Staff Wellbeing Talks - Trinity Term 2025

Location: Meeting Room A, Nuffield Department of Medicine, Roosevelt Dr, Headington, Oxford OX3 7BN (Please report to reception on arrival) 

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Sleep is vital for good mental and physical health. We need sleep to feel well and to function at our best, which is why struggles with sleep can be worrying and debilitating. Insomnia is a common and distressing problem which, when persistent, can have a significant impact on quality of life. This psychoeducational workshop will explore some of the everyday difficulties people have with sleep and look at practical, evidence-based strategies, based on a cognitive behavioural approach, helpful for overcoming insomnia and increasing the potential for a good night’s sleep. 

 Ruth is a Chartered Psychologist and Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society with experience of working in a wide range of clinical settings including the NHS. She has a special interest in sleep having trained to deliver Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) and regularly delivers talks and workshops on this subject. Ruth is the Staff Mental Health Training Service Lead for the University and research tutor and supervisor for the Masters in Psychodynamic Practice for the Department of Continuing Education. Ruth additionally works for the University Counselling Service as a counsellor and clinical supervisor and maintains her own private practice. 

Location: Kennedy Institute Lecture Theatre, Kennedy Institute, Old Road Campus, Roosevelt Dr, Headington, Oxford OX3 7FY 

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Awe is an interesting emotional experience with potential benefits for mental health. In this talk, Prof Ruth Baer explores research about the nature of awe, how we can find awe in daily life, how it may contribute to well-being, and the role of mindfulness in the experience of awe. 

Professor Baer has an academic and professional background in clinical psychology and mindfulness-based programmes. Her interests include assessment and conceptualization of mindfulness, outcomes and mechanisms of change in mindfulness-based programmes, and professional training and ethics in the mindfulness field. She has published many papers and books on these topics and is among the most widely cited researchers in the mindfulness field. She has taught, trained, and supervised a broad range of cognitive-behavioural and mindfulness-based programmes and provides MBCT teacher training and workshops internationally. 

Location: Mess Room, The Tentorium, South Lodge, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3RF 

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In November 2024, the Government confirmed its plans to create a Men’s Health Strategy for England to address some of the biggest issues affecting men of all ages, including mental health and suicide prevention. This talk explores themes linked to mental health and men. Men report lower levels of life satisfaction than women according to the government’s national wellbeing survey. They are less likely to access psychological therapies, with only 36% engaging with NHS talking therapies, They are also significantly less likely to make contact with a GP practice for themselves or someone else in their household. In this workshop we will explore the potential reasons behind this as well as how we can get men to take action to support their own mental health.  

Tim is a Chartered Counselling Psychologist and service lead for The Peer Support Programme. Tim has worked in a range of NHS, university, and clinical settings. Tim is an Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society, has lectured on the Roehampton University Counselling Psychology Doctorate Course for over 5 years, is a research supervisor and a published author in an edited psychological book on diagnosis. Tim provides clinical supervision within the university and part of his private consultancy practice. Tim’s interests include anxiety presentations, the student experience and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). 

Location: The Studio, University Club, 11 Mansfield Road, Oxford, OX1 3SZ 

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In this workshop, we will explore how pain is perceived in the body and brain, beginning with an overview of how acute pain works and what changes when pain becomes chronic. Drawing on the latest neuroscience, we'll discuss how our understanding of pain has radically evolved over the past two decades. It is now clear that chronic pain is not just driven by signals from the body, but also by changes within the central nervous system itself. We will examine the mechanisms that maintain and amplify chronic pain, including how the brain can create and reinforce pain pathways even in the absence of ongoing injury. From this understanding, we’ll turn to evidence-based mind-body techniques that help reduce - and in some cases resolve - chronic pain. A key focus will be on the concept of unlearning pain: helping the brain break the learned associations that perpetuate the pain experience. The workshop will also include a practical exercise to experience a mind-body technique firsthand, followed by an open discussion to reflect, ask questions, and explore how these concepts might apply in everyday life. 

Dr. Camerone is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Oxford, based in the Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences. With a background in psychology and neuroscience, certification in Pain Reprocessing Therapy, and training as a clinical psychologist, her work bridges both scientific and clinical approaches to understanding chronic pain. Her research investigates the mechanisms behind the onset and persistence of chronic pain, with a particular focus on the role of expectations. Her work spans from basic science - studying healthy participants in controlled experimental settings - to applied clinical research with individuals living with chronic pain in everyday life.