Mindful LeaderReviews of mindfulleader.org

1-Day Silent Retreat w/ Piero Falci I've learned from Piero over a year ago through the 8-wk MBSR course and this retreat felt like coming home. Whenever I experience his presence, a wave of calmness washes over me and I feel more strength, through his support and guidance, to make relevations for myself. He reminds me that sharing is a gift and that slowing down and being compassionate to ourselves with always go a long way for us as humans. I highly recommend signing up for one of his classes or retreats.

Silent Retreat with Piero Falci - was an opportunity to take a break from the noise and chaos of the outer world and reconnect with myself and the meditation community. The poems and readings offered by Piero helped to facilitate some of the grounding and inspiration I needed.

I would like to share what mindfulness has done for me. I started having chronic abdominal pain as well as sleeplessness and anxiety that has progressed over the last 10 years. I started out with mainstream medicine, but it only got worse. I did get small relief when going to functional medicine doctors, but nothing significant. That’s when I decided to do the inner work and found mindfulness. Through mindfulness I learned to go inward and be with the pain. Nurturing it rather than trying to push it down or suppress it to get through the day. By doing the body scan I have learned to surrender to the pain, allowing it to be there, getting curious about it and listening to what my body needs at that time. Through this process my pain has eased significantly. It is still there but with less intensity and I have a sense of contentment about it. A feeling of, “it’s okay if it’s there and it’s okay if it’s not, either way, I’ll manage. Overall, I am just less reactive to the pain and feel less resistance to it. I think one of the biggest things I realized is that I am not broken. Nothing is wrong with me. I don’t need to do or take anything to be “fixed.” This has given me so much peace. To take this even further, during the full day MBSR meditation retreat I had revelation. A sense of gratitude came over me for this pain. A feeling I never thought I would feel. I realize now that it was there for a reason. My pain served a purpose. I got into mindfulness to heal my pain, but I didn’t realize how many other areas in my life it would also improve through my mindfulness practice. While the pain is still there, I am no longer scared of it popping up and I will take it as a sign to slow down and listen when it does. I felt a strong sense of knowingness that, when the time is right, I will someday outgrow the pain once I no longer need to learn from it.

Piero Falci is a phenomenal mindfulness teacher and it was a great privilege to be his student. It is a beautiful experience to be a fellow member of a cohort - having a community to practice and learn with was a profoundly moving journey that touched me deeply. I felt a wonderful sense of affinity towards Piero and my group, and it truly expanded my heart and my mind. There are few things to have a more powerful impact on an individual than to feel seen, heard and accepted as you are, where you are, to have the presence and clarity of mind to do this for others, and to be reminded of our shared humanity and connectedness. Piero, thank you for gifting us with your wisdom, insight and equanimous spirit. I will miss being in your steadfast presence and I will miss my group members but I know that the essence of each of you will continue to resonate with me, transcending distance and time.

Yesterday's Silent Retreat with Piero Falci was a great gift and as part of the MBSR 8 week program, it helped to solidify a commitment to myself to continue on this journey. The grace and space that Piero provided allowed us to have both a very personal and communal experience which demonstrated the beauty and benefit of this program. I will be forever grateful for the time we spent together.

Highly recommend this class to anyone looking to learn about mindfulness and meditation. I came in as a slightly seasoned beginner and got a lot out of it, but it was particularly cool to observe positive, tangible changes in the participants who were total novices over a short 8 week period. The instructor and admin/support/communication were excellent. I am hoping to take the next ‘workplace administer’ course shortly.

What a life changing transformation experience with Piero Falci! I took MBSR wanting to learn more "scaffolding", Tips, Tools to enhance my practice - I got that and more. I initially thought I'd connect better with a female teacher, but was really amazed by Piero and how he communicated these concepts using beautiful words, in ways I hadn't heard before. I can't compare to the other teachers but highly recommend MBSR with Piero!

As a mindfulness educator committed to deepening my practice, attending a 5-day MBSR silent retreat with Piero Falci was a meaningful way to begin the New Year. This retreat provided the perfect opportunity to reflect on my core values, strengthen my MBSR teacher Q-Level I training, and cultivate renewed hope for the year ahead. Guided by Piero’s compassionate and insightful teaching, the experience was profoundly illuminating for my second year attending. Piero’s skill in bringing Jon Kabat-Zinn’s Full Catastrophe Living and the Foundations of Mindfulness to life was remarkable. He poetically wove these principles into the retreat, creating an environment where every participant who attended together for the second year could engage deeply with the teachings and connect them to their daily lives. Piero Falci's ability to make complex concepts accessible and relevant added immense value to the experience. The retreat's strict, silent nature fostered a unique space for introspection and clarity. Surrounded by compassionate spiritual friends on similar paths, I found a deep sense of connection and support despite the absence of spoken words. The balance of structured meditations, mindful movement, daily practice discussions, and reflective periods created a grounding and expansive rhythm. Piero’s gentle yet profound approach to teaching inspires one to reexamine committing to living mindfully and authentically. His emphasis on cultivating kindness, presence, and connection resonated deeply, offering tools for personal growth and a broader perspective on navigating life's complexities with grace and intention. For anyone seeking a meaningful way to start the New Year, I highly recommend this retreat with Piero Falci. It offers a precious opportunity to step away from the rush of daily life, reflect on what truly matters, and move forward with clarity, interconnectedness, compassion, and hope. Preparing to meet the new year mindfully through the Mindful Leader MBSR 5-Day Silent retreat is a gift to oneself—a gift of peace, self-love, purpose, and presence.