Evidence for Changes in the Body and Brain from Mindfulness Meditation

To understand the effects of mindfulness meditation we first must understand how it is practiced and what the purpose of this practice is. Throughout my research I have found many definitions of mindfulness meditation. Three of which I found to be helpful when understanding the research conducted on the psychological effects of mindfulness meditation. One article described it as “Generally defined to include focusing one’s attention in a nonjudgmental or accepting way on the experience occurring in the present moment”. (BELLIN, ZVI J 221) Another article described the practice as “A process that leads to a mental state characterized

In Era II, mind-body has a direct correlation to situations regarding anxiety for instance. If a patient is anxious, naturally the heart rate will be elevated. With deep breathing and conscious thought, heart rate will decrease. I see this almost daily.

This paper is about my experience with mindfulness based meditation and scientific inquiry of these experiences. Mindfulness based meditation is describes as technique used to cultivate nonreactive, non-judgmental and stable awareness of the present moment (Garland and Gaylord, 2009). The end goal is to sustain this meta-cognitive state for a long period of time. I practiced non-denominational form of mindfulness based meditation for the first time in my psychology class, which was devoted towards intellectual and experiential examination of meditation. The practice was conducted in a group it was instructed by our own professor and it begun at the end of class. There was one sessions per week and each session was structured meaning it was

Mindfulness is another way of meditation. Meditation was used to seek to improve one’s psychological or physical health, or spiritual growth. (Brantley, 2007). The history of Mindfulness comes from Buddhism and his search for enlightenment and a foundation of the four noble truths. The Buddha teaching focus on the four noble truths which consist of knowing suffering exists, there is a cause of suffering, there is cessation of suffering and there is a path that leads to the cessation of suffering. (Van Gordon, 2015). The four noble truths were not only there to represent the Buddha’s experiential understanding of suffering, but also to express the truth (Van Gordon, 2015). Studies of Buddhism and the Four Noble Truths teach us that there is always going to be suffering in our life but to find ways to overcome suffering (Tsering, 2005).

Josephine P. Briggs, M. (2010, June 25). Exploring the Power of Meditation. Retrieved from National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health: https://nccih.nih.gov/about/offices/od/2010-06.htm

Mindfulness has been around for many years as one of the two aspects of the Buddhist practice of meditation (Mastrianno, 2012). All that is required to be mindful is to make an effort to be in whatever moment you are currently in. This may sound simple but in reality there are always automatic systems firing in our brains that may keep us from being fully present (Atkinson, 2013; Mastrianno, 2012). Mindfulness works

Research suggests that meditation may physically change the brain and body and could potentially help to improve many health problems and promote healthy behaviors. In a 2012 study, researchers compared brain images from 50 adults who meditate and 50 adults who don’t meditate. Results suggested that people who practiced meditation for many years have more folds in the outer layer of the brain. This process (called gyrification) may increase the brain’s ability to process information (Meditation: In Depth).

The implications of meditation have long been controversial and abundant research studies have been done in support of meditations potential to change the brain and body. The results within this research paper center on main changes in the brain such as reducing depression, effecting levels of cognitive flexibility, and creativity due to meditation. The research also focuses on variations within the body as well as changes that may be included in both topics of brain and body relating to stress regulation, heart rate variability, and emotional responses. This research paper examines these articles and their studies in order to support the argument that meditation encourages positive changes

Over the years, mindfulness based interventions in chronic health conditions have proved to be very effective. Studies have shown the efficacy of these methods in managing both physical as well as physiological symptoms. It has been well established that stress and anxiety have adverse effects on the immune system1. Moreover, studies have shown that long term conditions are especially costly and a significant

Adopted as the latest craze, mindfulness is more than just a passing fad. This meditation technique stretches back thousands of years in Eastern cultures. While it was once a technique used primarily by Buddhist monks, modern researchers have discovered some of the immense benefits of being mindful in every day life.

In this day and age practicing mindfulness has become more common in pop culture, but many eastern cultures have had mindful practice embedded in their culture for centuries. Some may achieve a mindful state of mind when they aware of the present moment, can calmly acknowledgment others feelings, and bodily sensations. Many people use in their everyday life to help them with physical and mental health issue they may have. Some benefits are reduced anxiety, improved sleep, OCD, reduce chronic may, and many more. However, researchers have said that over practicing mindful thinking could actually harm you more than it is helping you.

A major impact meditation has is on the physical increase of thickness of the cerebral cortex (outer layer of brain tissue) and grey matter

Mindfulness meditation consists of skills and methods to unplug from the busy world around you and from the busy 'monkey brain ' so often experienced in today 's life and particularly in ADHD, anxiety and depression. According to Jon Kabat-Zinn, mindfulness meditation trains and reinforces the ability to pay attention to the present moment, on purpose which helps to increase concentration, decrease anxiety, improve sleep, improve mood, decrease the stress response, and improve physical and emotional health. The studies are compelling about the health benefits of mindfulness meditation. In fact, studies show that mindfulness meditation actually changes the brain in positive ways. The cortex of the brain is thicker in certain areas of the brain in those who practice mindfulness meditation. And brainwave patterns are changed in healthy ways as well.

Cardiovascular disease is a global burden and by changing risk factors such as increasing physical activity and reducing stress by relaxation can lower the incidence of the disease (Hartley, Dyakova, Holmes, Clarke, Lee, Ernst, & Rees, 2014) The study had 800 participants with high risk factors of the cardiovascular disease and were recruited to 11 study trials. After eight months of this ongoing study, Hartley and Colleagues (2014) found that any form of yoga showed reduction in the systolic and diastolic blood pressure, triglycerides, and an increase in high-density lipoprotein. Since patients with the cardiovascular disease are unable to perform rigorous exercises, yoga was concluded to be an ideal choice for them. Participants, who

The results of this study showed significant improvement in quality of life, anxiety, and blood pressure in the meditation group. While in controls, quality of life deteriorated and there was no improvement in blood pressure.