Parra Perez spotlighted on TV and podcast for mindfulness work

Since 2020, Diana Parra Perez, an assistant professor at the Brown School at Washington University, has been adapting mindfulness practices to better serve Latinx communities. By integrating cultural context into traditional mindfulness techniques, she addresses unique experiences such as immigration and community connections. To expand accessibility, she offers mindfulness lessons in Spanish.

“Mindfulness isn’t a cure-all,” Parra Perez said. “It’s a way for individuals and communities to take thoughtful steps toward improvement.” Her research emphasizes shared experiences, noting that a sense of community is especially valuable for vulnerable groups, like immigrants who are often isolated and separated from their families.

At WashU, Parra Perez is a founding member and co-leader of the Mindfulness Science and Practice Cluster. This multidisciplinary program examines how mindfulness impacts health, wellness, and psychological resilience, drawing insights from fields like cognitive science, public health, and social work.

Recently, Parra Perez was featured on HEC-TV, where she shared practical mindfulness tips for managing holiday stress. She highlighted the power of intentional breathing, saying, “The best tool we have is right under our nose. Breathing is something we do unconsciously, but when we focus on it, it can center us in the present.”

She also appeared on the Spanish-language podcast Buenas noches, Cráneo, exploring the fascinating topic of dreams—why we dream and why we sometimes don’t remember them.

Watch Parra Perez’s interview:

Listen to the podcast episode:

• Spotify: https://spoti.fi/4gUtHNH
• Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/421Bjdn