Improve Attention in Multitaskers with Mindfulness

June 10, 2016 psyjdc Leave a comment

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“What a balance: while multitasking makes it easier for your brain to succumb to distraction, meditation helps you recognize when you’ve gotten distracted—allowing you to get back to the task that’s top of mind.” – Drake Baer

In modern everyday life, we are constantly bombarded with a myriad of stimuli, from music, movies, TV, traffic noise, games, telephone calls, texts, emails, tweets, posts, etc. The generations who have grown up in the midst of this cacophony, claim to have developed multitasking skills, such that they can simultaneously work with multiple tasks and sources of information. At first glance they appear to have developed useful skills that the older generation can only marvel at. But, upon closer inspection of the abilities of the multitaskers, it has been found that they actually have impaired attentional abilities and are more easily distracted from what they’re doing. In other words, the multitasking has damaged their ability to focus on any one thing.

Mindfulness training may be an antidote to the impaired attention and distractibility of the multitaskers. In mindfulness training the individual practices focusing attention on a single object, learns to filter out distracting stimuli, including thoughts, and learns to stay focused on the present moment, filtering out thoughts centered around the past or future. Indeed, mindfulness training appears to improve attentional ability and reduce distractibility. Hence it would seem that mindfulness training would strengthen the exact capacities that are weakened by chronic multitasking.

In today’s Research News article “Short-term mindfulness intervention reduces the negative attentional effects associated with heavy media multitasking.” See:

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1248202211870369/?type=3&theater

or below or view the full text of the study at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4834474/

Gorman and Green test this notion. They measured college students’ media multitasking and selected a low multitasking group (at least one stand deviation below the mean) and a high multitasking group (at least one stand deviation above the mean). The two groups were then tested with a battery of four tests measuring attentional ability and distractibility. They were tested under two different conditions. In the mindfulness condition they interspersed the four tasks with 10 minutes of breath counting meditation. In the control condition, the four attention tasks were interspersed with 10 minutes of web browsing. They then looked at the effects of high vs. low multitasking and meditation vs. browsing practice on the interspersed attention tasks.

They found, as expected, that overall the high media multitaskers performed worse on the attentional tasks than the low media multitaskers. They also found that overall the meditation interspersed between the tasks improved attentional ability. Finally, they found the high media multitaskers improved their attentional ability more in response to the meditation than the low media multitaskers. Hence, the study demonstrates that multitasking impairs attention, meditation improves attention, and meditation improves the highest multitaskers’ attention more.

These are interesting and potentially significant findings. Given that the new generations are growing up as multitaskers with impaired attentional abilities and greater distractibility, it is heartening that meditation practice can to some extent repair the damage especially in the highest multitaskers. So, there is hope for these generations! But, these results are limited as they only show that mindfulness training can produce short-term improvements in attentional ability, it remains for future research to test whether longer-term training can have more long lasting effects.

So, improve attention in multitaskers with mindfulness.

“Through mind-body stress reduction programs with Aetna employees, we have demonstrated that mindfulness-based programs can reduce stress and improve people’s health. Healthier people are more productive and happier.” – Mark Bertolini

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts

Study Summary

Gorman, T. E., & Green, C. S. (2016). Short-term mindfulness intervention reduces the negative attentional effects associated with heavy media multitasking. Scientific Reports, 6, 24542. http://doi.org/10.1038/srep24542

Abstract

Recent research suggests that frequently switching between various forms of media (i.e. ‘media multitasking’) is associated with diminished attentional abilities, a disconcerting result given the prevalence of media multitasking in today’s society. In the present study, we sought to investigate the extent to which the deficits associated with frequent media multitasking can be temporarily ameliorated via a short-term mindfulness intervention previously shown to produce beneficial effects on the attentional abilities of normally functioning individuals. Consistent with previous work, we found: (1) that heavy media multitaskers showed generally poorer attentional abilities than light media multitaskers and (2) that all participants showed benefits from the short-term mindfulness intervention. Furthermore, we found that the benefits of the short-term mindfulness intervention were not equivalently large across participants. Instead, these benefits were disproportionately large in the heavy media multitaskers. While the positive outcomes were short-lived, this opens the possibility of performing long-term interventions with the goal of realizing lasting gains in this population.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4834474/

Improve Dementia Patients and Their Caregivers with Mindfulness

June 9, 2016June 9, 2016 psyjdc Leave a comment

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“One of the major difficulties that individuals with dementia and their family members encounter is that there is a need for new ways of communicating due to the memory loss and other changes in thinking and abilities. The practice of mindfulness places both participants in the present and focuses on positive features of the interaction, allowing for a type of connection that may substitute for the more complex ways of communicating in the past.” – Sandra Weintraub

Dementia is a progressive loss of mental function produced by degenerative diseases of the brain. Dementia patients require caregiving particularly in the later stages of the disease. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common type of dementia and accounts for 50 to 70 percent of dementia cases. Other types of dementia include vascular dementia, mixed dementia, dementia with Lewy bodies and frontotemporal dementia. For Alzheimer’s disease alone, there are an estimated 10 million caregivers providing 9 billion hours of care at a value of over $100 Billion dollars.

Caregiving for dementia patients is a daunting and all too frequent task. It is an intense experience that can go on for four to eight years with increasing responsibilities as the loved one deteriorates. In the last year, 59% of the caregivers report that they are effectively on duty 24/7. Over time dementia will lead to loss of memory, loss of reasoning and judgment, personality and behavioral changes, physical decline, and death. The memory and personality changes in the patient may take away all those characteristics that make the loved one identifiable, unique, and endearing, producing psychological stress in the caregiver. The feelings of hopelessness can be overwhelming regarding the future of a patient with an irreversible terminal degenerative illness. In addition, caregivers often experience an anticipatory grief associated with a feeling of impending loss of their loved one. If this isn’t bad enough, a little appreciated consequence is that few insurance programs cover dementia care outside of the hospital. So, medical expenses can produce extra financial strain on top of the loss of income for the caregiver. It is sad that 72% of caregivers report relief when their loved one passes away.

Obviously, there is a need to both care for the dementia patients and also for the caregivers, for all types of caregiving but particularly for dementia. They play an essential and often irreplaceable role. So, finding ways to ease the burden is extremely important. Mindfulness practice for caregivers has been shown to help them cope with the physical and psychological demands of caregiving. In addition, mindfulness training has been found to help protect aging individuals from physical and cognitive declines. So, it would make sense to combine mindfulness training of the patients and caregivers as a pair.

In today’s Research News article “Benefits of Mindfulness Training for Patients with Progressive Cognitive Decline and their Caregivers.” See:

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1247548971935693/?type=3&theater

or below or view the full text of the study at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4363074/

Paler and colleagues provided an 8-week mindfulness training program for Alzheimer’s Disease patients and their caregivers. They were also given homework exercises on CDs to be practiced for 30-60 minutes daily. They found that the training produced an increase in quality of life, improvement in cognitive executive function, and a decrease in depression and sleep problems for both the patients and caregivers. The vast majority of the participants were pleased with the program and felt that they were less stressed and better able to cope with stressful circumstances and their relationships had improved.

These results are outstanding and suggest that combined mindfulness training for both patients and caregivers is a safe and effective method to improve the emotional state, cognitive ability, quality of life, sleep, and stress management for both. The efficiency of training both at the same time is important as the feasibility of implementing the program increases as the demands on time decrease. Mindfulness training is known to improve emotion regulation and depression, cognitive processes, improve sleep, decrease the psychological and physical responses to stress, and improve relationships in normal people. It is important that this study established that this is also true for dementia patients and their caregivers.

It should be noted that there was no control or comparison condition. So, it is impossible to make a strong conclusion that the mindfulness program itself produced the improvements. A randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) is needed to confirm these results. Nevertheless, the results are exceptionally promising and provide the rationale to implement an RCT. The authors do note, however, that recruitment of patients and caregivers for a control group would likely be extremely difficult.

So, improve dementia patients and their caregivers with mindfulness.

“Mindfulness involves attentive awareness with acceptance for events in the present moment. You don’t have to be drawn into wishing things were different. Mindfulness training in this way takes advantage of people’s abilities rather than focusing on their difficulties.” – Ken Paler

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts

Study Summary

Paller, K. A., Creery, J. D., Florczak, S. M., Weintraub, S., Mesulam, M.-M., Reber, P. J., … Maslar, M. (2015). Benefits of Mindfulness Training for Patients with Progressive Cognitive Decline and their Caregivers. American Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease and Other Dementias, 30(3), 257–267. http://doi.org/10.1177/1533317514545377

Abstract

New strategies are needed to help people cope with the repercussions of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease. Patients and caregivers face different challenges, but here we investigated an intervention tailored for this combined population. The program focused on training skills such as attending to the present moment nonjudgmentally, which may help reduce maladaptive emotional responses. Patients participated together with caregivers in weekly group sessions over 8 weeks. An assessment battery was individually administered before and after the program. Pre-post analyses revealed several benefits, including increased quality-of-life ratings, fewer depressive symptoms, and better subjective sleep quality. In addition, participants indicated that they were grateful for the opportunity to learn to apply mindfulness skills and that they would recommend the program to others. In conclusion, mindfulness training can be beneficial for patients and their caregivers, it can be delivered at low-cost to combined groups, and it is worthy of further investigation.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4363074/

Decrease PMS with Mindfulness

June 8, 2016April 28, 2022 psyjdc Leave a comment

Smiling young girl drinking tea and writing

“Meditation helps manage PMS in many ways. Meditation helps put PMS in perspective – that it’s a short-term problem and that most of the time, you feel good. It helps ease the guilt of difficult-to-control emotional outbursts – PMS is a medical condition! Meditation helps calm the erratic thought patterns and wild emotional fluctuations by putting the body and mind into a deeply relaxed state.” – Steven Johnson

Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) is very common in women during the childbearing years. Almost 85% of American women, between 20 years old and 40 years old, experience PMS and around 5% of these women are disabled by extremely severe symptoms. It is often accompanied with depression and called Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD) and can be dangerous as the suicide rate for patients with depression is much higher in the second half of the menstrual cycle.

PMS produces physical symptoms such as Joint or muscle pain, headache, fatigue, weight gain related to fluid retention, abdominal bloating, breast tenderness, acne flare-ups, and constipation or diarrhea. These symptoms are accompanied by a constellation of psychological symptoms such as tension or anxiety, depressed mood, crying spells, mood swings and irritability or anger, appetite changes and food cravings, trouble falling asleep (insomnia), social withdrawal, and poor concentration. Rather than improve with age, PMS can get worse as patients age and approach menopause.

For most women PMS is left untreated, with the women simply putting up with the misery. But for some drugs are prescribed such as antidepressants, NSAIDs, diuretics, and hormones. These are all accompanied by significant side effects. There is, therefore, a need to find safe and effective treatment for the torment of PMS. Mindfulness training has been shown to improve the physical and psychological state of women and men. It would seem reasonable to examine whether mindfulness training might be helpful with PMS.

In today’s Research News article “Relationships Among Premenstrual Symptom Reports, Menstrual Attitudes, and Mindfulness.” See:

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1246921738665083/?type=3&theater

or below or view the full text of the study at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4859870/

Lustyk and colleagues examined the relationships between mindfulness, premenstrual attitudes, and Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) symptoms in college age women, all of whom reported some level of PMS symptoms. They found that a number of aspects of mindfulness, including overall mindfulness and the observing, describing, and non-reacting facets of mindfulness were significantly negatively associated with overall and individual PMS symptoms, including pain, emotions, food cravings, and fluid retention. They found that the greater the levels of mindfulness the less the PMS symptom severity.

Lustyk and colleagues also measured the women’s attitudes regarding menstruation. They found that the greater degree the women perceived menstruation as a debilitating event and the better they were at predicting the onset of menstruation, the lower the PMS symptoms. They also found that mindfulness moderated these effects; the higher the levels of mindfulness the smaller the relationships between these attitudes with PMS symptoms.

These results are encouraging. They are however correlational. There was no manipulation of mindfulness or mindfulness training. So, it can’t be concluded that mindfulness caused improvements in PMS symptoms. It could be that low PMS symptoms improve mindfulness in women or that some other variable is related to both. It will take a manipulative research study to determine if there’s a causal relationship between mindfulness and PMS symptoms.

These cautions notwithstanding, mindfulness appears to be associated with lower PMS symptoms. This adds to the list of the beneficial effects of mindfulness to mental and physical health. It also suggests that mindfulness training may be a safe and effective alternative treatment for Premenstrual Syndrome in women.

So, decrease PMS with mindfulness.

“The incredible positive that I have gained by becoming aware of this connection is the awareness that has allowed me to work with my mind and body each month when these symptoms surface. I can now respond to my body’s needs without reacting from a highly activated, emotional place. It’s really made all of the difference. I now know what to expect and deal with myself more compassionately during this time of the month.” – Debbie

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts

Study Summary

Lustyk, M. K. B., Gerrish, W. G., Douglas, H., Bowen, S., & Marlatt, G. A. (2011). Relationships Among Premenstrual Symptom Reports, Menstrual Attitudes, and Mindfulness. Mindfulness, 2(1), 37–48. http://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-011-0041-x

Abstract

The physical and affective symptoms of a broad range of conditions are improved following mindfulness-based practices. One set of symptoms that has yet to be explored through the lens of mindfulness, however, is that associated with the premenstruum. Also, given the relationships among negative attitudes towards menstruation and amplified symptom reporting, it is reasonable to expect that mindfulness qualities cultivated through practices aimed at dispelling negative anticipatory and judgmental thinking will moderate these relationships. Thus, in this study we examined interrelationships among premenstrual symptom severity reports (PMSR), menstrual attitudes, and mindfulness qualities in a sample of 127 women (age range 18–26 years). Results revealed several statistically significant positive relationships between menstrual attitudes and PMSR. Also, higher scores on measures of mindfulness were significantly associated with lower PMSR. Moderating effects revealed that mindfulness significantly buffered the relationships between menstrual attitudes and PMSR, specifically between: anticipation of menses onset and PMSR as well as anticipation of menses onset and premenstrual water retention. These results may offer the first empirical evidence of relationships among menstrual attitudes, PMSR, and mindfulness qualities. Results from this study align with the body of research showing that mindfulness is predictive of improved symptomatology and well-being across varied conditions. We conclude with discussion supporting the development of a mindfulness-based intervention aimed at reducing symptom severity in premenstrual symptom sufferers.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4859870/

Improve Memory with Momentary Mindfulness

June 7, 2016 psyjdc Leave a comment

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“Meditation directly affects the function and structure of the brain, changing it in ways that appear to increase attention span, sharpen focus, and improve memory.” – Walter Zimmerman

Memory is absolutely essential to human existence. Without it there is no learning. We would not be able to benefit from our past successes and failures. We’d be constantly “reinventing the wheel.” Fortunately, we do have the ability to store and remember information. This storage includes a variety of different types of information in our memories. One form, is a storage of events that occur in our lives, remembering them in great detail and in temporal order. For example, remember getting out of bed this morning and what you did up to the point of getting dressed. You might find that recalling these events involves reconstruction. That is, you put together the events using one event as a cue to the next one, perhaps filling in material from what you know already about your bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, etc. This is called episodic memory. We store almost an infinite amount of information about past events in this way.

A key to memory is storing the information. This involves attention. If you’re not paying attention to the events that are happening, you’ll never store the memory of them. Take for example driving while immersed in thought planning for the day and realizing that you don’t remember driving the last several miles. The episodic memory of what happened during that time was never stored as you were paying attention to something else. In other words, being in the present moment and paying attention to what’s going on is necessary for episodic memory storage. Since, mindfulness involves paying attention in the present moment, it would seem reasonable to expect that mindfulness would be associated with episodic memory, the greater the mindfulness, the better the storage and later recall of events.

Indeed, mindfulness has been found to be associated with memory ability. In today’s Research News article “Mindfulness Enhances Episodic Memory Performance: Evidence from a Multimethod Investigation.” See:

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1246307038726553/?type=3&theater

or below or view the full text of the study at:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4846034/

Brown and colleagues explored in depth the association of mindfulness with episodic memory in three studies. In the first they investigated the relationship between the overall mindfulness of college students and their episodic memory ability. The students were presented a sequence of 60 pictures of familiar objects and later asked to identify those that were presented from entirely new pictures. They found that the students’ overall mindfulness was not related to episodic memory ability, but their mindfulness state at the beginning of the test was, with higher mindfulness associated with better performance at the episodic memory task. Since, the immediate state of mindfulness and not the overall mindfulness was associated with memory, they concluded that a brief mindfulness induction would be sufficient to improve episodic memory.

In the second study, Brown and colleagues randomly assigned students to either receive a very brief (40 second) mindfulness instruction or an equally brief instruction on “putting first things first.” Both groups were then tested for episodic memory. They found the mindfulness instruction group were significantly superior at the episodic memory task. Because of the manipulation of mindfulness, the authors concluded that momentary mindfulness was the cause of the improved memory.

In a third experiment, they tested the students with a free recall task, remembering details from a read story. Again the mindfulness instruction improved memory demonstrating that the improvement in memory ability occurs with different types of episodic memory tasks. But, they also measured how interesting the task was for the students (intrinsic motivation) and found that the mindfulness instruction increased intrinsic motivation and this in turn improved memory. Hence, it appeared that inducing momentary mindfulness makes the task more interesting and this produces improved memory.

These results are interesting and suggest that momentary mindfulness may be effective in facilitating episodic memory storage but does so by increasing the level of interest in the task. So, if we’re mindful, and therefore we’re more interested in our driving, it’ll be less likely that the mind will wander and as a result tend to remember better the events that occurred during the drive. By improving intrinsic motivation momentary mindfulness improves episodic memory.

So, improve memory with momentary mindfulness.

“Meditation requires sustained attention. Not only do participants have to focus their attention, but they also have to notice distractions. Then they must choose to ignore those distractions, redirecting their attention back to the current experience. In that way, the practice is closely related to the function of working memory. That’s because working memory requires holding on to thoughts and not letting other things distract from them.” – Jastrowski Mano

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts

Study Summary

Brown, K. W., Goodman, R. J., Ryan, R. M., & Anālayo, B. (2016). Mindfulness Enhances Episodic Memory Performance: Evidence from a Multimethod Investigation. PLoS ONE, 11(4), e0153309. http://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0153309

Abstract

Training in mindfulness, classically described as a receptive attentiveness to present events and experiences, has been shown to improve attention and working memory. Both are key to long-term memory formation, and the present three-study series used multiple methods to examine whether mindfulness would enhance episodic memory, a key form of long-term memory. In Study 1 (N = 143), a self-reported state of mindful attention predicted better recognition performance in the Remember-Know (R-K) paradigm. In Study 2 (N = 93), very brief training in a focused attention form of mindfulness also produced better recognition memory performance on the R-K task relative to a randomized, well-matched active control condition. Study 3 (N = 57) extended these findings by showing that relative to randomized active and inactive control conditions the effect of very brief mindfulness training generalized to free-recall memory performance. This study also found evidence for mediation of the mindfulness training—episodic memory relation by intrinsic motivation. These findings indicate that mindful attention can beneficially impact motivation and episodic memory, with potential implications for educational and occupational performance.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4846034/

Improve Neuroticism with Mindfulness

June 6, 2016 psyjdc 1 Comment

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“Self-deprecating comedians and complainers wear their neuroticism as a badge of honor. In truth, the negatively biased are more prone to depression, anxiety, self-consciousness and hypochondria, to name just a few behavioral tripwires. Neuroticism is no fun for anyone.” – Psychology Today

We often speak of people being neurotic. But, do we really know what we’re talking about? Do we really know what it is? Neurosis is actually an outdated diagnosis that is no longer used medically. The disorders that were once classified as a neurosis are now more accurately categorized as post-traumatic stress disorder, somatization disorders, anxiety disorder, panic disorder, phobias, dissociation disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder and adjustment disorder.

Neuroticism, however, is considered a personality trait that is a lasting characteristic of the individual. It is characterized by negative feelings, repetitive thinking about the past (rumination), and worry about the future, moodiness and loneliness. It appears to be linked to vulnerability to stress. People who have this characteristic are not happy with life and have a low subjective sense of well-being and recognize that this state is unacceptable. There is some hope for people with high neuroticism as this relatively stable characteristic appears to be lessened by mindfulness training. This is potentially important and deserves further investigation.

In today’s Research News article “Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Neuroticism (Stress Vulnerability): A Pilot Randomized Study.” See:

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1245647922125798/?type=3&theater

or below

Armstrong and Rimes examined the ability of Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) to treat individuals high in neuroticism. They randomly assigned participants with high neuroticism to either an 8-week, once a week for 2-hours, MBCT treatment group or and on-line self-help treatment control group. Measures were taken before and 4-weeks after treatment of mindfulness, neuroticism, impairment in everyday functioning, anxiety, depressive symptoms, self-compassion, beliefs about emotions, rumination, and decentering.

They found that after treatment in comparisons to the control group the MBCT group had significantly lower neuroticism scores, and rumination, and a trend toward lower functional impairment due to stress. In addition, the MBCT group had significantly higher self-compassion and decentering and trends toward lessened unhelpful beliefs and emotions and higher mindfulness. Surprisingly, since MBCT was developed specifically to treat depression, there were no significant differences in anxiety or depression.

These results are interesting and potentially important. This, however, was a pilot study that had relatively small group sizes (17). The fact that significant differences were detected nonetheless indicates that the effects were fairly strong. The results clearly indicate that a larger randomized controlled trial is called for.

Mindfulness may affect neuroticism in a number of ways. By focusing the individual on the present moment, mindfulness should lessen the neuroticism characteristics of rumination about the past and worry about the future. Mindfulness is also known to reduce the psychological and physiological responses to stress and stress is known to contribute to neuroticism. Finally, mindfulness has been shown to produce heightened emotion regulation. So, the mindful individual feels and appreciates their emotions but responds appropriately and adaptively. This should lessen the moodiness, negative feelings, and loneliness characteristic of neuroticism. So, it is not surprising the mindfulness based treatments would be effective in lowering neuroticism. This is a hopeful development, as people high in neuroticism are very unhappy people. Mindfulness may provide some relief and help them toward a happier life.

So, improve neuroticism with mindfulness.

“Being in the moment with those thoughts and recognizing them for what they are has really helped me to kind of shove them aside, or to kind of diffuse them,” she says. “I think it’s really helped me become a more aware person of what other people might be feeling.” – JoSelle Vanderhooft

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts

Study Summary

Armstrong L, Rimes KA. Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Neuroticism (Stress Vulnerability): A Pilot Randomized Study. Behav Ther. 2016 May;47(3):287-98. doi: 10.1016/j.beth.2015.12.005. Epub 2016 Jan 5. PMID: 27157024. doi:10.1016/j.beth.2015.12.005

Highlights

A new MBCT intervention for neuroticism versus online general self-help is examined
Compared with self-help, MBCT results in significantly lower levels of neuroticism
Rumination and self-compassion improved more in the MBCT group than the control group
MBCT is an acceptable and feasible intervention for neuroticism
Neuroticism may be amenable to change through psychological intervention

Abstract

Objective: Neuroticism, a characteristic associated with increased stress vulnerability and the tendency to experience distress, is strongly linked to risk of different forms of psychopathology. However, there are few evidence-based interventions to target neuroticism. This pilot study investigated the efficacy and acceptability of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) compared with an online self-help intervention for individuals with high levels of neuroticism. The MBCT was modified to address psychological processes that are characteristic of neuroticism. Method: Participants with high levels of neuroticism were randomized to MBCT (n = 17) or an online self-help intervention (n = 17). Self-report questionnaires were administered preintervention and again at 4 weeks postintervention. Results: Intention-to-treat analyses found that MBCT participants had significantly lower levels of neuroticism postintervention than the control group. Compared with the control group, the MBCT group also experienced significant reductions in rumination and increases in self-compassion and decentering, of which the latter two were correlated with reductions in neuroticism within the MBCT group. Low drop-out rates, high levels of adherence to home practice, and positive feedback from MBCT participants provide indications that this intervention may be an acceptable form of treatment for individuals who are vulnerable to becoming easily stressed. Conclusions: MBCT specifically modified to target neuroticism-related processes is a promising intervention for reducing neuroticism. Results support evidence suggesting neuroticism is malleable and amenable to psychological intervention. MBCT for neuroticism warrants further investigation in a larger study.

The Noble Eightfold Path: Right Concentration

June 5, 2016June 5, 2016 psyjdc 2 Comments

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“Concentration relates closely to the final limb, mindfulness. Both are different forms of awareness, but of the two concentration is more deliberate and narrow, mindfulness broader, more spontaneous and more open and receptive.” – Clearvision

Mindfulness is an openness to all experiences no matter what comes up. On the other hand, concentration is to focus on only one or a small subset of what is present. So, Right Concentration is a different aspect of mind training from Right Mindfulness. It is the eighth and last component of the Noble Eightfold Path, Right View, Right Intentions, Right Speech, Right Actions, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness and Right Concentration. But, all of these components are interconnected and depend upon one another. So, it’s position is arbitrary and should not be construed that it’s the least component. They are all important in the integrated interdependent whole of the path.

A good example of Right Concentration is focused meditation where a single aspect or select set of aspects is concentrated upon to the exclusion of other aspects. This is often the breath but can also be a mantra, a special word, a particular person, or basically anything that can be separated from everything else. Concentration filters out everything but the object of concentration. So, the mind is not distracted. A concentrated mind is described as single pointed, focused totally on one thing and one thing only. The Buddha taught that when one pointedness is attained it produces a state of great tranquility and peace. Hence, the two primary features of Right Concentration are unbroken attentiveness to an object and a consequent tranquility.

There are many levels of concentration and as the practice of focused meditation develops the individual moves through deeper and deeper levels. As the practice begins, the mind will inevitably wander. When the meditator becomes aware that the mind has strayed, s/he simply gently returns to the object of concentration. It is sometimes helpful to congratulate yourself on returning rather than feeling bad about wandering. The idea is to reinforce and strengthen being concentrated rather than punishing the mind for doing what it naturally does. This will make it more and more likely that the meditator will return quickly once the mind wanders and stays focused longer and longer.

The development of Right Concentration is not a linear process with the meditator getting better and better with every meditation. It is rather highly variable with concentration easy and prolonged one day followed by another day when it is difficult and short-lived with mind wandering the rule. Rather than being frustrated with this the practitioner simply needs to continue practicing with assurance that over time concentration will get deeper and deeper more and more often and un-concentrated meditation will get rarer and rarer.

As practice continues concentration will deepen going through a number of stages, initial application of mind, sustained application of mind, rapture, happiness, and one-pointedness. The initial application of mind is settling and acquiring the object of meditation and focusing on it alone. This slowly becomes a sustained application of mind, where the focus on the object is held for a prolonged period of time. Rapture and happiness begin to become a by-product of the sustained attention as the practitioner feels joy and happiness with successful concentration. Finally, the concentration develops to the level of one pointedness, with the mind unified and completely focused on the object of meditation to the exclusion of everything else.
The attainment of one pointedness relaxes the mind with its activities greatly diminished. As the mind quiets, consciousness is allowed to be on its own without interruption and it begins to move into deeper and deeper states on consciousness. The meditative absorption deepens and consciousness moves into various stages known as the “jhanas.” The first and second being one pointedness accompanied by joy and happiness, the only difference between the two is the level of refinement of the concentration. The third “jhana” involves a continuation of one pointedness and happiness but with the addition of clear comprehension and equanimity, where things are seen just as they are without judgment or valuation. The fourth “jhana” involves solely one pointedness, a state of pureness of consciousness, unmarred by feelings.

These stages of Right Concentration should not be seen as an unwavering roadmap to deeper states of consciousness. These stages occur to some but not others. Some, jump around, skip stages, of bypass them completely. But, Right Concentration inevitably leads to deep and deeper states of awareness. The Buddha describes even deeper states of absorption as the practitioner moves towards enlightenment. So, Right Concentration is seen as the doorway to the culmination of the path, attaining enlightenment.

Regardless, of these deeper states of consciousness, the process of developing concentration is very beneficial in everyday life. The ability to stay with a task without distraction or the mind wandering away improves work, study, or even relationships, virtually everything. So, practice Right Concentration and move forward on the path toward spiritual enlightenment.

“Now what, monks, is noble right concentration with its supports & requisite conditions? Any singleness of mind equipped with these seven factors, right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, & right mindfulness‚ is called noble right concentration with its supports & requisite conditions.” – Buddha

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Improve Memory with Yoga Nostril Breathing Techniques

June 4, 2016 psyjdc 7 Comments

Improve Memory with Yoga Nostril Breathing Techniques

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“For breath is life, and if you breathe well you will live long on earth.” – Sanskrit Proverb

Yoga practice is becoming increasingly popular in the west, for good reason. It has documented benefits for the individual’s psychological and physical health and well-being. It has also been shown to have cognitive benefits, improving memory. Yoga, however, consists of a number of components including, poses, breathing exercises, meditation, concentration, and philosophy/ethics. So, it is difficult to determine which facet or combination of facets of yoga are responsible for which benefit. Hence, it is important to begin to test each component in isolation to determine its effects.

In today’s Research News article “Effect of Left, Right and Alternate Nostril Breathing on Verbal and Spatial Memory.” See:

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1243792838977973/?type=3&theater

or below or view the full text of the study at:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4800515/

Garg and colleagues test the effects of yogic breathing, specifically, left or right or alternating nostril breathing on memory ability. They randomly assigned adult female participants to three groups, right nostril breathing, left nostril breathing, or alternating nostril breathing. They practiced their respective breathing technique for 45 minutes per day for one week. Their verbal and spatial memory ability was then tested for 3 consecutive days before and after yogic nostril breathing.

They found that both verbal and spatial memory scores were improved by all three forms of breathing, but left nostril breathing produced superior verbal memory scores. There are no data to provide an explanation for the mechanism by which these breathing techniques improve memory. It is possible that they improve oxygenation of the hemispheres. Since the left hemisphere is generally involved in verbal ability, increasing oxygen flow to the left hemisphere may specifically improve verbal memory. It should be mentioned that there were no control conditions conducted. It is possible that the results were produced not by the breathing technique but by subject expectancy (placebo) effects or experimenter bias. It is also possible that nostril breathing is generally activating and this improves memory scores. Had a normal breathing control condition been conducted, this alternative hypothesis could have been addressed.

Nevertheless, improve memory with yoga nostril breathing techniques.

“This breathing exercise helps sharpen your concentration and mental clarity when your mind is dull. Alternate nostril breathing provides equal oxygen amounts to both sides of your brain. It is a great exercise to do before an important exam or interview.” – Ripa Ajmera

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts

Study Summary

Garg, R., Malhotra, V., Tripathi, Y., & Agarawal, R. (2016). Effect of Left, Right and Alternate Nostril Breathing on Verbal and Spatial Memory. Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research : JCDR, 10(2), CC01–CC03. http://doi.org/10.7860/JCDR/2016/12361.7197

Abstract

Introduction: Yoga has beneficial effects on memory. In females, left hemisphere of the brain is responsible for verbal memory and right hemisphere is responsible for the spatial memory, while the opposite is true for males.

Aim: Aim of the present was to study the effect of unilateral right nostril breathing, left nostril breathing and alternate nostril breathing on verbal and spatial memory scores.

Materials and Methods: A total of 51 female subjects (age 18-25 years, mean±SD =21.71±3.11) were taken and divided into three groups (n=17). Each group was imparted one of the three different types of nostril breathing practices such as Right Nostril Breathing (RNB), Left Nostril Breathing (LNB) and Alternate Nostril Breathing (ANB) for 1 week for 45 minutes daily. Subjects were given the memory test, before and after 45 minutes of intervention for three consecutive days. Memory tests were performed by using Wechsler Adult Intelligent Scale.

Statistical Analysis: Results were analysed by ANOVA with SPSS version 17.0.

Results: Results showed that there was increase in recall of digit span-forward, digit-span backward, associate learning and spatial memory scores with RNB, LNB and ANB, which were statistically highly significant(p<0.005).

Conclusion: Inclusion of nostril breathing in exercise regimen may be helpful in improving recall of memory.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4800515/

Yoga has Gone Mainstream in Schools

June 3, 2016 psyjdc Leave a comment

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“once children are in a more calm state, they can remember or be more mindful of actions, thoughts, and words from the heart — a more helpful behavior as opposed to self-centeredness.” – Kelly Wood

Yoga practice has been shown to have a large number of beneficial effects on the psychological, emotional, and physical health of the individual and is helpful in the treatment of mental and physical illness. As a result, it has been adopted widely in western society. As I quipped to my spouse, “you know yoga has gone mainstream, when yoga pants have become a fashion statement!” The acceptance of yoga practice has spread from the home and yoga studios to its application with children in schools.

Studies of these school programs have found that yoga practice produces a wide variety of positive psychosocial and physical benefits. These include improved mood state, self-control, aggression and social problems, self-regulation, emotion regulation, feelings of happiness and relaxation, self-esteem, social and physical well-being, self-concept, tolerance, nonviolence, truthfulness, overall, general, and social self-esteem, positive health, self-adjustment, and working-memory capacity, ability to focus, control behavior under stress, greater kinesthetic awareness, stress reduction and management, and social cohesion, focus, perseverance, and positive relationships. They have also shown that the yoga practice produces lower levels of anxiety, depression, general distress, physical arousal, and hostility, rumination, and intrusive thoughts, and alcohol use.

Teachers also note improvements in their students following yoga practice. These include improved classroom behavior and social–emotional skills, concentration, mood, ability to function under pressure, social skills, and attention and lower levels of. Hyperactivity and performance impairment. In addition, school records, academic tests, and physiological measures have shown that yoga practice produces improvements in student grades and academic performance, cortisol concentrations, micronutrient absorption, flexibility, grip strength, abdominal strength, respiratory muscle strength, heart rate variability, and stress reactivity.

These findings are remarkable and have resulted in the spread of yoga programs to schools throughout the country. In today’s Research News article “School-based Yoga Programs in the United States: A Survey” See:

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1243070949050162/?type=3&theater

or below or view the full text of the study at:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4831047/

Butzer and her colleagues attempted to assess just how widespread has been the adoption of yoga programs in schools and what are the characteristics of these programs. They performed a web search to identify organizations who provide school based yoga programs and identified 36 such organizations. They then surveyed these programs to determine the number of schools served and the characteristics of the programs.

They found widespread adoption of yoga programs and could identify 940 schools across the U.S. offering such programs. There were 5400 trained instructors, although the training varied tremendously. The programs were generally new, having come into existence only 5 to 10 years ago. The majority of the programs spanned pre-school to the 12^th grade while some focused on grammar school. Where the yoga practice occurred varied with some programs performing yoga in small pieces throughout the day in the classrooms while others offered formal yoga practice intensively in a gym during defined periods. The programs typically “incorporated the 4 basic elements of yoga practice into their curriculums, including physical postures, breathing exercises, relaxation techniques, and mindfulness and meditation practices” and “elements, such as ethics, philosophy, or psychology lessons.” All of the programs stressed that the programs were secular and nonreligious and taught universal values, which they referred to as life skills.

These results corroborate the impression that adoption of yoga in schools is recent, widespread, and varied. The variations in the programs may actually be an advantage as comparisons between the effectiveness of these different programs may yield important information as to what is the most effective way to construct yoga programs in schools. Some standardization may be warranted sometime in the future, but for now, the variations in programs may be very useful.

It is encouraging that yoga has gone mainstream in schools as research indicates that it has very beneficial effects on the children.

“Two years before the end of my 36-year career as an educator, I started practicing yoga and sharing it with my fourth-grade class. In those two years, I saw the profound effects of yoga on my students’ learning, the emotional climate of my classroom, my interactions with students, my satisfaction with teaching, and my own health and well-being.” – Jane Rosen

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts

Study Summary

Butzer, B., Ebert, M., Telles, S., & Khalsa, S. B. S. (2015). School-based Yoga Programs in the United States: A Survey. Advances in Mind-Body Medicine,29(4), 18–26.

Abstract

Context: Substantial interest has begun to emerge around the implementation of yoga interventions in schools. Researchers have found that yoga practices may enhance skills such as self-regulation and prosocial behavior, and lead to improvements in students’ performance. These researchers, therefore, have proposed that contemplative practices have the potential to play a crucial role in enhancing the quality of US public education.

Objective: The purpose of the present study was to provide a summary and comparison of school-based yoga programs in the United States.

Design: Online, listserv, and database searches were conducted to identify programs, and information was collected regarding each program’s scope of work, curriculum characteristics, teacher-certification and training requirements, implementation models, modes of operation, and geographical regions.

Setting: The online, listserv, and database searches took place in Boston, MA, USA, and New Haven, CT, USA.

Results: Thirty-six programs were identified that offer yoga in more than 940 schools across the United States, and more than 5400 instructors have been trained by these programs to offer yoga in educational settings. Despite some variability in the exact mode of implementation, training requirements, locations served, and grades covered, the majority of the programs share a common goal of teaching 4 basic elements of yoga: (1) physical postures, (2) breathing exercises, (3) relaxation techniques, and (4) mindfulness and meditation practices. The programs also teach a variety of additional educational, social-emotional, and didactic techniques to enhance students’ mental and physical health and behavior.

Conclusions: The fact that the present study was able to find a relatively large number of formal, school-based yoga programs currently being implemented in the United States suggests that the programs may be acceptable and feasible to implement. The results also suggest that the popularity of school-based yoga programs may continue to grow.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4831047/

Relieve Chronic Pain with Tai Chi

June 2, 2016 psyjdc Leave a comment

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“Tai Chi has demonstrated usefulness in the prevention and treatment of certain problems such as back pain. Importantly, Tai Chi is non-invasive, relatively inexpensive, and gentle on the spine, so many people with back pain are starting to try it as an adjunct to (or sometimes instead of) traditional medical approaches to manage back pain. Furthermore, Tai Chi does not require any expensive equipment and can be practiced anywhere.” – Robert Humphreys

We all have to deal with pain. It’s inevitable, but hopefully mild and short lived. For many, however, pain is a constant in their lives. Chronic pain affects a wide swath of humanity. At least 100 million adult Americans have common chronic pain conditions. It affects more Americans than diabetes, heart disease and cancer combined. It is a significant public health problem as it’s the number one cause of disability and costs U.S. society an estimated $560-$635 billion annually. Quite frequently opioids are prescribed for chronic pain and prescription opioid overdoses kill more than 14,000 people annually.

Chronic pain accompanies a number of conditions. The most common form of chronic pain is low back pain affecting between 6% to 15% of the population. Osteoarthritis is a chronic degenerative joint disease that is the most common form of arthritis. It produces pain, swelling, and stiffness of the joints. In the U.S., osteoarthritis affects 14% of adults over 25 years of age and 34% of those over 65. Fibromyalgia is a mysterious disorder whose causes are unknown. It is characterized by widespread pain, abnormal pain processing, sleep disturbance, and fatigue that lead to psychological distress. It is very common affecting over 5 million people in the U.S., about 2% of the population.

Pain involves both physical and psychological issues. The stress, fear, and anxiety produced by pain tends to elicit responses that actually amplify the pain. So, reducing the emotional reactions to pain may be helpful in pain management. Mindfulness practices have been shown to reduce stress responses and anxiety, and to improve emotion regulation producing more adaptive and less maladaptive responses to emotions. So, it would seem reasonable to project that mindfulness practices would be helpful in pain management. Indeed, these practices have been shown to be safe and beneficial in pain management. Both Yoga and mindfulness has been shown to specifically improve back pain. Gentle movements of the joints with exercise appears to be helpful in the treatment of osteoarthritis. This suggests that alternative and complementary practices that involve gentle movements may be useful for treatment. Indeed, yoga practice has been shown to be effective in treating arthritis and mind-body practices in general have been shown to reduce the gene expressions that underlie the inflammatory response which contribute to arthritis. So, it would seem reasonable to look further into the effectiveness of alternative and complementary practices in treating osteoarthritis.

In today’s Research News article “Tai Chi for Chronic Pain Conditions: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.” See:

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1242319075792016/?type=3&theater

or below or view the full text of the study at:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4850460/

Kong and colleagues review the published research literature on the application of the ancient Chinese practice of Tai Chi, a mindful movement practice, on chronic pain. They found that the practice of Tai Chi reduced chronic pain significantly better than control conditions. These included osteoarthritis pain, low back pain, rheumatoid arthritis, and pain from herpes zoster. The results for fibromyalgia pain were not significant. Hence, they found that tai chi practice was a safe and effective treatment for most forms of chronic pain.

These are excellent results. They’re particularly encouraging as tai chi is a safe and very gentle practice that is applicable for all age groups including the elderly. It can also be practiced anywhere and after some initial instruction, without formal classes. In China it is frequently practiced either alone or in groups in public parks. But, it can also be practiced at home. So, it’s very inexpensive. Its safety, effectiveness, affordability, and convenience make tai chi practice an outstanding choice for the treatment of chronic pain.

So, relieve chronic pain with tai chi.

“Tai Chi is a form of exercise that has recently been gaining popularity as a way to relieve and/or manage back pain and neck pain. It is often easy to associate Tai Chi with groups of people in parks or gyms moving slowly and deliberately in synchronization. These people are using the same Tai Chi principles and movements created in ancient China and still practiced all around the world as a healing exercise.” – Robert Humphreys

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts

Study Summary

Kong, L. J., Lauche, R., Klose, P., Bu, J. H., Yang, X. C., Guo, C. Q., … Cheng, Y. W. (2016). Tai Chi for Chronic Pain Conditions: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Scientific Reports, 6, 25325. http://doi.org/10.1038/srep25325

Abstract

Several studies reported that Tai Chi showed potential effects for chronic pain, but its role remains controversial. This review assessed the evidence regarding the effects of Tai Chi for chronic pain conditions. 18 randomized controlled trials were included in our review. The aggregated results have indicated that Tai Chi showed positive evidence on immediate relief of chronic pain from osteoarthritis (standardized mean difference [SMD], −0.54; 95% confidence intervals [CI], −0.77 to −0.30; P < 0.05). The valid duration of Tai Chi practice for osteoarthritis may be more than 5 weeks. And there were some beneficial evidences regarding the effects of Tai Chi on immediate relief of chronic pain from low back pain (SMD, −0.81; 95% CI, −1.11 to −0.52; P < 0.05) and osteoporosis (SMD, −0.83; 95% CI, −1.37 to −0.28; P = 0.003). Therefore, clinicians may consider Tai Chi as a viable complementary and alternative medicine for chronic pain conditions.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4850460/

Improve Children’s Self-Esteem with Meditation in School

June 1, 2016 psyjdc Leave a comment

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“In both the public and private sector, schools have found adding mindfulness techniques into the curriculum to benefit student’s overall well-being (with the side benefit of increased student creative productivity).” – Mark W. Guay

Childhood is a miraculous period during which the child is dynamically absorbing information from every aspect of its environment. This occurs almost without any intervention from the adults as the child appears to be programmed to learn. It is here that behaviors, knowledge, skills, and attitudes are developed that shape the individual. But, what is absorbed depends on the environment. If it is replete with speech, the child will learn speech, if it is replete with trauma, the child will learn fear, if it is replete with academic skills the child will learn these, and if it is replete with interactions with others, the child will learn social skills. If the child’s environment, however, is replete with negativity, bullying, criticism, punishment, and failure the child will learn a negative self-image and develop a poor self-concept.

What is developed in childhood has a lasting impact, especially how the child views him/herself. This self-concept will be carried throughout life effecting not only how they see themselves and interact with others, but also their productivity, creativity, and happiness. This is why it is so important for adults to promote the development of a positive self-concept in children. Elementary school is an environment that has a huge effect on the development of knowledge, attitudes, skills, and importantly self-concept. Hence, it is also an excellent time for adults to intervene to insure that this development is positive.

Mindfulness http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/category/research-news/school/ training in school, at all levels has been shown to have very positive effects. These include academic, cognitive, psychological, and social domains. Importantly, mindfulness training in school appears to improve the student’s self-concept. http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/2016/01/20/improve-high-level-thinking-with-mindfulness/ Since, this can have such a profound, long-term effect on the child it is important to further study the impact of mindfulness training on the development of self-concept in grammar school children.

In today’s Research News article “.” See:

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1241471572543433/?type=3&theater

or below or view the full text of the study at:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4776824/

Yo and Lee recruited two third grade classes in different but very similar schools, assigning one class to receive meditation training and the other class to serve as an untreated control. In the meditation classroom the students meditated for 30 minutes, twice a week, for 15 weeks. They found that the children in the meditation classroom increased their self-esteem significantly with a large effect size while the children in the control classroom did not. Similar findings were found with school adjustment but the effect size was considerably smaller. In summary, the study found that the self-esteem and school adjustment of third grade children could be significantly increased by the practice of meditation in the classroom.

It should be noted that this was a quasi-experimental research design and it is not clear whether the differences in the schools or their students might have been important variables. In addition, there were no controls for participant expectations, experimenter bias, placebo effects, etc. So, the conclusions must be viewed as tentative. These results need to be repeated using a much stronger research design, perhaps with the children in the control classroom napping during the equivalent time as the meditation.

But, with these reservations considered, the results are suggestive that meditation training has large effects on children’s self-esteem and adjustment to school. This is potentially very important as this may have profound, long-term, positive effects on the children. It can’t be overemphasized how important it is to help children feel more positive about themselves. This could be a key to the child’s well-being throughout their lifetime, their school success, and their success and happiness in life.

So, improve children’s self-esteem with meditation in school.

“Young people are incredibly stressed. There’s an explosion of mental health problems among young people and it’s going to be incredibly expensive to treat in the future. It’s much cheaper to focus on prevention and building resilience, and mindfulness is the single best tool that you could possibly give them.” – Michael Matania

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts

Study Summary

Yoo, Y. G., & Lee, I. S. (2013). The Effects of School-Based Maum Meditation Program on the Self-Esteem and School Adjustment in Primary School Students. Global Journal of Health Science, 5(4), 14–27. http://doi.org/10.5539/gjhs.v5n4p14

Abstract

Self-esteem and school adjustment of children in the lower grades of primary school, the beginning stage of school life, have a close relationship with development of personality, mental health and characters of children. Therefore, the present study aimed to verify the effect of school-based Maum Meditation program on children in the lower grades of primary school, as a personality education program. The result showed that the experimental group with application of Maum Meditation program had significant improvements in self-esteem and school adjustment, compared to the control group without the application. In conclusion, since the study provides significant evidence that the intervention of Maum Meditation program had positive effects on self-esteem and school adjustment of children in the early stage of primary school, it is suggested to actively employ Maum Meditation as a school-based meditation program for mental health promotion of children in the early school ages, the stage of formation of personalities and habits.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4776824/