simply being in the body, consistently challenging. With support from Dharma teachers (in this tradition and elsewhere), I finally made the connection between mindfulness practice and trauma. This has very much been my focus for the past few years (although it’s important to note I am not trained in this). I’m also practising with chronic illness, having contracted Lyme disease in the summer of 2022 and struggling with fatigue since. In March 2023 I made the decision to leave Plum Village and seek deeper rest until I am well enough to return.

Many wonderful flowers have already blossomed from my experiences with both trauma and chronic illness, and I continue to be deeply nourished by compassionate sharing on either of these topics. However, my joy and gratitude to be invited as a one-to-one consultant is rooted in my simple love of authentic connection and deep listening. I’d be very happy to practise this with you, no matter the topic.

I received the 5 Mindfulness Trainings in 2020, and recently began my Order of Interbeing aspirancy in Plum Village.

To select a date/time for a 30-minute online consultation with Robbie, please book, here.

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