Dr Rachel Cottam

Dr Rachel Cottam is a Brighton GP. Last year she divided her time between seeing patients in Brighton and living at the Coach House to co-lead mindfulness/nature connection retreats, including one specifically for doctors.

Rachel first came to Sharpham on retreat, having never practised mindfulness (and a little sceptical). From there, she started slowly to develop a daily practice spurred on by the benefits she discovered: not only was she better able to manage a stressful day, but she also found she had reclaimed the joy of being alive. She went on to do the MBCT 8-week course, then the 12-week course, all the while returning to Sharpham to refill her cistern. Finally, she did the year long teacher training at the Oxford Mindfulness Centre.

She then came to the Coach House as a volunteer retreat coordinator – and keen to share the experience with other colleagues working in the NHS, she developed, with Patti, a retreat especially for health professionals.

Brighton & Hove GP Federation are now working with Rachel and The Sharpham Trust to make a unique offer to those working in primary care who feel they could benefit from some time for self-care, to learn about mindfulness and to re-connect with themselves, each other and nature.