Meditation

"Our life is what our thoughts make of it."—Marcus Aurelius

Parade, the most read magazine in the United States with over 54.1 million readers, published an article titled, "The No.1 Health-Booster in 2015."[i] It reported mindfulness and meditation were the hottest trends in well-being, with celebrities, business moguls, and politicians touting its benefits. Major publications and news outlets such as TIME magazine, U.S. News and World Report, Today, ABC News, the Chicago Sun Times, and The New York Times ran special features. Even Rochelle, IL (a conservative rural town with a population of nine thousand) ran a cover article on meditation.

Health Benefits

Academia, medical facilities, and popular sites—such as Mayo Clinic, Carnegie Mellon University, University of Massachusetts Medical School, WebMD, and Psychology Today—have devoted major resources to getting the word out. They continue providing significant research, with over 2,200 papers published in the last five years on mindfulness.[ii]

Many businesses have realized the productivity potential behind this healthy practice. Companies such as General Mills, Abbot Bioresearch, the Bose corporation, New Balance, and others have presented workshops for employees titled, "The Power of Mindfulness in the Workplace," a program developed by the University of Massachusetts Medical School Center for Mindfulness. Fortune 500 companies including Google, AOL, Apple, and Aetna offer mindfulness and meditation classes on-site for employees.

Meditation is no longer viewed as a new age fad. It is a proven practice with significant health benefits.

In case you are still thinking, "but this is just for those artsy types," consider the successful people who use meditation.

· Let's start with Joe Madden, former manager of the World Series Champion Chicago Cubs, who was quoted as saying "I love to meditate in the morning. I'm a big believer in meditation.”[iii]

· Ray Dalio, billionaire founder of Bridgewater Associates, the largest hedge fund in the world, said, "Meditation, more than anything in my life, was the biggest ingredient of whatever success I've had."[iv]

· The list of executives who meditate includes Ford Motor Company Chairman Bill Ford, News Corp CEO Rupert Murdoch, and Oprah Winfrey.[v]

· Huffington Post editor-in-chief Arianna Huffington, who meditates daily, calls it, "the third metric in success, after money and power."[vi]

· Even government officials are embracing it. U. S. Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) holds weekly meditation sessions on Capitol Hill.[vii]

Throw in a slew of marquee athletes of the present and past such as Michael Jordan, Steph Curry, and Phil Jackson, and you have a formidable case.

So why are these people and corporations embracing this ancient practice?

To quote Tim Ryan, whose goal is to infuse mindfulness into many of the institutions of our country, "Stress is bipartisan. Mindfulness cuts through current political divides: it's based on self-care and preventing illness. And increasing overall well-being can save healthcare dollars and promote individual responsibility."[viii]

Let's dive deeper into the uses..

To ready your brain let’s try a game. Study the following list and choose which you believe are benefits of meditation that are supported by scientific evidence.

1. Improving focus and reducing impulsivity in people with ADHD

2. Slowing, limiting the effects of aging

3. Treating alcoholism

4. Reducing anxiety and blood pressure

5. Assisting in cancer treatment

6. Lowering cholesterol

7. Increasing compassion

8. Treating depression

9. Decreasing fibromyalgia symptoms

10. Modifying gene expression or the way our body turns genes on or off

11. Relieving aches and pains

12. Hastening healing

13. Reducing the risk of heart disease and stroke

14. Improving IBS symptoms

15. Boosting the immune system

16. Increasing intelligence, gray matter

17. Improving psoriasis symptoms

18. Improving relationships

19. Boosting school performance

20. Promoting better sleep

21. Helping smoking cessation

22. Relieving stress

23. Increasing telomerase (a substance that helps telomeres protect chromosomes from damage)

24. Controlling weight

25. Increasing workplace efficiency

You’ve probably guessed, the correct answer is all of them. “No. 1 Health Booster,” indeed.[ix]

Family physicians estimate as many as two thirds of office visits are for stress-related symptoms, such as depression, anxiety, chest pain, panic disorder, etc.[x] In response to this “epidemic” of sorts, the University of Massachusetts sponsored the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program, a type of meditation training. Participants undergo eight weeks of training and then maintain their own meditation practice afterward. The program has been running and studied extensively for over thirty years. Published outcomes show a 35 percent reduction in medical symptoms and a 40 percent reduction in psychological symptoms.[xi]

Let's look at more specific outcomes.

MBSR training for cardiac rehabilitation reduced mortality by 41 percent for two years following the training.[xii] Hypertension (high blood pressure) improved comparably to changes from medication, weight loss, sodium restriction, and aerobic exercise.[xiii] Likewise, studies found significant reductions in anxiety, depression, headache, and other stress-related symptoms.[xiv] A prominent article in JAMA, the official journal of the American Medical Association, concluded that mindfulness meditation could relieve anxiety, depression, and pain to the same degree as medications, but without the side effects.[xv]

Jon Kabat-Zinn, a founder of the UMass stress reduction program, reported twenty of twenty-two anxiety patients recorded improvement and a 25 to 65 percent decrease in mean scores on Hamilton and Beck depression and anxiety scales. (Hamilton and Beck is a psychological questionnaire used by clinicians to assess the severity of depression and anxiety.) Gains were maintained at a three-month follow-up, and 90 percent still used the MBSR techniques at thirty months.[xvi] In addition, Davidson and Goleman, after reviewing many studies, found, "meditation can lead to decreases in depression (especially severe depression), anxiety and pain—about as much as medications but with no side effects."[xvii]

The MBSR program has been effective and is gaining popularity with programs available at major hospitals across the country.

Transcendental Meditation has also significantly impacted stress-related illness. As we discuss health related benefits, both Transcendental Meditation and MBSR will be included.

Scientists followed 201 African-American men and women diagnosed with coronary heart disease (CHD). Participants were randomly assigned to either a health education class about diet and exercise, or to attend a Transcendental Meditation (TM) program. After five years of follow-up, the meditation group had a 48 percent reduction in the overall risk of heart attack compared to the other group.[xviii]

Likewise, Dr. C. Noel Bairey Merz, from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, told Reuters, “CHD patients who want to ‘do it all’ for optimal risk reduction should consider learning and practicing TM™.” The study provided Transcendental Meditation instruction to fifty-three adults with stable CHD while another fifity-one patients with similar symptoms received standard heath education. At the end of sixteen weeks patients in the Transcendental Meditation group had lower blood pressure and greater improvements in blood glucose and insulin levels. In addition, Transcendental Meditation practitioners had more stable heart rate variability, a sign of heart health.[xix]

Transcendental Meditation studies have also shown significant effects on blood pressure. A meta-analysis of twelve studies with 996 participants showed “an approximate reduction of systolic and diastolic BP of -4.26mm Hg. . . . and-2.33 HG in TMTM groups compared with control groups. Results from subgroup analysis suggested TMTM had a greater effect on systolic blood pressure among older participants.”[xx] These studies have not gone unnoticed by professional organizations. The American Heart Association has now concluded that Transcendental Meditation lowers blood pressure and recommends it be included in clinical practice for prevention and treatment of hypertension.[xxi]

Another study in the American Journal of Hypertension, followed 298 college students who were randomly assigned to either a Transcendental Meditation group or a waiting list (control group). The study found Transcendental Meditation helped decrease psychological stress. But, more interestingly, a subgroup of students at risk for high blood pressure later in life showed lasting benefits in lower blood pressure.[xxii]

Building on these results, a study published in 1998 in Psychosomatic Medicine showed practitioners of Transcendental Meditation have lower levels of lipid peroxide than non-meditators. Lipid peroxide can contribute to atherosclerosis and other chronic diseases.[xxiii]

Stress doesn’t always lead to heart disease or hypertension, but the psychological effect can be just as debilitating. The occupational hazard known as burnout can be a problem in some professions. One is teaching. According to the National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future, teacher turnover in the U.S. has risen to 16.8 percent and over 20 percent in urban schools. And 46 percent of new teachers leave the profession within five years. That has an impact not only on the teacher, but also on colleagues and students.

A study published in Permanente Journal gave cause for hope. Using the Maslach Burnout Inventory (a psychological inventory comprising twenty-two items pertaining to occupational burnout), researchers discovered a significant reduction in perceived stress, depressive symptoms, and teacher burnout after just four months of Transcendental Meditation.[xxiv]

Sleep is also affected by meditation. A study from India’s National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences focused on vipassana meditation, a type of meditation focusing on the relationship between mind and body. The essence is to observe thoughts and physical sensations but to avoid judgment. The study included 105 healthy men between age thirty and sixty. Half were experienced vipassana meditators and half did not practice meditation at all. The meditators experienced enhanced deep sleep and REM across all age groups. Non-meditators had a pronounced decline in slow wave sleep associated with age, typical for aging men.[xxv]

The early experiments on meditation covered healing, the immune system, and pain relief. Just over an hour of meditation training can have a dramatic impact on both the experience of pain, and physical brain activation related to pain, according to Dr. Fadel Zeidan, a neuroscientist at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.

Zeidan recruited a small group of healthy medical students to attend four twenty-minute training sessions on mindfulness meditation. To administer pain, they heated a small thermal stimulator to 120 degrees and applied it to the back of each volunteer's right calf. Subjects reported on unpleasantness and intensity of the pain. After meditation training, subjects reported a 40 percent decrease in pain intensity and a 50 percent reduction in unpleasantness. But it wasn’t just their perception that changed.

The research team did MRI scans to measure activity in the somatosensory cortex. When participants first experienced pain without meditation training, the corresponding area in the cortex showed increased activation. After meditation training, activity in the same location was barely detectable. The brain images showed increased activation in the areas of the brain related to cognitive control and emotion, where the experience of pain is thought to be built. The better meditators had more activation in the areas of cognitive control and a lesser experience of pain.[xxvi]

Another study on Zen meditation and pain conducted at the University of Montreal also explored why meditators are less sensitive to pain. By using MRI scanners they found both meditators and non-meditators were receiving pain signals, but meditators weren’t translating them to actual feelings of pain. “We think that they feel the sensations, but cut the process short, refraining from interpreting or labeling the stimuli as painful,” said Pierre Rainville, lead author of the study.[xxvii]

Mindfulness meditation has also been shown to increase healing and boost the immune system.

· Kabat-Zinn taught mindfulness to a group of patients with psoriasis. Meditators’ skin cleared up at a rate four times that of the non-meditators.[xxviii]

· Kabat-Zinn with Richard Davidson administered flu shots to a group of newly trained meditators and non-meditators and then measured the anti-body levels. The meditators had more antibodies in their blood.[xxix]

· Another study reported, “women who meditate and use guided imagery have higher levels of immune cells known to combat tumors in the breast."[xxx]

· And Davison and Goleman report, "mindfulness training—even as short as three days—produces a short-term decrease in pro-inflammatory cytokines, the molecules responsible for inflammation. And the more you practice, the lower the level becomes of these pro-inflammatory cytokines."[xxxi]

· Davidson and Goleman also report from their extensive review that, "a daylong retreat by seasoned meditators benefited their immune response at the genetic level—a finding that startled the medical establishment."[xxxii]

Meditation may even help get rid of pesky belly fat. Scientists at the University of California, San Francisco found a direct inverse relationship between meditation and the levels of the stress hormone cortisol.

So how do lower levels of cortisol target belly fat?

The answer lies in our evolutionary history. Our ancestors experienced extreme hardship when they faced famine and danger from predators. To compensate, humans evolved a stress-induced reaction that centrally stored fat in our stomachs and sides to survive starvation and stockpile energy. This deep-rooted process remains, leading us to eat and store fat when we are stressed. Cortisol is the hormone driving this response. So lower cortisol means less propensity to store fat.[xxxiii]

The Journal of Nutrition Education & Behavior offers another weapon for the “battle of the bulge.” Mindfulness training helps people eat more slowly, consuming up to three hundred fewer calories in a day.[xxxiv]

In short, the health benefits of meditation have become widely accepted. And we now understand underlying mechanisms driving these benefits.

In 2013, researchers in Wisconsin, Spain, and France showed meditators change expression of genes. “To the best of our knowledge, this is the first paper that shows rapid alteration in gene expression within subjects associated with mindfulness meditation practice,” stated Richard J. Davidson, William James Vilas Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin.[xxxv] “Most interestingly, changes were observed in genes that are the targets of anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs,” said Perla Kaliman. She was first author of the journal article in Psychoneuroendocrinology. and a researcher at the Institute of Biomedical Research of Barcelona, Spain.[xxxvi] This helps explain mindfulness-based training benefits for inflammatory disorders.

We noted earlier Transcendental Meditation stimulates production of telomerase, an enzyme that helps rebuild protective caps allowing chromosomes to reproduce. So an increase in telomerase is naturally healthy and is felt to slow the aging process.[xxxvii]

Speaking of aging, our cerebral cortex shrinks with age. But here’s the good news:

· A 2005 study showed people who meditated a mere forty minutes a day had thicker cortical walls than non-meditators.[xxxviii]

· Likewise, Sarah Lazar, PhD and assistant professor Harvard Medical School, in her Ted talk at Cambridge in 2011 demonstrated meditation's ability to make physical changes on our brain. Her studies showed a fifty-year-old who meditates has the same cortical mass as a twenty-five-year-old non-meditator.

· Another study done at UCLA found longtime meditators brains were "younger" by 7.5 years compared to the brains of non-meditators of the same age.[xxxix]

For a summary on health benefits, the Mayo Clinic web page states it well: “Meditation can give you a sense of calm, peace and balance that benefits both your emotional well-being and your overall health. And these benefits don’t end when your meditation session ends. Meditation can help carry you more calmly through your day and even improve certain medical conditions.” The Mayo Clinic lists the following conditions that meditation could help: allergies, anxiety, asthma, binge eating, cancer, depression, fatigue, heart disease, high blood pressure, pain, sleep problems, and substance abuse.[xl] More confirmation of “No. 1 Health Booster."

Remember our reference to the Buddha and his “mind full of monkeys” analogy? That’s the way the mind is. Its nature is to think, analyze, and compartmentalize.

When we are involved in activity or thought not requiring a mental effort, our brain's default mode is to hash over thoughts and feelings that focus on ourselves. When we meditate we will have these competing thoughts. But the goal, depending on the type of meditation, is to create more focus and develop mechanisms to internally acknowledge these thoughts and let them go. What we're doing is developing a “witness mind.”[xli]

The idea is to be aware of our thoughts and accept them, even though they are all over the place. But we also realize we can focus and choose. In the same way we do bicep curls to tone our arms, we exercise our brain to build focus or tone the muscle of the mind.[xlii] Meditation is, in fact, an active state of mind that generates brain waves associated with creativity and focus (depending on the type of meditation) and de-emphasizing those associated with other mental activity. We’ll discuss further as we differentiate the types of meditation.

By comparing meditation to a physical workout we give the impression it can be a lot of work. Meditation does require effort, but not much. A study at Carnegie Mellon University found that brief mindfulness meditation, twenty-five minutes each day, alleviates psychological stress after just three consecutive days.[xliii]

The Essence

Though types of meditation and methods for learning differ, benefits overlap. But scientists and doctors do recommend specific disciplines for certain issues, despite many commonalities. Yet few studies compare methods head to head.

So this ambiguity is a challenge as we search for the essence of a practice where methods are a lot alike, but they are different.

First, the old scientific myth that all meditation induces the same state of physiological rest, once called the “relaxation response,” is not true.[xliv] Studies have debunked this theory.

However, all meditation paths have one thing in common: to notice when our mind has wandered and return to the chosen target, such as breathing, a mantra, or some other object of attention.[xlv]

Many of the contemplative paths also share the common goal of letting go of our thoughts, or diminishing the "stickiness" of our thoughts, a process called "dereification." According to Goleman and Davidson dereification provides a key insight: "thoughts, feelings, and impulses are passing, insubstantial mental events . . . we don't have to believe our thoughts; instead of following them down some track, we can let them go."[xlvi]

Types of Meditation and Sources of Instruction

Though there are many types of meditation, most researchers agree on three major categories relating to instruction.

The first is controlled focus meditation. Subtypes within this category are Zen, Tibetan Buddhist, qigong, yogic and Vedantic. Attention is focused on an object of meditation such as one’s breath, an image, or an emotion. This category is characterized by brainwaves typically in the gamma frequency associated with concentration or active cognitive processing. Research shows concentration on "loving-kindness and compassion" increases those feelings and produces synchronous gamma activity in the left prefrontal cortex, an indication of more powerful focus. [xlvii]

The second major category is open monitoring, often called “mindfulness,” a practice common in vipassana as noted earlier. This practice involves actively paying attention or watching experiences or thoughts without judging, reacting or holding on.[xlviii] Typical brainwaves are frontal theta, patterns seen during memory task or reflection on mental concepts. In addition, left frontal activity has been associated with positivity and happiness. Studies have proved mindfulness to be effective in pain management and reductions in negative ruminations. It's also been associated with stress reduction and attendant symptoms.[xlix]

The third major category is automatic self-transcending. The idea is to let the mind “spontaneously transcend the process of meditation itself.”[l] A well-known example is Transcendental Meditation. In this approach no attempt is made to direct attention. Brainwaves associated with this category are frontal alpha coherence, characterized as a “distinct state of relaxed inner wakefulness.”[li] This method is associated with relief from stress, lowering blood pressure, and alleviating chronic anxiety.

Think of mindfulness as surfing, and an awareness to move with the waves of your mind and maintaining that awareness. Transcendental Meditation is more like a submarine ride where you don’t engage with the waves. You’re striving for neither thought nor attention.[lii] Whereas Transcendental Meditation and mindfulness are more associated with awareness, controlled focus is more deliberately concerned with concentration.

As we discuss methods for these types of meditation, you’ll notice overlaps in technique, which indicate likely overlaps in function. In fact, some practitioners may well be going back and forth between meditation approaches. It's not a concern. Nevertheless, you may wish to learn the meditation most relevant to the result you are pursuing.

Cost may be a factor and we’ll discuss in a moment.

Most practitioners say it’s best to attend a class or get personal instruction. In fact, Transcendental Meditation is trademarked. To use the name and learn the method you must learn from a qualified teacher, with the price upwards of two thousand dollars.

To find an instructor go to TM.org and use the instructor locator. You'll also find much information and research about Transcendental Meditation. But there are practitioners who believe a version of mantra meditation is just as effective—for no cost. I cover a simple mantra meditation later in this chapter. On the other hand, many meditators swear taking the course is well worth the money. If you want the trademarked Transcendental Meditation, you must find an instructor and get out your pocketbook.

Mindfulness meditation classes are often taught in conjunction with larger hospitals. Just go to the web and search for MBSR courses in your area. For those who don’t live near such facilities, the whole course is offered free at palousemindfulness.com/index.html.

"Mindfulness” and “mindfulness meditation” are complementary but can have slight variations in meaning. Mindfulness meditation involves sitting, focusing on your breath or other event and watching your thoughts with detachment. Mindfulness, on the other hand, has been adopted in psychology, therapy, and scientific research. Mindfulness meditation may be a part of mindfulness but mindfulness extends beyond the sit-down meditation to any daily activity.[liii] You use the process to calm your mind in other activities by observing your own thoughts without judgment. Psychologists have made this practice the basis of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, a method gaining rapid acceptance today.

A basic mindfulness meditation technique is provided below.

Controlled focus meditation can also be learned from an instructor—the most common being yoga. Yoga and qigong instructors are easily found on the web, or by asking around your community. You'll want to check references to make sure you are hiring a trustworthy instructor.

Another type of controlled focus meditation is compassion meditation, which is described in the following section.

Compassion Meditation

Below is a technique from Richard Davidson’s highly recommended book The Emotional Life of Your Brain.

1. Start with visualizing a loved one at a time in their life when they were suffering.

2. With this image in mind next concentrate on a wish that the suffering end and silently repeating a phrase such as, “May you be free from suffering; may you experience joy and ease.” Try to notice any slowing of heartbeat, stronger beating, or a warm sensation.

3. Then try to feel the compassion emotionally.

4. Next expand your “circle of compassion” in steps to yourself, then someone else you know, and on to someone you know of, but with whom you are not necessarily acquainted.

5. Finally go on to someone who may be a difficult person.[liv]

Using this technique, Davidson found participants had decreased activation in the amygdala, the center of fear, and increased altruism or generosity when measured in lab experiments.

Mindfulness Meditation

Again, from Davidson, a simple mindfulness meditation is below, with elaboration from the Sam Harris web page on mindfulness meditation.[lv] It all sounds so simple. And it is. But the process of witnessing your monkey brain at work will be a revelation!

1. Sit upright on a chair or the floor, keeping your spine straight in a relaxed but erect posture.

2. Take a few deep breaths. Focus on your breathing and the sensations triggered in your body. Notice how your abdomen moves in and out with each breath and the air flowing through your nostrils. There is no need to control your breath. Just let it come and go naturally.

3. Allow your attention to rest on the mere sensation of breathing. Find where you feel the breath most clearly, either at your nostrils or in the rising and falling of your abdomen.

4. When you notice you are distracted by an unrelated thought or feeling, acknowledge it (don’t suppress) and then categorize it (such as a worry, plan, or miscellaneous thought) and then let it go. Then gently return your focus to your breathing.[lvi]

5. Continue as above until you can merely witness all objects of consciousness—sights, sounds, sensations, emotions, and even thoughts themselves—as they arise and pass through your consciousness and then away.

For added insight and elaboration, visit the following website: https//www.lionsroar.com/how-to-practice-Vepsian-meditation. Vipassana is considered the basis of mindfulness meditation. Or see Kabat-Zin's book, Full Catastrophe Living, as noted in the recommended reading section at the end of this appendix.

Mantra Meditation

Finally, a simple mantra meditation, sometimes considered similar to Transcendental Meditation:

1. On a chair or seated on the floor find your posture and center yourself and take several deep breaths.

2. Chant your mantra silently to yourself. Your mantra may be any word you wish or you can use the word one or the universal OM. Let your mantra find its own rhythm as you repeat it over and over.

3. The meditation is to be practiced with awareness. Try to stay aware of each repetition of the mantra.

4. When your thoughts stray, note that, then gently bring your attention back to your mantra.

After practicing any of these techniques for a while you will notice profound relaxation sensations. Recommendations vary about time for each session. A little is always better than none. Transcendental Meditation recommends twenty minutes twice a day. Mindfulness instructors say to start with five minutes and work up to forty minutes in a day. Remember, benefits accrue in as little as three days of practice, while two weeks can produce marked changes. Again, a course is recommended. It’s always better to have personal feedback. If an in-person course is not possible, try the online courses, which provide significant detail.

A final word on comparison. Mindfulness meditation and mantra meditation (noted as a comparable to Transcendental Meditation) appear to be very similar. Though in one it’s a matter of concentrating on the breath and the other a mantra, mindfulness instructors say you don’t have to concentrate on your breath. It could be another bodily sensation or object. The difference comes down to handling the intrusive thoughts.

Mantra meditation has you simply returning to your mantra while mindfulness has you acknowledge and compartmentalize the thoughts before turning them loose, then returning to concentrating on your breath. The difference sounds menial. However, I can tell you from personal practice, the mindfulness method takes more effort. If more effort means better results and improved synapse building, that could be a reason to seek a good MBSR course or take a complete course online.

In summary, there are myriad reasons to meditate, and likely more we don't yet know. Sure, it will take twenty to forty minutes out of your day. But with the benefits, those twenty to forty minutes may be the most valuable of your waking hours