Anxiety

Buffer Yourself from Neuroticism with Mindfulness

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“We have long observed that every neurosis has the result, and therefore probably the purpose, of forcing the patient out of real life, of alienating him from actuality.” – Sigmund Freud

 

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 Neurosis is actually an outdated diagnosis that is no longer used medically.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.

 

But, neuroticism is considered a personality trait that is a lasting characteristic of individuals. It is characterized by negative feelings, repetitive thinking about the past (rumination), and worry about the future, moodiness and loneliness. 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.

 

This relatively stable characteristic appears to be lessened by mindfulness training. Mindfulness training also has been found to improve individuals’ subjective well-being. So, it makes sense to think that mindfulness may be involved in the link between neuroticism and low subjective well-being. This possible link is explored in today’s Research News article “Curb your neuroticism – Mindfulness mediates the link between neuroticism and subjective well-being”

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Wenzel and colleagues studied individuals high in neuroticism and found that they tended to have negative mood and low vitality and general interest in life; that is low subjective well-being.

 

Wenzel and colleagues then added mindfulness to the prediction and found that mindfulness in part mediated the relationship between neuroticism and low subjective well-being especially in individuals who had high levels of neuroticism. It thus appears that neuroticism lowers mindfulness which in turn results in negative mood and low vitality and general interest in life. This suggests that being mindful may in part protect an individual from the effects of neuroticism on their well-being.

 

There are a number of potential explanations for these effects of mindfulness. Neuroticism is characterized by rumination and worry, which are thought processes centered on the past and future. Mindfulness, on the other hand, is an ability to focus on the present moment. Hence, mindfulness could be seen as an antidote to the past and future orientation in neuroticism.

 

Neuroticism is also characterized by moodiness and loneliness. Mindfulness has been shown to improve emotion regulation; the ability to feel and recognize an emotional state but be able to understand it and respond to it appropriately (see http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/2015/08/20/regulate-emotions-with-mindfulness/ and http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/2015/07/17/control-emotions-the-right-way-with-mindfulness/). So mindfulness would also appear to be an antidote for the moodiness involved in neuroticism. Indeed, it has been shown that mindfulness can reduce feelings of anger and depression and improve self-control among people with high neuroticism.

 

So, buffer yourself from neuroticism with mindfulness.

 

“Mindfulness has helped me succeed in almost every dimension of my life. By stopping regularly to look inward and become aware of my mental state, I stay connected to the source of my actions and thoughts and can guide them with considerably more intention.” – Dustin Moskovitz

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

Practice Yoga to Relieve Anxiety and Depression during Pregnancy

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“The effort to separate the physical experience of childbirth from the mental, emotional and spiritual aspects of this event has served to disempower and violate women.” ~Mary Rucklos Hampton

 

Depression is quiet common during pregnancy. More than 20 percent of pregnant women have an anxiety disorder, depressive symptoms, or both during pregnancy. The psychological health of pregnant women has consequences for fetal development, and consequently, child outcomes. Depression during pregnancy is associated with premature delivery and low birth weight. It is also associated with higher levels of stress hormone in the mother and in the newborns, which can make them more stress reactive, temperamentally difficult, and more challenging to care for and soothe. Long-term there’s some evidence that the children have more social and emotional problems, including aggression and conduct problems and possibly child IQ and language. But, while gestational diabetes is far less common than depression during pregnancy, women are routinely screened for this disorder, but not for depression, any psychiatric illness, nor even experiences of life stress.

 

It is clear that there is a need for methods to treat depression and anxiety during pregnancy. Since the fetus can be negatively impacted by drugs, it would be preferable to find a treatment that did not require drugs. Moderate exercise is also beneficial during pregnancy. Yoga has antidepressive and anti-stress properties and it is a moderate exercise http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/2015/08/11/improve-physical-health-with-yoga/, so, it would appear to be a good candidate to treat depression and anxiety during pregnancy.

 

In today’s Research News article “A randomized controlled trial of yoga for pregnant women with symptoms of depression and anxiety”

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Goodman and colleagues examine whether yoga practice during pregnancy is effective for depression and anxiety. They found that in comparison to treatment as usual, and 8-week program of yoga practice significantly reduced depression and negative emotions. Anxiety levels decreased in both the yoga and the treatment as usual groups.

 

It is not known if the efficacy of yoga for depression is due to its exercise value or to an intrinsic property specific to yoga. Both study groups had high levels of exercise before, during and after the treatment. As such, the additional exercise contributed by yoga would not make a significant difference in the fitness of the women. This speculation suggests that there may be other aspects of yoga practice that relieve depression. One obvious candidate is the social nature of the yoga classes, particularly since they were with other pregnant women. The camaraderie and sharing could be responsible for the antidepressive effects. It is also possible that the stress relieving properties of yoga are responsible for the psychological improvements.

 

Regardless, practice yoga during pregnancy to prevent or treat depression and anxiety.

 

“Yoga practice can make us more and more sensitive to subtler and subtler sensations in the body. Paying attention to and staying with finer and finer sensations within the body is one of the surest ways to steady the wandering mind.” ― Ravi Ravindra,

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

Keep up Yoga Practice for Anxiety and Depression!

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“The medical literature tells us that the most effective ways to reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, and many more problems are through healthy diet and exercise. Our bodies have evolved to move, yet we now use the energy in oil instead of muscles to do our work.” – David Suzuki

Chronic diseases such as heart disease and diabetes are not only physically difficult but also very frequently associated with emotional challenges, being frequently accompanied by anxiety and depression. The presence of a chronic disease makes it three times more likely to have a major depression. About 15% of patients with diabetes are depressed while about 20% of patients with coronary heart disease evidence depression.

The comorbidity appears to be bidirectional. The presence of depression nearly doubled the likelihood that diabetes would occur and there is a 50% greater likelihood that a depressed individual will have a heart attack than matched individuals without depression. So, chronic disease tends to predict anxiety and depression and these psychological disorders tend to predict chronic disease.

Dealing with mental health issues with a background of chronic illness presents a complex picture for treatment. One option is yoga practice. It is known to have both physical and mental health benefits, so it would seem to be well suited to dealing with the combination of the two. In fact yoga has been found to reduce the symptoms of anxiety and stress http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/2015/07/29/get-your-calm-on/ and improve distress tolerance http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/2015/07/30/stop-emotional-eating-with-yoga/ as well as improving the immune response to combat disease http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/2015/07/17/healthy-balance-through-yoga/. It can even help protect the brain from aging degeneration http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/2015/07/17/age-healthily-protect-the-brain-with-yoga/.

In today’s Research News article “Influence of Intensity and Duration of Yoga on Anxiety and Depression Scores Associated with Chronic Illness”

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http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4512118/

Telles and colleagues test not only the effectiveness of yoga practice for anxiety and depression in chronically ill patients but also investigated the amounts of practice that are effective. They found that the more months that yoga has been practiced the lower the levels of both anxiety and depression. In addition, the amount of daily practice in minutes was also associated with lower levels of anxiety associated with chronic illness.

There are a number of effects of yoga practice that may underlie its ability to relieve anxiety and depression in chronically ill patients. Yoga practice has been shown to decrease the physical and psychological responses to stress. The stress related to chronic illness can magnify both the symptoms of the illness and also the psychological impact of the illness. By relieving this stress yoga practice can affect both the physical and psychological symptoms of the illness.

Yoga practice is also known to improve mood which could directly affect the levels of anxiety and depression. It may also do so by altering brain chemistry which is known to be associated with depression and anxiety. In addition, the fact that yoga is frequently practiced in a group can provide social support and stimulation that can assist with mental health.

Regardless of the mechanism it appears clear that the more you practice yoga, the better you begin to feel psychologically and physically. So, keep up your yoga practice for physical and emotional health.

“Even if you have a terminal disease, you don’t have to sit down and mope. Enjoy life and challenge the illness that you have.” – Nelson Mandela

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

Get the Brain to Reduce Anxiety with Meditation

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0818_anxiety-Cog

Anxiety is a very common emotional state. It is a state characterized by feelings of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome. For most people occasional anxiety is manageable. But for many it is chronic or extreme in magnitude and can have a major disruptive effect on their lives.

Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the U.S. It is estimated that 40 million people or 18% of the population will experience impairment due to of an anxiety condition this year. Although treatable only about a third will receive treatment. About 5% of the U.S. population takes anti-anxiety prescription medications. But many self-medicate as alcohol and recreational drugs are frequently used to cope with anxiety. To make matters worse people who experience anxiety and stress have a very high propensity for drug abuse and addictions. In addition, anti-anxiety medications are frequently used, especially by young people, for recreational purposes

Hence, it is important to find an alternative to drugs for the treatment of anxiety. Contemplative practices would appear to be well suited for the role. Anxiety is a concern about a potential negative occurrence in the future. By training the individual to focus on the present moment contemplative practices can mitigate the importance of the future and thereby reduce anxiety. Indeed, contemplative practices have been found to be quite effective for treating anxiety (See previous post http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/2015/07/17/the-mindfulness-cure-for-social-anxiety/)

Contemplative practices are known to have profound effects on the structure and function of the nervous system. So, it would be expected that the anti-anxiety effects of meditation would have associated changes in the brain. In today’s Research News article “Neural correlates of mindfulness meditation-related anxiety relief”

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http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4040088/

Zeidan and colleagues found that mindfulness meditation reduced anxiety by activating a network of brain regions including anterior cingulate and prefrontal cortex and insula while reducing activity in the posterior cingulate cortex.

The anterior cingulate and prefrontal cortex and insula have been shown to be involved in emotion regulation. So, it is no surprise that they should be activated as meditation lowers anxiety. The posterior cingulate cortex is a part of what is called the default mode network that is involved in mind wandering and ruminative thinking. Again, it is no surprise that the area responsible for rumination and worry would have its activity decreased in concert with meditation induced reduction in anxiety. Both of these mechanisms would be expected to enhance self-awareness processes particularly of the present moment, increase emotion regulation and decrease rumination and thereby produce anxiety relief.

Hence, meditation would appear to be an ideal treatment for anxiety. It is safe and effective and appears to act by altering nervous system activity. Continued meditation practice has been shown to produce lasting changes in these areas. So, meditation would appear to not just be a quick fix but a lasting treatment for the scourge of anxiety.

So, change the brain with meditation and reduce anxiety.

CMCS

 

Get your Calm on!

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Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) is one of the first secular based mindfulness training programs in the west. In fact, it could be argued that the development of MBSR was what launched the mindfulness movement in the west. The movement took off probably because MBSR was shown to be so very effective in the treatment of a wide range of physical, psychological, and emotional issues that plague western culture.

Stress is rampant in competitive western culture producing physical and psychological damage. MBSR’s effectiveness at calming the reactions to stress and reducing anxiety has made it a very popular.

MBSR is not a single practice. Rather it is a combination of practices including meditation, yoga, and body scan meditation. Whether all of these components are necessary for effectiveness or if some components are more effective for some conditions while others are superior for others has yet to be established with empirical evidence. This is an important issue for the understanding of the exact mechanisms by which MBSR has its effects.

It is also not known how much MBSR or how much of each component is needed to have a maximum impact. In more scientific words, a dose response study is needed. This is important to produce optimum effectiveness.

In today’s Research News Article “Effectiveness of Brief Mindfulness Techniques in Reducing Symptoms of Anxiety and Stress’

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David Call and colleagues tested whether very brief, three weekly 45-min sessions of hatha yoga or body scan would be effective in reducing stress and anxiety in undergraduate students. Both practices reduced both anxiety and stress levels.

Interestingly, neither group showed a significant increase in mindfulness, possibly due to the lack of meditation practice and perhaps suggesting that yoga and body scan practices might act directly on stress and anxiety rather than by raising mindfulness that then reduced the symptoms. This contradicts the notion that mindfulness based increases in present moment awareness are the cause of the reduction in anxiety which is future oriented. It remains possible that the physiological effects of yoga and body scan on reducing the hormonal and neural responses to stress may be responsible.

The magnitude of the effects on stress and anxiety were quite large and clinically significant. It is amazing that such a brief treatment of 3 sessions of 45 minutes could have this large of an impact. It remains to be seen if the impact is lasting. Regardless, the fact that a brief simple intervention can markedly reduce stress and anxiety is exciting as it is highly scalable; rolling it out to large numbers of individuals.

So, practice yoga and/or body scan and get your calm on.

CMCS

The Mindfulness Cure for Social Anxiety

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It is almost a common human phenomenon that being in a social situation can be stressful and anxiety producing. This is particularly true when asked to perform in a social context such as giving a speech. Most people can deal with the anxiety and can become quite comfortable. But many do not cope well with the anxiety or the level of anxiety is overwhelming, causing the individual to withdraw.

It appears that mindfulness may help greatly with high social anxiety. In today’s Research News article, “How to deal with negative thoughts? A preliminary comparison of detached mindfulness and thought evaluation in socially anxious individuals.”

it is demonstrated that mindfulness training significantly reduces anxiety when asked to give a speech. How does mindfulness training act to reduce social anxiety?

One potential route that mindfulness training may reduce anxiety is by increasing present moment awareness. Looking at what exactly is true in the immediate moment and seeing it as it is, can produce a recognition that social interactions are not threatening and needing to be avoided. When actually paying attention to the conversation and the cues in the environment the individual can relax and performs better. With practice, the improved social skills increase self-confidence. This can result in a cycle with positive gain, over time continuously improving mindfulness and self-confidence and reducing high social anxiety.

Today’s Research News article demonstrated that mindfulness training reduces anticipatory processing. Anticipatory processing is a type of worry about forthcoming social situations, involving anxious predictions, negative recollections, and urges to avoid social events. This anticipation of negative occurrences is a projection into the future. By focusing on the present moment, worries about the future cannot develop. So, the present moment awareness fostered by mindfulness training counteracts anticipatory processing and thereby reduces social anxiety.

Today’s article also demonstrated that mindfulness training reduces observer-perspective. People with high social anxiety often have distorted negative self-images from an observer perspective. They have a distorted idea of how others see them. This negative self-image that they believe is how they are perceived in social situations, maintains and increases anxiety, negative beliefs about social performance, anxious predictions, and poorer actual performance.

Mindfulness training helps to develop non-judgmental awareness of the present moment. Just seeing what is transpiring without adding conclusions about it counteracts the observer-perspective conceptualizations and judgments. When the present moment is simply perceived without coloration from beliefs, ideas, and past experiences, it becomes much less threatening and much more benign, allowing for more comfortable engagement in social interactions.

So, practice mindfulness in social contexts and enhance enjoyment of interacting with others.

CMCS