Welcome to
The Mind Department

About Me

Aly Harwood

I am the founder of The Mind Department, and my work is rooted in a simple belief: mindfulness should support real people, in real lives — not just tick boxes or corporate agendas.

Before this work, I spent over 15 years in demanding professional environments, where pressure, responsibility and the unspoken expectation to "just get on with it" were part of everyday life. I know first-hand what it is like to function well on the outside while feeling stretched, reactive or quietly exhausted on the inside.

Mindfulness offered me a different way of relating to stress — not by avoiding it, but by meeting it with more awareness, steadiness and choice. That experience led me to formally train in mindfulness and begin working with others who want practical tools for navigating modern life.

Today, I work with:

• Individuals seeking space to slow down, reset and understand their patterns more clearly
• People attending classes who want mindfulness to feel approachable and relevant
• Organisations looking for wellbeing support that reflects how work actually happens

I offer mindfulness in a way that is calm, realistic and human — not abstract, overly spiritual or performance-driven. There is no need to be a certain "type" of person to work with me, and no expectation that mindfulness will fix everything.

Alongside my mindfulness work, I continue my involvement in the maritime world as a Trustee and Director of The Mission to Seafarers, reflecting my ongoing commitment to supporting people working in challenging environments.

Outside of my work, I am a parent to two young children, share life with more dogs than is strictly sensible, and spend as much time as possible by the sea or in the woods. These everyday realities — noise, mess, responsibility and beauty — are part of why this work matters to me. Mindfulness is not about escaping life; it is about meeting it more steadily, as it is.