IRD Conference, 2025
International Relaxation Day Online Conference
Conference Theme: Harnessing Relaxation to Enhance Wellbeing
Depending upon your time zone, the conference is held on 14th & 15th August, 2025
15th August, 2025: Start Time: 20:45 Auckland, NZ; 16:45 Shanghai, China;10:45 CET; 09:45 London, BST; 04:45 EDT, New York, USA; (NB. 14th August: 22.45 Honolulu)
Location: Virtual. Conference held on Zoom & YouTube
Cost: Free event
Click here for Quick Links for webinar registration and attending pre-recording presentations
Video: Introduction to International Relaxation Day and the International Relaxation Day Conference, 2025 with Prof Stephen Palmer PhD
In this short video presentation, Prof Stephen Palmer, a stress expert, provides an introduction to International Relaxation Day (IRD) and also information about the free virtual IRD Conference. The introduction takes 9 minutes and then there is a 10 minute recording of birds singing at dusk if you find birdsong relaxing.
Welcome to the International Relaxation Day Online Conference, 2025. We will have presentations from relaxation and stress experts, academics, researchers and practitioners from around the world sharing with us their knowledge about relaxation and mindfulness methods and techniques.
For ease of watching internationally with the different time zones, there are some live presentations using the Zoom Platform and some are pre-recorded which are premiered on YouTube.
Conference presentations vary in length. The conference co-chairs Prof Stephen Palmer PhD and Dr Siobhain O’Riordan PhD give an extended 90 minute joint keynote titled, Harnessing Relaxation to Enhance Wellbeing. It will include Q&As at the end. They will also be running a Relaxation Club in a Zoom meeting.
Who is this conference for?
The conference may interest members of the public, HR, health professionals, psychologists, counsellors, coaches, management, leaders and academics who may wish to learn more about relaxation techniques and their benefits to enhancing health and wellbeing, and reducing stress and anxiety.
Conference recognition
The conference is recognised by the Association for Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy and the International Society for Coaching Psychology for continuing professional development (CPD). Both organisations support International Relaxation Day.
Speaker Biographies
Click HERE for the full biographies of the speakers.
Conference supporters
You can find the list of organisations that support International Relaxation Day and the conference on this webpage. Our huge appreciation and thanks to the supporting organisations from around the world.
Social media hastags
Social media hashtags are: #internationalrelaxationday #internationalrelaxationday2025 #IRDConf2025
Event Disclaimer
Link to full Event disclaimer
Techniques and interventions
Speakers and discussants may demonstrate a relaxation technique or strategy. National Wellbeing Service Ltd and the International Academy for Professional Development Ltd cannot verify the effectiveness or appropriateness of techniques or strategies demonstrated and are not liable for their use unless demonstrated by their staff. If concerned, you are not obliged to undertake any technique or intervention. They are for demonstration purposes only.
All conference presentations are to share ideas and techniques that may support relaxation and wellbeing. They are for general information only and are not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you have any health conditions—physical or mental—it’s always best to check with your doctor or healthcare provider before trying new relaxation or breathing practices. Please listen to your body and take part only if it feels right for you. And of course, if you ever feel unwell or are experiencing a medical emergency, please seek professional help straight away.
Take care and relax mindfully.
CONFERENCE PROGRAMME
This year’s speakers and facilitators will include Yumna Ali (Pakistan), Liz Hall (Spain), Dr Richard MacKinnon (UK), Dr Karen E. Neil (UK), Dr Siobhain O’Riordan (UK), Prof Stephen Palmer (UK), Judit Varkonyi-Sepp (UK) and Dr Qing Wang (China).
Harnessing Relaxation to Enhance Wellbeing with Prof Stephen Palmer & Dr Siobhain O’Riordan
Time: 09:45 to 11:15 BST
Register HERE
In this live keynote Prof Stephen Palmer & Dr Siobhain O’Riordan will provide an overview to relaxation. They will cover the Stress and Relaxation Responses, briefly focus on relaxation research, and will talk about at relatively ‘simple’ relaxation techniques. They will invite attendees to have a go at one or more relaxation techniques and monitor their effectiveness (eg scaling, heart-rate and blood pressure monitor, pulse oximeter, Fitbit etc)
Prof Stephen Palmer PhD is a Chartered Scientist, Chartered Biologist, Chartered Coaching Psychologist, Registered Health Psychologist and APECS Accredited Executive Coach and Supervisor. He is Adjunct Professor of Coaching Psychology, Aalborg University, Denmark and Hon Professor of Practice at UWTSD. Click HERE for the full biography.
Dr Siobhain O’Riordan PhD is Chartered Scientist and Chartered Coaching Psychologist. She is a member of the BPS Psychobiology Section. She has published research and practice papers and her latest book is Introduction to Coaching Psychology (2021, with Palmer). Click HERE for the full biography.
Relaxation Club with Prof Stephen Palmer & Dr Siobhain O’Riordan.
Time: 11.45 to 12.45 BST
Register HERE
Join our relaxation club and have a go at a number of the relaxation techniques that Prof Stephen Palmer and Dr Siobhain O’Riordan discussed in the previous session. Stephen and Siobhain will facilitate the meeting.
Mindfulness – a trainable dimension of health and wellbeing with Dr Karen E. Neil
This session premieres at 13:00 BST to 13:30 BST
A presentation exploring the practice of mindfulness as a natural, trainable, human quality and evidence-based component of health and wellbeing. The potential for mindfulness to contribute to a sustainable future is also considered.
Dr Karen E. Neil is a public health consultant and mindfulness teacher, with over 30 years of experience across mental health, pharmacy, health promotion, and wellbeing. Click HERE for the full biography.
Sufi Qawwali Music for Stress Management with Yumna Ali (Pakistan)
This session premieres on 15th August at 09:00 EDT, NY, USA; 14:00 BST, UK; 18:00, PKT, Pakistan
Sufi qawwali music is a genre based in spiritual asian cultures for the purpose of relaxation and symbolic healing. The ensemble consists of traditional music players who perform under the guidance of a coach who has expertise in the conduction of qawwali music, sufi knowledge and is a master of poetry.
Yumna Ali is currently a doctoral researcher in psychology at Hazara University, Pakistan. She completed her General Certificate of Secondary Education from the University of Cambridge and holds a TEFL certificate from City University of New York. Click HERE for the full biography.
Coping creatively and using creativity to cope: How creativity can be applied in meditation and stress management with Dr Qing Wang (China)
This session premieres at 14:45 BST
Coping creatively indicates that people actively think about new approaches to coping and deliberately try something never used before in order to regulate emotions. Using creativity to cope is the usage of creativity (e.g., expressive art) as a positive coping strategy when facing stress. In this presentation, I will discuss the connections of these two approaches of creative coping and how to apply them in relaxation, meditation and stress management
The recording lasts for about 12 minutes.
Dr. Qing Wang is an educational psychologist, chartered psychologist, accredited coaching psychologist and a passionate lifelong learner. She completed PhD from University of Bristol and currently works as Associate Professor in Educational and Coaching Psychology at the School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University (ECNU), Shanghai, China. Click HERE for the full biography.
Leadership, self-care and relaxation with Dr Richard MacKinnon
Time 15:00 to 16:15 BST
REGISTER HERE
Organisational leaders can face some of the toughest workplace demands yet simultaneously can find it hard to disconnect and engage in intentional relaxation and self-care. In this presentation, I’ll outline how to think helpfully about these activities, explore why all ‘self-care’ isn’t necessarily healthy, and how bringing personal values to life can make all the difference.
Dr. Richard MacKinnon is a Chartered Coaching Psychologist, Chartered Occupational Psychologist and Chartered Scientist. The found of WorkLifePsych, he supports clients at all levels seniority of boost and maintain their wellbeing, productivity and interpersonal effectiveness. Click HERE for the full biography.
Relaxation for All: Cultivating a Way of Being in Everyday Life with Prof Stephen Palmer PhD
Premieres on YouTube on 15th August, 2025 at 16:30 BST. Join the speaker on YouTube.
Main issues covered in this conference paper: Are we stressed? The Relaxation Response and relaxation techniques; Explore benefits of relaxation; Possible side-effects of relaxation techniques; An overview to techniques that enhance a state of relaxation and reduce stress; Tools and resources; Creating a personal relaxation plan; Relaxation for all: a call to action Final reflections.
This conference paper is aimed at anyone interested in learning more about the benefits and application of relaxation techniques in their everyday life to enhance wellbeing. The video lasts for about 30 minutes.
‘Relaxation for All‘ is a call to action. For further information visit: https://en.unesco.org/inclusivepolicylab/e-teams/relaxation-all/discussions/what-could-relaxation-all-mean
Mission Impossible? Reclaiming calmness in a highly anxious world, with Judit Varkonyi-Sepp
This session premieres 17:45 BST to 18:30 BST
A frequent news nowadays is that the number of people living with high levels of anxiety is on the rise. Why is this? And how can we stay calm or regain calmness? Or is it a mission impossible? Come and join me to find out!
Judit Varkonyi-Sepp CPsychol, CSci, AssocMISCP is a Chartered Psychologist and Health and Care Professions Council-registered practitioner Health Psychologist, a chartered member of the British Psychological Society. Click HERE for the full biography.
Relaxing into relational mindfulness with Liz Hall (Spain)
This session premieres 18:30 BST to 19:00 BST
Relationships can be sources of stress and overwhelm, but also joy, connection, compassion, inspiration and insight. Bringing more mindfulness into our relationships can help us ride difficult moments, address conflict, and relax into the gifts on offer. This talk explores how to be more relaxed and mindful in our relationships, and includes a brief mindfulness practice.
Liz Hall is a certified mindfulness teacher, leadership coach, editor of Coaching at Work, and author of books including Relational Mindfulness for Coaches (with Dr Emma Donaldson-Feilder, Routledge, 2025), Coach the Team (Penguin, 2019) and Mindful Coaching (Kogan Page, 2013). Click HERE for the full biography.
CPD Certificate of Attendance
For professionals who need to maintain a Continuing Professional Development logbook, you can download and complete the CPD certificate of attendance from this website, noting the number hours you attended. The hours may vary for each attendee depending upon the lectures attended and also if you joined the post-webinar discussions with the speaker(s) which would provide higher CPD hours to a maximum of 8 hours.
Zoom facilities
This conference is supported by the International Academy for Professional Development Ltd who are providing the Zoom Webinar facilities.
Event Disclaimer
Link to full Event disclaimer
Panel speakers and discussant opinions and sensitive materials
Panel speaker and discussants may express views and opinions which do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of National Wellbeing Service Ltd and International Academy for Professional Development Ltd and their staff or the conference supporters. Event presentations and panel sessions may include personal and sensitive material.
Techniques and interventions
Panel speakers and discussants may demonstrate a relaxation technique or strategy. National Wellbeing Service Ltd and the International Academy for Professional Development Ltd cannot verify the effectiveness or appropriateness of techniques or strategies demonstrated and are not liable for their use unless demonstrated by their staff. If concerned, you are not obliged to undertake any technique or intervention. They are for demonstration purposes only.
Asia/Shanghai
Europe/London
America/New York
Pacific/Honolulu
