tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/mindfulness-meditation-37267/articlesMindfulness meditation – The Conversation2023-08-16T04:51:48Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2115132023-08-16T04:51:48Z2023-08-16T04:51:48ZNot all mental health apps are helpful. Experts explain the risks, and how to choose one wisely<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542935/original/file-20230816-15-67z0ok.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=49%2C30%2C4044%2C2694&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>There are thousands of mental health apps available on the app market, offering services including meditation, mood tracking and counselling, among others. You would think such “health” and “wellbeing” apps – which often present as solutions for conditions such as <a href="https://www.headspace.com/">anxiety</a> and <a href="https://www.calm.com">sleeplessness</a> – would have been rigorously tested and verified. But this isn’t necessarily the case. </p>
<p>In fact, many may be taking your money and data in return for a service that does nothing for your mental health – at least, not in a way that’s backed by scientific evidence. </p>
<h2>Bringing AI to mental health apps</h2>
<p>Although some mental health apps connect users with a <a href="https://www.betterhelp.com/get-started/?go=true&utm_source=AdWords&utm_medium=Search_PPC_c&utm_term=betterhelp+australia_e&utm_content=133525856790&network=g&placement=&target=&matchtype=e&utm_campaign=15228709182&ad_type=text&adposition=&kwd_id=kwd-401317619253&gclid=Cj0KCQjwoeemBhCfARIsADR2QCtfZHNw8mqpBe7cLfLtZBD-JZ5xvAmDCfol8npbAAH3ALJGYvpngtoaAtFlEALw_wcB¬_found=1&gor=start">registered therapist</a>, most provide a fully automated service that bypasses the human element. This means they’re not subject to the same standards of care and confidentiality as a registered mental health professional. Some aren’t even designed by mental health professionals. </p>
<p>These apps also increasingly claim to be incorporating artificial intelligence into their design to make personalised recommendations (such as for meditation or mindfulness) to users. However, they give little detail about this process. It’s possible the recommendations are based on a user’s previous activities, similar to Netflix’s <a href="https://help.netflix.com/en/node/100639">recommendation algorithm</a>.</p>
<p>Some apps such as <a href="https://legal.wysa.io/privacy-policy#aiChatbot">Wysa</a>, <a href="https://www.youper.ai/">Youper</a> and <a href="https://woebothealth.com/">Woebot</a> use AI-driven chatbots to deliver support, or even established therapeutic interventions such as cognitive behavioural therapy. But these apps usually don’t reveal what kinds of algorithms they use. </p>
<p>It’s likely most of these AI chatbots use <a href="https://www.techtarget.com/searchenterpriseai/feature/How-to-choose-between-a-rules-based-vs-machine-learning-system">rules-based systems</a> that respond to users in accordance with predetermined rules (rather than learning on the go as adaptive models do). These rules would ideally prevent the unexpected (and often <a href="https://www.vice.com/en/article/pkadgm/man-dies-by-suicide-after-talking-with-ai-chatbot-widow-says">harmful and inappropriate</a>) outputs AI chatbots have become known for – but there’s no guarantee. </p>
<p>The use of AI in this context comes with risks of biased, discriminatory or completely inapplicable information being provided to users. And these risks haven’t been adequately investigated.</p>
<h2>Misleading marketing and a lack of supporting evidence</h2>
<p>Mental health apps might be able to provide certain benefits to users <em>if</em> they are well designed and properly vetted and deployed. But even then they can’t be considered a substitute for professional therapy targeted towards conditions such as anxiety or depression.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://theconversation.com/pixels-are-not-people-mental-health-apps-are-increasingly-popular-but-human-connection-is-still-key-192247">clinical value</a> of automated mental health and mindfulness apps is <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1077722918300233?casa_token=lwm1E6FhcG0AAAAA:saV7szbZl4DqbvmZiomLG9yMWi_4-zbmy3QCtQzVEQr957QX1E7Aiqkm5BcEntR0mVFgfDVo">still being assessed</a>. Evidence of their efficacy is generally <a href="https://journals.plos.org/digitalhealth/article?id=10.1371/journal.pdig.0000002">lacking</a>. </p>
<p>Some apps make ambitious claims regarding their effectiveness and refer to studies that supposedly support their benefits. In many cases these claims are based on less-than-robust findings. For instance, they may be based on: </p>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://sensa.health/">user testimonials</a></li>
<li>short-term studies with narrow <a href="https://www.wired.co.uk/article/mental-health-chatbots">or homogeneous cohorts</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9533203/#">studies involving</a> researchers or funding from the very group <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/apr/13/chatbots-robot-therapists-youth-mental-health-crisis">promoting the app</a></li>
<li>or evidence of the benefits of a <a href="https://www.headspace.com/meditation/anxiety">practice delivered face to face</a> (rather than via an app).</li>
</ul>
<p>Moreover, any claims about reducing symptoms of poor mental health aren’t carried through in contract terms. The fine print will typically state the app does not claim to provide any physical, therapeutic or medical benefit (along with a host of other disclaimers). In other words, it isn’t obliged to successfully provide the service it promotes. </p>
<p>For some users, mental health apps may even cause harm, and lead to increases in the very <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34074221/">symptoms</a> people so often use them to address. The may happen, in part, as a result of creating more awareness of problems, without providing the tools needed to address them. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542936/original/file-20230816-19-d3oqit.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542936/original/file-20230816-19-d3oqit.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542936/original/file-20230816-19-d3oqit.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542936/original/file-20230816-19-d3oqit.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542936/original/file-20230816-19-d3oqit.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542936/original/file-20230816-19-d3oqit.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542936/original/file-20230816-19-d3oqit.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542936/original/file-20230816-19-d3oqit.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">While a well-designed mental health app may bring benefits to a user, this shouldn’t be confused with evidence of efficacy.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
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<p>In the case of most mental health apps, research on their effectiveness won’t have considered <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9505389/">individual differences</a> such as socioeconomic status, age and other factors that can influence engagement. Most apps also will not indicate whether they’re an inclusive space for marginalised people, such as those from culturally and linguistically diverse, LGBTQ+ or neurodiverse communities. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-effective-is-mindfulness-for-treating-mental-ill-health-and-what-about-the-apps-182436">How effective is mindfulness for treating mental ill-health? And what about the apps?</a>
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<h2>Inadequate privacy protections</h2>
<p>Mental health apps are subject to standard consumer protection and privacy laws. While data protection and <a href="https://cybersecuritycrc.org.au/sites/default/files/2021-07/2915_cscrc_casestudies_mentalhealthapps_1.pdf">cybersecurity</a> practices vary between apps, an investigation by research foundation Mozilla <a href="https://foundation.mozilla.org/en/privacynotincluded/articles/are-mental-health-apps-better-or-worse-at-privacy-in-2023">concluded that</a> most rank poorly. </p>
<p>For example, the mindfulness app <a href="https://www.headspace.com/privacy-policy">Headspace</a> collects data about users from a <a href="https://foundation.mozilla.org/en/privacynotincluded/headspace/">range of sources</a>, and uses those data to advertise to users. Chatbot-based apps also commonly repurpose conversations to predict <a href="https://legal.wysa.io/privacy-policy">users’ moods</a>, and use anonymised user data to train the language models <a href="https://www.youper.ai/policy/privacy-policy">underpinning the bots</a>.</p>
<p>Many apps share so-called <a href="https://theconversation.com/popular-fertility-apps-are-engaging-in-widespread-misuse-of-data-including-on-sex-periods-and-pregnancy-202127">anonymised</a> data with <a href="https://www.wysa.com/">third parties</a>, such as <a href="https://www.headspace.com/privacy-policy">employers</a>, that sponsor their use. Re-identification of <a href="https://www.unimelb.edu.au/newsroom/news/2017/december/research-reveals-de-identified-patient-data-can-be-re-identified">these data</a> can be relatively easy in some cases.</p>
<p>Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) doesn’t require most mental health and wellbeing apps to go through the same testing and monitoring as other medical products. In most cases, they are lightly regulated as <a href="https://www.tga.gov.au/how-we-regulate/manufacturing/medical-devices/manufacturer-guidance-specific-types-medical-devices/regulation-software-based-medical-devices">health and lifestyle</a> products or tools for <a href="https://www.tga.gov.au/sites/default/files/digital-mental-health-software-based-medical-devices.pdf">managing mental health</a> that are excluded from TGA regulations (provided they meet certain criteria).</p>
<h2>How can you choose an app?</h2>
<p>Although consumers can access third-party rankings for various mental health apps, these often focus on just a few elements, such as <a href="https://onemindpsyberguide.org/apps/">usability</a> or <a href="https://foundation.mozilla.org/en/privacynotincluded/categories/mental-health-apps/">privacy</a>. Different guides may also be inconsistent with each other.</p>
<p>Nonetheless, there are some steps you can take to figure out whether a particular mental health or mindfulness app might be useful for you.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>consult your doctor, as they may have a better understanding of the efficacy of particular apps and/or how they might benefit you as an individual</p></li>
<li><p>check whether a mental health professional or trusted institution was involved in developing the app </p></li>
<li><p>check if the app has been rated by a third party, and compare different ratings</p></li>
<li><p>make use of free trials, but be careful of them shifting to paid subscriptions, and be wary about trials that require payment information upfront</p></li>
<li><p>stop using the app if you experience any adverse effects.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Overall, and most importantly, remember that an app is never a substitute for real help from a human professional.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/ai-chatbots-are-still-far-from-replacing-human-therapists-201084">AI chatbots are still far from replacing human therapists</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/211513/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jeannie Marie Paterson receives funding from the Australian Research Council and has taken part in industry led roundtable discussions about digital mental health. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nicholas T. Van Dam receives funding from the Three Springs Foundation Pty Ltd to establish the Contemplative Studies Centre at the University of Melbourne. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Piers Gooding receives funding from the Australian Research Council to examine the regulation of digital technologies in mental health care.</span></em></p>Claims regarding on these apps’ effectiveness are often based on less than robust findings.Jeannie Marie Paterson, Professor of Law, The University of MelbourneNicholas T. Van Dam, Associate Professor, School of Psychological Sciences, The University of MelbournePiers Gooding, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Disability Research Initiative, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1952762023-01-12T13:22:40Z2023-01-12T13:22:40ZMeditation and mindfulness offer an abundance of health benefits and may be as effective as medication for treating certain conditions<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/503183/original/file-20230105-12-ywtjr5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">People of any age or walk of life can access and benefit from meditation.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/young-multiracial-latina-woman-meditating-at-home-royalty-free-image/1394449576?phrase=mindfulness%20meditation&adppopup=true">Daniel de la Hoz/iStock via Getty Images Plus</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Many people look to diet trends or new exercise regimens – often with questionable benefit – to get a healthier start on the new year. But there is one strategy that’s been shown time and again to boost both mood and health: meditation.</p>
<p>In late 2022, a <a href="http://doi.org/10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2022.3679">high-profile study</a> made a splash when it claimed that meditation may work as well as a common drug named Lexapro for the treatment of anxiety. Over the past couple of decades, similar evidence has emerged about mindfulness and meditation’s broad array of health benefits, for purposes ranging from stress and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s12160-016-9844-2">pain reduction</a> to <a href="https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psc.2017.08.008">depression treatments</a> to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2011.04.006">boosting brain health</a> and helping to manage excessive <a href="https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/3523432">inflammation and long COVID-19</a>. </p>
<p>Despite the mounting body of evidence showing the health benefits of meditation, it can be hard to weigh the science and to know how robust it is.</p>
<p>I am a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=S9ykvZUAAAAJ&hl=en">neuroscientist studying the effects of stress and trauma</a> on <a href="https://theconversation.com/meditation-holds-the-potential-to-help-treat-children-suffering-from-traumas-difficult-diagnoses-or-other-stressors-a-behavioral-neuroscientist-explains-189037">brain development in children and adolescents</a>. I also study how mindfulness, meditation and <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-runners-high-may-result-from-molecules-called-cannabinoids-the-bodys-own-version-of-thc-and-cbd-170796">exercise</a> can positively affect brain development and mental health in youth. </p>
<p>I am very excited about how meditation can be used as a tool to provide powerful new insights into the ways the mind and brain work, and to fundamentally change a person’s outlook on life. And as a mental health researcher, I see the promise of meditation as a low- or no-cost, evidence-based tool to improve health that can be relatively easily integrated into daily life. </p>
<p>Meditation requires some training, discipline and practice – which are not always easy to come by. But with some specific tools and strategies, it can be accessible to everyone.</p>
<h2>What are mindfulness and meditation?</h2>
<p>There are many different types of meditation, and mindfulness is one of the most common. Fundamentally, mindfulness is a <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-you-should-give-the-gift-of-mindfulness-this-new-year-195711">mental state</a> that, according to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1176/ajp.149.7.936">Jon Kabat-Zinn</a> a renowned expert in mindfulness-based practices, involves “awareness that arises through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgmentally.” </p>
<p>This means not ruminating about something that happened in the past or worrying about that to-do list. Being focused on the present, or living in the moment, has been shown to have a broad array of benefits, including <a href="https://doi.org/10.7205/MILMED-D-14-00677">elevating mood, reducing anxiety</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/0163-8343(82)90026-3">lessening pain</a> and potentially improving <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s11065-021-09519-y">cognitive performance</a>. </p>
<p>Mindfulness is a skill that can be practiced and cultivated over time. The goal is that, with repetition, the benefits of practicing mindfulness carry over into everyday life – when you aren’t actively meditating. For example, if you learn that you aren’t defined by an emotion that arises transiently, like anger, then it may be harder to stay angry for long. </p>
<p>The health benefits of meditation and other strategies aimed at stress reduction are thought to stem from increasing levels of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn.2015.7">overall mindfulness</a> through practice. Elements of mindfulness are also present in practices like yoga, martial arts and dance that require focusing attention and discipline.</p>
<p>The vast body of evidence supporting the health benefits of meditation is too expansive to cover exhaustively. But the studies I reference below represent some of the top tier, or the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-88555-1_2">highest-quality and most rigorous summaries</a> of scientific data on the topic to date. Many of these include systematic reviews and meta-analyses, which synthesize many studies on a given topic. </p>
<h2>Stress and mental health</h2>
<p>Mindfulness-based programs have been shown to significantly reduce stress in a variety of populations, ranging from <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/01640275211043486">caregivers of people living with dementia</a> to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/mbe.12307">children during the COVID-19 pandemic</a>. </p>
<p>Meta-analyses published during the pandemic show that mindfulness programs are effective for reducing <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.3138">symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jocrd.2022.100712">obsessive-compulsive disorder</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2020.12.048">attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1089/jicm.2021.0036">depression</a> – including the <a href="https://theconversation.com/more-than-4-in-5-pregnancy-related-deaths-are-preventable-in-the-us-and-mental-health-is-the-leading-cause-193909">particularly vulnerable time</a> during <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/papt.12441">pregnancy and the postnatal period</a>. </p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">In addition to improving mood and lowering stress, mindfulness has been shown to elevate cognitive performance, cut down on mind wandering and distractibility and increase emotional intelligence.</span></figcaption>
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<p>Mindfulness-based programs also show promise as a treatment option for anxiety disorders, which are the most common mental disorders, affecting an estimated <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S2215-0366(21)00395-3">301 million people globally</a>. While effective treatments for anxiety exist, many patients do not have access to them because they lack insurance coverage or transportation to providers, for instance, or they may experience only limited relief.</p>
<p>It’s important to note, however, that for those affected by mental or substance use disorders, mindfulness-based approaches should not replace first-line treatments like medicine and psychotherapy such as cognitive behavioral therapy. Mindfulness strategies should be seen as a supplement to these evidence-based treatments and a complement to healthy lifestyle interventions like physical activity and healthy eating. </p>
<h2>How does meditation work? A look into the brain</h2>
<p>Studies show that regular meditators experience better attention control and improved control of heart rate, breathing and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1073%2Fpnas.0707678104">autonomic nervous system functioning</a>, which regulates involuntary responses in the body, such as blood pressure. Research also shows that people who meditate have
<a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0707678104">lower levels of cortisol</a> – a hormone involved in the stress response – than those who don’t. </p>
<p>A recent systematic review of neuroimaging studies showed that focused attention meditation is associated with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104846">functional changes in several brain regions</a> involved in cognitive control and emotion-related processing. The review also found that more experienced meditators had stronger activation of the brain regions involved in those cognitive and emotional processes, suggesting that the brain benefits improve with more practice. </p>
<p>A regular meditation practice may also <a href="https://doi.org/10.1097/01.wnr.0000186598.66243.19">stave off age-related thinning of the cerebral cortex</a>, which may help to protect against age-related disease and cognitive impairment. </p>
<h2>Limitations of meditation research</h2>
<p>This research <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaim.2022.100620">does have limits</a>. These include a lack of a consistent definition for the types of programs used, and a lack of rigorously controlled studies. In gold-standard randomized controlled trials with medications, study participants don’t know whether they are getting the active drug or a placebo. </p>
<p>In contrast, in trials of mindfulness-based interventions, participants know what condition they are assigned to and are not “blinded,” so they may expect that some of the health benefits may happen to them. This creates a sense of expectancy, which can be a confounding variable in studies. Many meditation studies also don’t frequently include a control group, which is needed to assess how it compares with other treatments.</p>
<h2>Benefits and wider applications</h2>
<p>Compared with medications, mindfulness-based programs may be more easily accessible and have fewer negative side effects. However, medication and psychotherapy – <a href="https://theconversation.com/cbt-dbt-psychodynamic-what-type-of-therapy-is-right-for-me-171101">particularly cognitive behavioral therapy</a> – work well for many, and a combination approach may be best. Mindfulness-based interventions are also cost-effective and have better health outcomes than usual care, particularly among <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-022-01960-1">high-risk patient populations</a> – so there are economic benefits as well.</p>
<p>Researchers are studying ways to deliver mindfulness tools on a computer or smartphone app, or with virtual reality, which may be <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.explore.2022.08.001">more effective</a> than conventional in-person meditation training. </p>
<p>Importantly, mindfulness is not just for those with physical or mental health diagnoses. Anyone can use these strategies to reduce the risk of disease and to take advantage of the health benefits in everyday life, such as improved sleep and cognitive performance, elevated mood and lowered stress and anxiety. </p>
<h2>Where to get started?</h2>
<p>Many recreation centers, fitness studios and even universities offer in-person meditation classes. For those looking to see if meditation can help with the treatment of a physical or mental condition, there are over 600 <a href="https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/results?term=mindfulness+OR+meditation&Search=Apply&recrs=a&age_v=&gndr=&type=&rslt=">clinical trials</a> currently recruiting participants for various conditions, such as pain, cancer and depression. </p>
<p>If you want to try meditation from the comfort of your home, there are many free online videos on how to practice, including meditations for sleep, stress reduction, mindful eating and more. Several apps, such as Headspace, appear promising, with randomized controlled trials <a href="https://doi.org/10.2196/40924">showing benefits for users</a>. </p>
<p>The hardest part is, of course, getting started. However, if you set an alarm to practice every day, it will become a habit and may even translate into everyday life – which is the ultimate goal. For some, this may take some time and practice, and for others, this may start to happen pretty quickly. Even a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-019-01163-1">single five-minute session</a> can have positive health effects.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/195276/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Hilary A. Marusak does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Mindfulness, one of the most common forms of meditation, is a skill that must be cultivated and practiced. With some training and discipline, it can help anyone live more fully in the moment.Hilary A. Marusak, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1606872021-07-12T12:26:16Z2021-07-12T12:26:16ZMindfulness meditation can make some Americans more selfish and less generous<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/410004/original/file-20210706-19-1hvxwhu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=840%2C9%2C5518%2C3698&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The meditation market is expected to grow to over $2 billion by 2022.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/close-up-mudra-hand-of-threee-asian-men-and-woman-royalty-free-image/1323205967?adppopup=true">MR-MENG/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2010/may/24/holiday-travel-food">When Japanese chef Yoshihiro Murata travels</a>, he brings water with him from Japan. He says this is the only way to make truly <a href="https://gurunavi.com/en/japanfoodie/2016/07/dashi.html">authentic dashi</a>, the flavorful broth essential to Japanese cuisine. <a href="https://matcha-jp.com/en/1410">There’s science to back him up</a>: water in Japan is notably softer – which means it has fewer dissolved minerals – than in many other parts of the world. So when Americas enjoy Japanese food, they arguably aren’t getting quite the real thing. </p>
<p>This phenomenon isn’t limited to food. Taking something out of its geographic or cultural context often changes the thing itself.</p>
<p>Take the word “namaste.” In modern Hindi, <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2020/01/17/406246770/how-namaste-flew-away-from-us">it’s simply a respectful greeting</a>, the equivalent of a formal “hello” appropriate for addressing one’s elders. But in the U.S., its associations with yoga <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2015/07/26/425968146/whats-in-a-namaste-depends-if-you-live-in-india-or-the-u-s">have led many people to believe</a> that it’s an inherently spiritual word.</p>
<p>Another cultural tradition that has changed across time and place is the <a href="https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/topic/mindfulness/definition">practice of mindfulness</a>. Mindfulness is a nonjudgmental expansive awareness of one’s experiences, often cultivated through meditation.</p>
<p>A range of studies have found mindfulness to be beneficial for the people who practice it in a number of ways. </p>
<p>However, very little research has examined its effects on societies, workplaces and communities. <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=ftz-s0sAAAAJ&hl=en">As a social psychologist at the University at Buffalo</a>, I wondered if the growing enthusiasm for mindfulness might be overlooking something important: the way practicing it might affect others.</p>
<h2>A booming market</h2>
<p>In just the past few years, the mindfulness industry has exploded in the U.S. <a href="https://blog.marketresearch.com/1.2-billion-u.s.-meditation-market-growing-strongly-as-it-becomes-more-mainstream">Current estimates put the U.S. meditation market</a> – which includes meditation classes, studios, and apps – at approximately US$1.2 billion. It’s expected to grow to over $2 billion by 2022.</p>
<p><a href="https://dukepersonalizedhealth.org/2015/05/the-applications-of-mindfulness-in-health-care/">Hospitals</a>, <a href="https://www.mindful.org/mindfulness-in-education/">schools</a> and even <a href="https://www.mindfulnessstrategies.com/blog/2018/9/28/how-mindfulness-is-changing-prisons-rehabilitating-the-prison-rehabilitation-system">prisons</a> are teaching and promoting mindfulness, <a href="https://blog.marketresearch.com/1.2-billion-u.s.-meditation-market-growing-strongly-as-it-becomes-more-mainstream">while over 1 in 5 employers</a> currently offer mindfulness training.</p>
<p>The enthusiasm for mindfulness makes sense: <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2015.01.006">Research shows mindfulness can</a> reduce stress, increase self-esteem and decrease symptoms of mental illness.</p>
<p>Given these findings, it’s easy to assume that mindfulness has few, if any, downsides. The employers and educators who promote it certainly seem to think so. Perhaps they hope that mindfulness won’t just make people feel better, but that it will also make them be better. That is, maybe mindfulness can make people more generous, cooperative or helpful – all traits that tend to be desirable in employees or students. </p>
<h2>Mindfulness migrates</h2>
<p>But in reality, there’s good reason to doubt that mindfulness, as practiced in the U.S., would automatically lead to good outcomes.</p>
<p>In fact, it may do the opposite. </p>
<p>That’s because it’s been taken out of its context. <a href="https://theconversation.com/meditation-apps-might-calm-you-but-miss-the-point-of-buddhist-mindfulness-124859">Mindfulness developed as a part of Buddhism</a>, where it’s intimately tied up with Buddhist spiritual teachings and morality. Mindfulness in the U.S., on the other hand, is often taught and practiced in purely secular terms. It’s frequently offered simply as a tool for focusing attention and improving well-being, a conception of mindfulness some critics have referred to as “<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/600158/mcmindfulness-by-ronald-purser/">McMindfulness</a>.” </p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="A vintage photograph of a Buddhist priest in repose." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/410005/original/file-20210706-23-6oy1py.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/410005/original/file-20210706-23-6oy1py.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=857&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410005/original/file-20210706-23-6oy1py.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=857&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410005/original/file-20210706-23-6oy1py.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=857&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410005/original/file-20210706-23-6oy1py.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1077&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410005/original/file-20210706-23-6oy1py.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1077&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/410005/original/file-20210706-23-6oy1py.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1077&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">In Asian cultures, mindfulness is deeply intertwined with Buddhism.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/buddhist-priest-1904-a-print-from-japan-its-history-arts-news-photo/463974715?adppopup=true">The Print Collector/Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>Not only that, mindfulness and Buddhism developed in Asian cultures in which the typical way in which people think about themselves differs from that in the U.S. Specifically, Americans tend to think of themselves <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.98.2.224">most often in independent terms</a> with “I” as their focus: “what I want,” “who I am.” By contrast, people in Asian cultures <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.98.2.224">more often think of themselves in interdependent terms</a> with “we” as their focus: “what we want,” “who we are.”</p>
<p>Cultural differences in how people think about themselves are subtle and easy to overlook – sort of like different kinds of water. But just as those different kinds of water can change flavors when you cook, I wondered if different ways of thinking about the self might alter the effects of mindfulness. </p>
<p>For interdependent-minded people, what if mindful attention to their own experiences might naturally include thinking about other people – and make them more helpful or generous? And if this were the case, would it then be true that, for independent-minded people, mindful attention would spur them to focus more on their individual goals and desires, and therefore cause them to become more selfish?</p>
<h2>Testing the social effects</h2>
<p>I floated these questions to my colleague at the University at Buffalo, <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=KExjzigAAAAJ&hl=en">Shira Gabriel</a>, because <a href="https://arts-sciences.buffalo.edu/psychology/faculty/faculty-directory/gabriel.html">she’s a recognized expert</a> on independent versus interdependent ways of thinking about the self.</p>
<p>She agreed that this was an interesting question, so we worked with our students Lauren Ministero, Carrie Morrison and Esha Naidu to conduct a study in which we had 366 college students come into the lab – this was before the COVID-19 pandemic – and either engage in a brief mindfulness meditation or a control exercise that actually involved <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1948550610396585">mind wandering</a>. We also measured the extent to which people thought of themselves in independent or interdependent terms. (It’s important to note that, although cultural differences in thinking about the self are real, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.71.1.83">there is variability in this characteristic even within cultures</a>.)</p>
<p>At the end of the study, we asked people if they could help solicit donations for a charity by stuffing envelopes to send to potential donors.</p>
<p><a href="https://psyarxiv.com/xhyua">The results</a> – which have been accepted for publication in the journal Psychological Science – detail how, among relatively interdependent-minded individuals, the brief mindfulness meditation caused them to become more generous. Specifically, briefly engaging in a mindfulness exercise – as opposed to mind wandering – appeared to increase how many envelopes interdependent-minded people stuffed by 17%. However, among relatively independent-minded individuals, mindfulness appeared to make them less generous with their time. This group of participants stuffed 15% fewer envelopes in the mindful condition than in the mind-wandering condition. </p>
<p>In other words, the effects of mindfulness can be different for people depending on the way they think about themselves. This figurative “water” can really change the recipe of mindfulness.</p>
<p>Of course, water can be filtered, and likewise, how people think about themselves is fluid: We’re all capable of thinking about ourselves in both independent and interdependent ways at different times. </p>
<p>In fact, there’s a relatively simple way to get people to shift their thinking about themselves. As the researchers Marilynn Brewer and Wendi Gardner <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1996-01782-006">discovered</a>, all you have to do is have them read a passage that is altered to have either a lot of “I” and “me” statements or a lot of “we” and “us” statements, and ask people to identify all of the pronouns. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.134.2.311">Past research shows</a> that this simple task reliably shifts people to think of themselves in more independent versus interdependent terms. </p>
<p>Our research team wanted to see if this simple effect could also shift the effects of mindfulness on social behavior. </p>
<p>With this in mind, <a href="https://psyarxiv.com/xhyua">we conducted one more study</a>. This time, it was online due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but we used the same exercises. </p>
<p>First, however, we had people complete the pronoun task mentioned above. Afterwards, we asked people if they would volunteer to contact potential donors to a charity.</p>
<p>Our results were striking: Engaging in a brief mindfulness exercise made people who identified “I/me” words 33% less likely to volunteer, but it made those who identified “we/us” words 40% more likely to volunteer. In other words, just shifting how people thought of themselves in the moment – filtering the water of self-related thoughts, if you will – altered the effects of mindfulness on the behavior of many of the people who took part in this study. </p>
<h2>Attention as a tool</h2>
<p>The take-home message? Mindfulness could lead to good social outcomes or bad ones, depending on context. </p>
<p>In fact, the Buddhist monk <a href="https://www.matthieuricard.org/en/blog/posts/a-sniper-s-mindfulness">Matthieu Ricard said as much when he wrote</a> that even a sniper embodies a type of mindfulness. “Bare attention,” he added, “as consummate as it might be, is no more than a tool.” Yes, it can cause a great deal of good. But it can also “cause immense suffering.” </p>
<p>If practitioners strive to use mindfulness to reduce suffering, rather than increase it, it’s important to ensure that people are also mindful of themselves as existing in relation with others.</p>
<p>This “water” may be the key ingredient for bringing out the full flavor of mindfulness.</p>
<p>[<em>Explore the intersection of faith, politics, arts and culture.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/this-week-in-religion-76/?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=religion-explore">Sign up for This Week in Religion.</a>]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/160687/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michael J. Poulin receives funding from the National Science Foundation. He is affiliated with the Association for Psychological Science, the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, and the Society for Experimental Social Psychology. </span></em></p>It’s easy to assume that the practice has few, if any, downsides. But a new study explored some of its social repercussions.Michael J. Poulin, Associate Professor of Psychology, University at BuffaloLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1516522021-02-10T15:07:06Z2021-02-10T15:07:06ZHow to deal with the pain of racism — and become a better advocate: Don’t Call Me Resilient EP 2 transcript<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/383569/original/file-20210210-17-xwtg7l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1889%2C434%2C2164%2C2262&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A man meditates on the road by a police line as demonstrators protest on the section of 16th Street renamed Black Lives Matter Plaza, June 23, 2020, in Washington.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)</span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe height="200px" width="100%" frameborder="no" scrolling="no" seamless="" src="https://player.simplecast.com/0fb6638d-1753-4ea2-aaa6-01eece7dd485?dark=true"></iframe>
<p><iframe id="tc-infographic-572" class="tc-infographic" height="100" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/infographics/572/661898416fdc21fc4fdef6a5379efd7cac19d9d5/site/index.html" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-deal-with-the-pain-of-racism-and-become-a-better-advocate-dont-call-me-resilient-ep-2-show-notes-154631">Episode 2: How to deal with the pain of racism - and become a better advocate</a>.</p>
<p><em>NOTE: Transcripts may contain errors. Please check the corresponding audio before quoting in print.</em></p>
<p><strong>Vinita Srivastava (VS):</strong> From The Conversation, this is <em>Don’t Call Me Resilient</em>. I’m Vinita Srivastava.</p>
<p><strong>Rev. angel Kyodo williams (AKW):</strong> You have to be peace with yourself, not just make peace, right? You have to be peace with yourself in order to tolerate the suffering of the world.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> Today I’m talking with the Reverend angel Kyodo williams. Reverend angel is a visionary author, Zen priest and activist. As an anti-racist priest who advocates for social justice, Reverend angel has been shaking up the Buddhist community in the U.S. for decades. Recently, her work has been impacting an even bigger community. Against the backdrop of COVID-19 and global anti-racist uprisings, Reverend angel has been leading online group meditations. She uses the practise of mindful meditation to help her followers heal from the pain of racism. It’s a practise, she says, that makes for stronger, better activists. And finding inner strength is important to Reverend angel because she believes the key to transforming society is transforming our inner selves. I first met angel about 20 years ago when I was starting out as a journalist in New York. I got in touch with her again all these years later to learn how addressing the pain of racism can make us stronger actors in the world and how it can help us survive COVID-19 and resist the ongoing onslaught of systemic racism. angel generously shared all that and so much more.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-be-a-mindful-anti-racist-147551">How to be a mindful anti-racist</a>
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<p><strong>VS:</strong> Hi angel. I am so happy to have this opportunity to speak with you again.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> Me too. Yeah, this is great.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> I think we last spoke a couple of years ago, but we’ve last seen each other even longer than that.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> So much longer.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> We first met 25 years ago when you were the owner of the first Black owned internet café in Brooklyn, in downtown Brooklyn, Fort Greene. And actually, I first met you because I went for a job interview.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> Oh, I don’t even remember that. That’s so good. Did I hire you?</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> Yeah.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> OK, that’s good. I was smart then too.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> And I actually went to your graduation. Do you remember that?</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> Yes, that I remember.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> I literally watched you go from entrepreneur to Zen Buddhist priest.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> Yes.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> And today, you are a writer and activist and you run an organisation called Transformative Change.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> Yes.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> Which uses meditation to forward the anti-racist movement. And these days, that movement is strong. We’ve been witnessing and experiencing this seismic global anti-racist movement. And angel, I have to tell you that ever since those first anti-racist marches, in this iteration of them, for George Floyd, for Breonna Taylor, for so many others, I’ve been thinking about you. It just feels like we’re witnessing this collective awakening, but also, this collective anger and this collective pain. And I’ve been feeling it myself and I’ve been hearing it from so many people that we’re tired, we are in pain and I know you are doing a lot of work to address that pain. And I want us to talk about that. I want us to get there. But I want to start with the pain itself. Some of our listeners will have felt it and others not and I’m wondering if you can describe your own personal experiences with that pain and maybe we can talk about what that means, what is the pain of racism?</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> I have really been doing a lot of listening and feeling into what this moment is and have lots of points of contact. Depending on one’s social location it is a very different experience. I mean, we can look and say: oh, we’re having this collective experience. We can see these uprisings. We can see this outpouring of historic rage and pain. And so I think much of the conversation about the pain and how we are relating to the pain or not relating to the pain has very much to do with our sense of the past. And the more we have a sense of the past and the history of this country and our understanding and relationship to the truth, to the facts of what has transpired for this country to become what it is and to be shaped as it is today. The closer that we are to an awareness of that in our own — I want to say intellectual understanding, felt experience, ancestral knowing and specifically the felt experience of being on stolen land and being stolen bodies.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> You’ve often said racism is in our bodies. I’m just wondering what you mean by that.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> Yeah, race lives in the body. And so by that I mean that it actually affects our physiological responses to our environment, to other people. It affects our neural pathways. It is made up, we know that it’s made up. But as inorganic and unnatural as this construct is, it is devastating to our essential human nature. We’re responding to what’s going on inside of us rather than the other way around. So the example I often give is a white woman in elevator, Black man comes in and she actually registers fear and contraction. She registers that and the contraction follows the registering of threat. So there’s actually like in the brain registering of threat. Body follows with contraction, thought follows that person is X, Y, and Z. We think it’s the other way around. But we are animals far, far, far before we are humans. We are feeling creatures far before we are thinking creatures.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> So we’ve identified this as a feeling that’s in the body and that we are reacting through that and it impacts everything we do. What is the work that you are doing to address this pain and this feeling?</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> I grew up with this sense of, oh, there are secrets to be kept.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> And also pain — the secrets of pain.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> The secrets of pain, yeah. And, you know, I’m pretty sure my dad’s never going to hear this so I’m just going to say this. My dad had a girlfriend with my now stepmother, and I kept the secret of his having a girlfriend, girlfriends, a series of girlfriends. So he was a womaniser, but I was his daughter. So he kept me with him when he went places. So there I was keeping the secret of his girlfriends, even though we lived in the house with his, you know, his baby mama, which was kind of supposed to be our family. I got the lesson, first of all, people are not to be trusted and that to belong was to descend into this fantasy of what was actually happening, and I refused. And I think that what Socrates called a philosopher I would today call an activist. I would say that activists at the heart of them are after a more complete truth. I don’t mean activist for the sake of a particular cause. I mean activists at the heart of — and Vinita I think so much of you as that kind of person. That is not just like this cause thing, right? It’s like the activist. It’s like after the truth and a wholeness. We’re active on behalf of a wholeness in the world. And for me, and maybe this goes to the question too, my intentionality and focus on race is about trying to get to that liberation on behalf of us all. And being so clear that racialisation is in the way of our completeness, no matter where we are socially located on the spectrum of feeling the material impact. Those of us that don’t feel the most material impact, I believe do experience, unbeknownst to them, the most profound impact on their humanity.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> I think there’s so much that you’re saying here, these are very big ideas, this idea of liberation as a collective liberation, a collective anti-racist movement. But then the idea of personal liberation, the personal search of truth as well. And it sounds like you have found ways — I mean, you’re talking about this history with your dad’s side and your mom’s side and the history of the secrets of pain and how you started to approach to be able to sit with that pain, like literally sit with that pain. I remember early days sitting with you when you used to run meditation in person, those small meditations. I know that you now do this online with the groups of people, but this idea of sitting compassionately with yourself and with others.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> Yeah, you have to be peace with yourself, not just make peace, right? You have to be peace with yourself in order to tolerate the suffering of the world. And I think if you can’t tolerate your own suffering, you can’t tolerate and have a deep and abiding relationship of self-compassion with your own suffering, then you become, as a result of that, under equipped to be able to really face the suffering of the world.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> Have you seen this help other folks, too? I can hear that you’ve been able to accept and sit with your pain. Have you seen this work for other folks?</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> Oh yeah, in extraordinary ways. Extraordinary ways. In sort of really basic ways. So we have this kind of almost daily sit that we do and we call it ‘no big deal.’ And it’s called the ‘no big deal sit,’ because that’s how I wanted people to come to it. This is not like your Buddhist or fancy shmansy whatever. Come as you are is actually the motto. Come as you are and then leave as you must because it was a pandemic reality. And sometimes your kid was going to be in the background and we didn’t want people to feel like the white cultured expression of a lot of sitting spaces came with all this hyper properness that everybody had to kind of be a certain way in order to get in the gate. And so there was this performance before you got there to try to find yourself. And it was like, wow, you have to perform to come in and find out who you really are. That doesn’t make any sense. Come as you are also meant come as you are in your racialized body. So, come wealthy, come poor, come white, come Black, come mixed race, come confused, come with mental health challenges, so on and so forth. It really started in the pandemic. I was just a one time thing that really has become a thing. And people have said, like literally, I believe this saved my life, if not at least my mental health. It’s not just that we’re sitting, it’s that we’re sitting with a practice that I’ve developed to help people sit with their pain. To meet it, to sit with the truth of their pain and where they are, but also be able to simultaneously hold the pervasive nowness. The pervasive nowness that says while even with this pain, even with this legacy, even with this history, even with this seemingly insurmountable and overwhelming reality of so many systems and things either coming apart or really holding on tightly not trying to come apart, and this great clash of the titans of our history that’s playing out in this enormous drama on the backdrop of climate change and our impact on the Earth and our ability to inhabit it, that I can be OK. And not only that, that I must be OK. If I actually want to be able to affect what is happening around me. I must find that Okay-ness if I actually want to be a useful instrument of change, of profound and lasting change.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> On the face, what you’re talking about, it sounds like it’s a form of healing. But I’m wondering if you also see it as a form of resistance.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> It is. Yeah, it’s healing. It’s this – you’re so good to see that. It’s healing. It’s through safety and belonging and acceptance and redemption. And it is resistance through recognition and awareness that you have been imposed upon by the design of a system and a structure that actually would rob you of your humanity for the sake of material gain.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> As we have been creating this podcast we’ve been thinking a lot about this concept of resilience. That no matter what comes our way through the decades, that we’re supposed to be resilient no matter what.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> Yeah, we have to be. We carry so much pain, right? That that pain becomes how we live and inhabit a body of pain. And the paradox is that George Floyd’s death, Breonna Taylor’s death — George Floyd’s murder, Breonna Taylor’s murder. Bringing it into such focused awareness actually gave us access to the experience of the pain that we’re always inhabiting and coping with. And so the rage emerges as a result of actually getting to a place where we’re allowing ourselves to feel our pain. So it’s this paradox when it seems like we’re dealing with it now. Why, why is everybody so mad? Because we’re now actually feeling that which we have been steeling ourselves against just to get through and just to get by. And so it’s a really complex moment. There’s a lot of white people that are putting themselves on the line and trying to show up for what this is and what’s happening in this anti-racist uprising while they’re also having to navigate Black and brown people being fiercely enraged with them, and for good reason. And it’s complex because the watershed of feeling that pain and how long we’ve been waiting for people to show up together. The pandemic created the conditions that allowed so many people to actually feel the intolerance of this pain.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> You’re talking about white privilege and the pain of white privilege and the pain of, I think, letting go of that privilege. That’s another kind of pain, it seems —</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> Yeah. I think there’s the pain of coming into awareness of what the cost of the privilege has been. We hold on to pain. We think we’re in pain, but we hold on to pain as a way of telling ourselves that that pain is real. So we take pain and extend it out beyond the acuteness of the moment. And that’s what Buddhists would call suffering. So we make pain, suffering. You know, we’re not just in a constant state of pain, but we tell ourselves the story that we are and then we’re down. So depression, for instance, is a looping on the past, we’re not being present.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> So you’re saying we as humans, we allow ourselves to loop through this pain and suffering.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> We keep a low level loop running. It’s like that song that runs in the back of your mind and you don’t even know it’s there. So we’re moving through the world in reaction to the looping story, even though around us there’s sunshine and light and positivity and beauty and soft things and loveliness. My existence, my pain is proven by threading it throughout my life all the time, and it’s not true. It just it isn’t true. I don’t feel less for George Floyd because I don’t run the loop in the back of my head and then furrow and contract my body and feel hopeless. In fact, I feel more hopeful as a result of allowing myself to fully feel the pain of George Floyd and all of what his murder represents. And what it means about my life and what it means about the lack of sense of safety and security in my body, in the bodies of people that I love, particularly Black men. I’m not abandoning their pain and all of the truth of that because I allowed myself to also be in the presence of joy and beauty and possibility.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> I’m just going to ask it, looking around you when you see what’s happening in the world now, do you have hope for the future?</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> I do. I think that we are really at an enormous inflection point as to whether the arc that Martin Luther King Jr. spoke about is longer or whether it turns and begins to thread through itself and find its way to a more just society. I believe that this experience of race and the comeuppance, the confrontation with white supremacy situated in the quiet and the felt experience that has been made possible by the pandemic means that we have a sufficient and growing number of people that will not tolerate it going back to wherever it is that people want to go back to. It doesn’t mean it will change overnight. But I do believe that there are a sufficient number of people that are now aware of what I like to call the untenable contract that they have been induced into in bad faith. They want out of that contract, and that is not going to change.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> How do you see things changing for you personally, like your own role moving forward?</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> I think the place that I would like to inhabit is to, at some greater scale, support people in tempering their bodies so that they are able to feel into the untenability of that contract. To also recognise that regardless of the structures and systems that you have a right to a fundamental okay-ness that allows you to be here and present and the kind of thriving of your humanity, regardless of the conditions. Of course it does, of course it does. And the extraordinary and profound truth of spiritual grounding and I’m not talking about somebody’s particular faith. And I don’t care if people are Buddhists and I don’t I’m kind of almost I’m not a Buddhist myself in many ways. I’m just sort of post – but there’s more of a spiritual grounding, a spirited grounding is that the profound understanding of that is that we can be OK even as we strive to have a roof over our head and care for our children. And we need that.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> I keep thinking about this all the time. We’re always thinking, you say bringing the whole truth, but it also means bringing your whole body and all of your actions in service of that idea. And it’s not an easy thing to do. It’s not an easy thing to to sit with, to understand once you start bringing that into your life.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> It’s rigorous. It requires rigorous — if you’re defying the the constructed reality around you. But when you get the hang of it and you kind of get in the seat of that, the veil comes off and it actually becomes quite simple, and that is where the ease arises. And now it’s just the logistics, so to speak, of life.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> I think that’s what I’m talking about, the logistics of life. It’s like, okay I have kids, where am I going to send them to school? And all of these things that we’re talking about, the contract, the comforts, the things that we trade.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> Mm-hmm.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> So that’s what I was you know — it’s that logical practical. And I’m thinking about the logical practical for a moment. And I’m thinking that so many of us right now are inspired by what we’ve seen in these global anti-racist movements. And we want to have meaningful conversations about race. But some of us don’t know what steps to take maybe. I’m wondering if you can offer some simple steps for someone who says: I’m really inspired and I want to move forward.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> One of the exercises I walk people through is to go and find in your own experience and history, I call it the earliest and most potent moment that you recognised that race matters. That race is a thing, not that there’s a difference, that people have different coloured bodies and all of that kind of thing, but that race actually matters go back and find that and sit with that moment that I call the moment you were racialized. And sit with that and I invite people to journal about it. Journal about it as if it were present tense. So write the story down as if it were happening right now. So use the present tense and use I statements like: I walked in this room, a young white man turned and looked at me. Journal about it and find that story that is looping probably mostly unbeknownst to you, that is looping.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> I’m sure you have those little things yourself.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> I don’t think I loop stories.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> You don’t loop them anymore?</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> I mean, I can tell stories, you know, that’s what we are, but I’m not looping the stories. Part of what meditation practice is when you’re really doing your practises you can catch the loop.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> And that story that you’re talking about, journaling that story, that’s not just for racialized folks. I mean, that’s not just for racialized folks of colour. We are all racialized.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> Oh, yeah, of course. In fact, I would say that it’s white-bodied people that have the least access to their story of racialization because their whiteness is a given and they’ve been induced into the idea that their whiteness is a given, that they’re not a race. They’re absolutely a race and have absolutely been racialized. And that’s why it’s so profound. We have all inherited our ways of knowing and responding and reacting to race and the stories about race and all of these things from the very system that we’re trying to get ourselves out of and dismantle. And so if we don’t have a way, a perspective, that allows us to turn around and look at it and be in it but not of it, right? To be in it, but not of it, to get ourselves just enough perspective so that we’re not of it, that we know we’re something greater. We have to be able to think, feel, know outside of this system. And meditation, and I want to say embodied awareness practises, give us access to a way of knowing ourselves that is transcendent, that is outside and beyond the system, not so we can hover out and go to some kind of magic heaven away from the world, so that we can function inside of it and it’s not just devastating to us at every moment.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> Yeah. Reverend angel, it’s good to be with you today.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> It’s so funny, I just heard your voice like this. This way you would say my name without the reverend, you’d just say angel. And I just totally heard it in that moment. That’s great.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> Reverend angel?</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> You know, you’d say angel and you would pause just like that. So good.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> Yeah, it is really good.</p>
<p><strong>AKW:</strong> Thank you.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> Thank you so much.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> That’s it for this episode of <em>Don’t Call Me Resilient</em>. If you’re like me and you feel inspired and curious after that conversation with Reverend angel, let us know what you’re thinking. Just tag me <a href="https://twitter.com/writevinita">@WriteVinita</a>. Also tag <a href="https://twitter.com/ConversationCA">@ConversationCA</a> and use the hashtag #DontCallMeResilient. If you’d like to read more about mindful meditation and its other uses, go to <a href="https://theconversation.com/">theconversation.com</a>. That’s also where you’ll find our show notes with links to stories and research connected to our conversation today.</p>
<p><strong>VS:</strong> <em>Don’t Call me Resilient</em> is a production of The Conversation Canada. This podcast was produced with a grant for journalism innovation from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. The series is produced and hosted by me Vinita Srivastava. Our producers are Nahid Buie, Nehal El-Hadi and Vicky Mochama with additional editorial help from our intern Ibrahim Daair. Reza Dahya is our technical producer and sound guru. Anowa Quarcoo is in charge of marketing and production design. Lisa Varano is our audience development editor and Scott White is the CEO of The Conversation Canada. Special thanks also to Jennifer Moroz for her indispensable help on this project. And if you’re wondering who wrote and performed the music we use on the pod, that’s the amazing Zaki Ibrahim. The track is called <em>Something in the Water</em>. Thanks for listening, everyone, and hope you join us again.</p>
<p>Until next time, I am Vinita. And please, don’t call me resilient.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/151652/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
This is the full transcript for Don’t Call Me Resilient, EP 2: How to deal with the pain of racism — and become a better advocate.Vinita Srivastava, Host + Producer, Don't Call Me ResilientAnowa Quarcoo, Assistant Editor, Audience DevelopmentIbrahim Daair, Culture + Society EditorLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1546312021-02-10T15:06:57Z2021-02-10T15:06:57ZHow to deal with the pain of racism — and become a better advocate: Don’t Call Me Resilient EP 2<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/383411/original/file-20210209-21-12r7tki.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Protesters at Liberty Park on Oct. 16, 2011, Day 31 of Occupy Wall Street in New York.
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/shankbone/6251229995/in/photostream/">David Shankbone/The Occupy Wall Street Creative Commons Project</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><iframe height="200px" width="100%" frameborder="no" scrolling="no" seamless="" src="https://player.simplecast.com/0fb6638d-1753-4ea2-aaa6-01eece7dd485?dark=true"></iframe>
<p><iframe id="tc-infographic-572" class="tc-infographic" height="100" src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/infographics/572/661898416fdc21fc4fdef6a5379efd7cac19d9d5/site/index.html" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>The killing of George Floyd last May sparked a global protest movement calling for an end to racism and police brutality. But it also surfaced a lot of pain for those who deal with racism every day. Where do we go from here? </p>
<p>In Episode 2 of <em>Don’t Call Me Resilient</em>, the writer, activist and Zen priest Reverend angel Kyodo williams speaks about the pain of racism, and how she uses meditation to combat it — and become a stronger anti-racist activist in America today.</p>
<p>For a full transcript of this episode of <em>Don’t Call Me Resilient</em>, go <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-deal-with-the-pain-of-racism-and-become-a-better-advocate-dont-call-me-resilient-ep-2-transcript-151652">here</a>.</p>
<p>Every week, we highlight articles that drill down into the topics we discuss in the episode. This week, Karen Ragoonaden explains <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-be-a-mindful-anti-racist-147551">how mindfulness practices can help us navigate the unsettling realities of racial injustice</a>.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-be-a-mindful-anti-racist-147551">How to be a mindful anti-racist</a>
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<p>You can listen or subscribe on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/dont-call-me-resilient/id1549798876">Apple Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5zaW1wbGVjYXN0LmNvbS9qZFg0Ql9DOA">Google Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/37tK4zmjWvq2Sh6jLIpzp7">Spotify</a> or <a href="https://dont-call-me-resilient.simplecast.com/">wherever you listen to your favourite podcasts</a>. <a href="mailto:theculturedesk@theconversation.com">We’d love to hear from you</a>, including any ideas for future episodes. Join The Conversation on <a href="https://twitter.com/ConversationCA">Twitter</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TheConversationCanada">Facebook</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/theconversationdotcom/">Instagram</a> and use #DontCallMeResilient.</p>
<p><em>This podcast is produced by The Conversation with a grant for Journalism Innovation by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. It is hosted and produced by Vinita Srivastava. The producer is Nahid Buie. Production help from Ibrahim Daair, Anowa Quarcoo, Latifa Abdin, Vicky Mochama, Nehal El-Hadi. Sound engineer: Reza Dahya. Audience development: Lisa Varano. Theme music by <a href="https://sixshooterrecords.com/artists/zaki-ibrahim/">Zaki Ibrahim</a>. Logo by Zoe Jazz. Saniya Rashid is our research assistant supported by MITACS. Our CEO is Scott White. Thanks to Jennifer Moroz for her advice. Launch team: Imriel Morgan/<a href="https://contentisqueen.org/">Content is Queen</a>.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/154631/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
The writer and zen priest Reverend angel Kyodo williams speaks about the pain of racism, how she uses meditation to combat it — and become a stronger anti-racist activist in America today.Vinita Srivastava, Host + Producer, Don't Call Me ResilientLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1496052020-11-06T14:34:46Z2020-11-06T14:34:46ZKeep calm and carry on – but how? A psychologist offers 10 tips to manage uncertainty and stress around the midterm elections<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367960/original/file-20201106-23-1tctq5b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=617%2C605%2C7316%2C4881&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Doomscrolling is not going to help.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/young-woman-laying-in-bed-and-using-smart-phone-royalty-free-image/1173571335">ArtistGNDphotography/E+ via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Well-meaning advice for people stressing out about current events often includes encouragement to be patient, stay calm and keep the faith – but how on Earth are you supposed to do that when the onslaught of troubling news seems never to stop?</p>
<p>As a practicing clinical psychologist and professor who studies how to <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=zYSMPmcAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">manage anxiety and tolerate uncertainty</a>, I offer 10 suggestions to make it through this highly stressful period.</p>
<h2>1. Put the phone down!</h2>
<p>While it is tempting to stay glued to your devices, never-ending doomscrolling and screen-refreshing can become overwhelming and keep you in a state of tension and constant vigilance. Excessive consumption of news and social media <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2017.12.006">predicts poorer long-term mental health</a> during times of crisis.</p>
<p>Plan some breaks where you can engage in activities that take your mind off politics and the uncertainties we face, and allow things to feel a little more normal for a while.</p>
<h2>2. Uncertainty doesn’t equal catastrophe</h2>
<p>It’s hard not to know things – outcomes of elections, for instance. But not knowing doesn’t mean you should assume the worst-case scenario has occurred. When anxious – as many in the U.S. are right now – people tend to assign <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brat.2007.01.009">threatening meanings to ambiguous situations</a>. But this tendency is neither reliably accurate nor helpful. Jumping to catastrophic conclusions is like setting off a series of false alarms that keep you on edge and exaggerate your sense of threat.</p>
<h2>3. Don’t retreat into bed</h2>
<p>The feeling of deep disappointment about election results you don’t like, or apprehension about reducing greenhouse gas emissions, can trigger a desire to withdraw and hole up. While that response is natural, it tends to be counterproductive. Staying engaged in activities that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2850.2009.01178.x">give you a sense of accomplishment, pleasure or meaning</a> can make managing this time far less painful.</p>
<h2>4. Remember, it won’t always feel this intense</h2>
<p>It’s normal and understandable to feel overwhelmed by current events. Focus on what will help you manage this day without punishing yourself for being upset or feeling depleted. Attending to what’s happening in the moment while also recognizing it’s not permanent can help you stay both present and hopeful. While in many ways it is true that we’re living in a unique and unprecedented era, it’s also the case that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2018.05.008">human beings tend to be remarkably resilient</a>, even in the face of tremendous stress and trauma.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367962/original/file-20201106-23-1tpvdz1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="woman smiling on phone while cooking in kitchen" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367962/original/file-20201106-23-1tpvdz1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367962/original/file-20201106-23-1tpvdz1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367962/original/file-20201106-23-1tpvdz1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367962/original/file-20201106-23-1tpvdz1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367962/original/file-20201106-23-1tpvdz1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367962/original/file-20201106-23-1tpvdz1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367962/original/file-20201106-23-1tpvdz1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Even video chatting can be a way to connect over a shared activity.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/smiling-woman-using-phone-while-cooking-in-kitchen-royalty-free-image/960879178">Cavan Images/Cavan via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>5. Don’t go through this time alone</h2>
<p>Feeling isolated, whether physically or emotionally, can make a hard time feel worse. When people experience acute stress, they cope much better <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2006.01832.x">if they have social support</a>.</p>
<p>So reach out and stay connected – whether that means texting about the latest vote count with a friend or purposefully taking a break from ruminating on current events. It’s a great time to deeply discuss what you think about Taylor Swift’s new album.</p>
<h2>6. Stay regular</h2>
<p>No, I am not referring to your bowels – maintain regular and healthy eating, sleep and exercise patterns. While self-care may seem unimportant, attending to those basic bodily needs can go a long way toward keeping your internal resources sufficiently replenished so you can meet the high demands of this time. There is increasing evidence that <a href="https://doi.org/10.5665/sleep.2810">poor sleep is closely connected</a> to many mental and emotional health difficulties.</p>
<p>So stop refreshing your feed in the wee hours and try to sleep.</p>
<h2>7. Help others</h2>
<p>It may feel odd to be asked to support others when you feel so depleted yourself, but <a href="https://doi.org/10.1097/01.PSY.0000079378.39062.D4">helping others is linked to benefits in your own mental health</a>. </p>
<p>Moreover, it provides a sense of control. There’s so much during this time that you cannot control – there is no magic wand that speeds up vote counting in critical contested races or makes climate resolutions between countries come sooner. But taking action to improve things now for the people around you both helps others and reminds you that you can make a difference in meaningful ways.</p>
<p>So, bake cookies to drop off on the doorstep of the friend who caught the flu. Offer to take an item off a work colleague’s overwhelming to-do list. If you’re in a position to help, make a donation to a cause you care about. It’s a win-win.</p>
<h2>8. Add to your toolbox</h2>
<p>Each person is different in what helps them to relax or feel more centered. Focusing on and slowing down your breathing, for instance, can help keep you grounded in the present moment and reduce the spiral of upsetting thoughts about what might come next. Others find it helpful to more directly practice taking a different perspective and reevaluating their anxious thoughts.</p>
<p>For many people, online mindfulness or cognitive therapy exercises can make a big difference. Check out <a href="https://onemindpsyberguide.org/">online mental health programs that have been reviewed by experts</a> and pick the resource that’s right for you.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367963/original/file-20201106-19-13uxzvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="woman lying on couch with dog" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367963/original/file-20201106-19-13uxzvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/367963/original/file-20201106-19-13uxzvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367963/original/file-20201106-19-13uxzvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367963/original/file-20201106-19-13uxzvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367963/original/file-20201106-19-13uxzvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367963/original/file-20201106-19-13uxzvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/367963/original/file-20201106-19-13uxzvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Cut some slack for yourself and others – this is a time when good enough is good enough.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/girl-sleeping-on-couch-with-her-golden-retriever-royalty-free-image/1022892336">Klaus Vedfelt/DigitalVision via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>9. Offer compassion to yourself</h2>
<p>The combination of pandemic stresses, economic worries, social injustices, climate breakdown and more means few of us will be at our best right now as we try to just make it through the day.</p>
<p>There’s a lot of room between performing at 100% of your usual capacity and climbing into bed and hiding under the covers for days on end. Personally, I’m trying to average 80%. People managing greater challenges at this time than I am may shoot for a lower percentage.</p>
<p>No one is making it through this time unscathed, so kindness to ourselves and others is desperately needed.</p>
<h2>10. Reach out if you need additional help</h2>
<p>If recommendations 1-9 aren’t cutting it, there are lots of resources to help people through this difficult period:</p>
<ul>
<li>National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988</li>
<li>Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741</li>
<li><a href="https://www.abct.org/Help/?m=mFindHelp&fa=dFindHelp">Find a therapist</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.nami.org/Your-Journey/Identity-and-Cultural-Dimensions">Find culturally competent mental health care</a></li>
<li>Use my research team’s free intervention to reduce anxious thinking: <a href="https://mindtrails.virginia.edu/">MindTrails</a> (part of an online study)</li>
</ul>
<p>Be patient, stay calm and keep the faith is a tall order. I’ll be happy if I can get most of the way there.</p>
<p><em>This is an updated version of an article originally published on Nov. 6, 2020.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/149605/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Bethany Teachman receives funding from the National Institute of Mental Health. She is the Director of the MindTrails site.</span></em></p>As uncertainty abounds and anxiety skyrockets, you’ve probably heard advice to be patient, stay calm and keep the faith. Here are 10 concrete tips to help you actually manage the stress.Bethany Teachman, Professor of Psychology, University of VirginiaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1346512020-03-29T19:08:57Z2020-03-29T19:08:57ZThinking like a Buddhist about coronavirus can calm the mind and help us focus<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323172/original/file-20200326-168894-1d2vhpm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=31%2C71%2C5252%2C3427&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1476725974034-6788d424c132?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&auto=format&fit=crop&w=751&q=80">Sabine Schulte/Unsplash</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The coronavirus pandemic is challenging our health, work, family, food and fun. It’s also disturbing our peace of mind and forcing us to question our own existence. </p>
<p>We are each asking our own existential questions: Why is this happening to me? Why can’t I go on with my usual life? Who created the problem and why? </p>
<p>While scientists are working hard to find medical solutions, concepts from Buddhism can provide us with some solace for our overburdened minds. The Buddha’s answer would be to focus solely on the existential facts, aiming first for understanding and then to adopt a pragmatic meditation practice.</p>
<h2>A troubling disciple</h2>
<p>Consider the case of <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?id=Ibr7AQAAQBAJ&pg=PT167&lpg=PT167&dq=M%C4%81lunkyaputta++buddha&source=bl&ots=zN_Hb0rFaV&sig=ACfU3U00yWKNnaynmkctQZnMraOu0KttmA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjW3aOwmrfoAhUpyzgGHZ4iDiwQ6AEwCHoECAkQAQ#v=onepage&q=M%C4%81lunkyaputta%20%20buddha&f=false">Mālunkyaputta</a>, a disciple who kept troubling the Buddha some 2,500 years ago in ancient India. Mālunkyaputta prompted him to answer a series of complex questions. </p>
<p>One particular day, he walked up to the Buddha and insisted he needed to be given the answers. </p>
<p>The Buddha responded with an anecdote of a man wounded with a poisonous arrow coming to see a physician for medication. The man insisted that he would not let the arrow be taken out until he knew who shot him and how. The Buddha said by the time all the answers had been given the man would be dead. </p>
<p>The Buddha defined this teaching as eschewing answers to philosophical questions and dealing only with the <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/1398828">existential facts</a>: “there is birth […] ageing […] dying […] grief, sorrow, suffering, lamentation, and despair” and their “suppression […] here and now”. </p>
<p>What this means for us is that although it is natural to have such questions, worrying about the answers may only bring more suffering. We would be wiser to work to reduce our own suffering and that of others.</p>
<h2>Three marks of existence</h2>
<p>What remains in this core Buddhism is the pure existentialism of dispassionate detachment from the space-time world that results in <a href="https://www.budsas.org/ebud/whatbudbeliev/102.htm"><em>nirvana</em></a>. This state is defined simply as the absence of greed, hatred, and delusion.</p>
<p>Buddhism teaches us the coronavirus is causing us to experience some heightened forms of the <a href="https://encyclopediaofbuddhism.org/wiki/Three_marks_of_existence">three marks of our existence</a> (<em>tilakkhaṇa</em>). They are the impermanence (<em>aniccā</em>), the un-satisfactoriness or suffering (<em>duḥkha</em>) and the non-self (<em>anatta</em>).</p>
<p>The pandemic’s sudden encroachment on our society, causing death and misery, reminds us of that impermanence. It shows us the inevitable nature of our own death and the associated suffering, leading us to do some soul-searching.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/eytfr21V5Ok?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Buddhism is practised by 535 million people around the world, between 8% and 10% of the world’s total population.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The little things</h2>
<p>Buddhism teaches meditation practices with deep introspection. These are designed to make us mindful of nature and help relieve us from sufferings, as described in several Buddhist <a href="https://www.accesstoinsight.org/index-sutta.html"><em>suttas</em></a> – the records that hold the Buddha’s original utterings.</p>
<p>The process involves loosening our grasp – those things we cling to that are governed by our desires – on both tangible and intangible things in life by realising their true nature – relating them back to three <em>tilakkhaṇa</em>. Meditation invites us to be happy with the simplest and most basic things in life. </p>
<p>The meditation steps taught in the suttas can guide our mind, calm our body and help our senses find peace and delight. It is hoped that meditation bring about our inherent yet dormant happiness without relying on our body or our dispositions, which are impermanent.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323174/original/file-20200326-168876-o7l4bi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323174/original/file-20200326-168876-o7l4bi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323174/original/file-20200326-168876-o7l4bi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323174/original/file-20200326-168876-o7l4bi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323174/original/file-20200326-168876-o7l4bi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323174/original/file-20200326-168876-o7l4bi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323174/original/file-20200326-168876-o7l4bi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323174/original/file-20200326-168876-o7l4bi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Mindfulness and meditation can focus the mind on small joys.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1510034141778-a4d065653d92?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&ixid=eyJhcHBfaWQiOjEyMDd9&auto=format&fit=crop&w=750&q=80">Samuel Austin/Unsplash</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The big picture</h2>
<p>While these deliberations, because of their psychological effect, can bring in peace, happiness and even <a href="https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/five_ways_mindfulness_meditation_is_good_for_your_health">health benefits</a> to the individual, there are other benefits. </p>
<p>Firstly, such mindful practice can help us get on with our <a href="http://faculty.washington.edu/wobbrock/pubs/gi-12.02.pdf">day-to-day life</a> in a more disciplined and safer manner, which as we can see is extremely valuable in a crisis situation such as today. </p>
<p>Meditation might help us not to panic (or panic buy), to be <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31318929">conscious of our own behaviour</a> so that we will be careful even with what we touch, or not touch (including <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-stop-touching-your-face-to-minimize-spread-of-coronavirus-and-other-germs-133683">our face</a>). It would help us to be conscious of <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/urban-survival/202003/5-relaxing-mindful-ways-handwash-during-covid-19">cleaning our hands</a> regularly and mindful of others around us so that we are careful about any chances of passing on germs.</p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/LrH_mdJNvog?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The simple act of washing hands can become an act of meditation.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Many believe meditation <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-portal-review-can-meditation-change-the-world-123513">can help the rest of the world</a> as well, because of the thoughtfulness it creates. The pandemic can affect rich and poor (although there are also concerns it may <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/15/world/europe/coronavirus-inequality.html">increase inequity</a>). Our meditation practices can help us evaluate the impermanence, decay and inevitable death of our existence, against any privileges we may have. Meditation can direct us to consider the possibility of living a happy life by meeting basic needs alone. For some, this can make us reevaluate what we see as our misfortunes.</p>
<p>Buddhism may be seen as yet another of the <a href="https://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/10/06/the_odd_body_religion/">world’s religions</a>, with its own rituals around praying to deities and sending away demons. But the Buddha can also be seen as simply an insightful thinker and teacher. He proposed a natural outlook, providing solutions that do not appeal to any supernatural force. </p>
<p>Coupled with the psychological solutions and health benefits meditation can bring, we may find it is possible to adopt Buddhist concepts into a framework for contemplation – one geared for salvation from our current crisis.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/134651/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nishanathe Dahanayake is affiliated with the Darebin Ethnic Communities Council (DECC) Steering Committee and People for Human Rights and Equality (PHRE).</span></em></p>Concepts from Buddhism can provide us with some solace during this pandemic. By thinking like a Buddhist we can focus on existential facts, aiming to understand them and to practise meditation.Nishanathe Dahanayake, PhD Candidate, Philosophy, University of New EnglandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1235132019-10-17T02:44:43Z2019-10-17T02:44:43ZThe Portal review: can meditation change the world?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/296583/original/file-20191011-188797-1fjm4h7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=8%2C5%2C982%2C552&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The Portal uses individual stories of meditative transformation to suggest a bigger change is possible. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Supplied</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Portal follows six individuals who undergo a personal transformation from trauma and struggle to calmness, self-acceptance, and compassion towards others. These personal changes are intertwined with contemplations about the broader struggles facing humanity and the role of technology. </p>
<p>The underlying claim is that stillness is not only a portal for personal transformation, but also a portal that ignites human potential for global transformation. The filmmakers contend that meditative practice has the power to move humankind from being on the verge of disconnection, chaos, and crisis to connection, calmness, and enlightenment. </p>
<p>While this might seem far-fetched, the film – slickly produced with stunning imagery – effectively captures our individual and collective challenges, highlighting the benefits people have experienced through various contemplative practices, and offering a hopeful vision of human potential. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/KkfyntkbpWI?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The Portal promises enlightenment but it’s no quick fix.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Noise and haste</h2>
<p>The movie begins with a powerful cacophony of noise, voices, and images – building up to a feeling of distress and a call to action that “something’s got to change”. </p>
<p>This sense of disruption, disconnection, and chaos then unfolds through the lives of six people from a range of backgrounds. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/296584/original/file-20191011-188802-lxmiyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/296584/original/file-20191011-188802-lxmiyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/296584/original/file-20191011-188802-lxmiyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=750&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/296584/original/file-20191011-188802-lxmiyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=750&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/296584/original/file-20191011-188802-lxmiyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=750&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/296584/original/file-20191011-188802-lxmiyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=942&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/296584/original/file-20191011-188802-lxmiyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=942&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/296584/original/file-20191011-188802-lxmiyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=942&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Supplied</span></span>
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</figure>
<p>The experiences of the individuals are developed through the course of the film, skipping between their stories, supported by recurrent images and music. Their issues – abuse, violence, career-ending injury, stroke, suicide, loneliness, depression, stress, intrusive thoughts, debt, emptiness – will be familiar to many adults, young and old. </p>
<p>Extending beyond the individual narratives, futurists and philosophers explore the state of the world and the role of technology. Some viewers will likely agree with the causes attributed to these problems, others will not. </p>
<p>One commentator observes that almost every problem that we are facing is human-generated. We are living in a time when many of our social systems are unstable, with technology accelerating life <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17439760.2019.1639799">faster than we can adapt</a> to it. </p>
<p>Even as we become more interconnected than ever before, many <a href="https://theconversation.com/1-in-3-young-adults-is-lonely-and-it-affects-their-mental-health-124267">young people struggle with loneliness</a> and a lack of belonging. And concerns over the climate are <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-rise-of-eco-anxiety-climate-change-affects-our-mental-health-too-123002">negatively impacting upon physical and mental health</a>. </p>
<p>We are <a href="https://www.presencing.org/aboutus/ego-to-eco/three-divides">divided from ourselves, others, and nature</a>, which results in a range of problems ranging from mental illness to destruction of the natural environment. </p>
<h2>Contemplative practices</h2>
<p>The film proposes meditation is the solution to these problems, providing a way to realise our human potential. </p>
<p>Each of the featured individuals finds resolution through stillness, achieved through forms of contemplative practice: guided meditation, yoga, prayer, or quiet reflection. A growing number of <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31318929">studies</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25818837">reviews</a>, and <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23796855">meta analyses</a> suggest contemplative practices correlate with beneficial outcomes, but also point to <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1745691617709589">how little is known about these techniques</a>].</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-mindfulness-nobody-really-knows-and-thats-a-problem-83295">What is mindfulness? Nobody really knows, and that's a problem</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The film makes meditation accessible, supported by the personal experiences of everyday people - including a university student impacted by a traumatic childhood, a soldier suffering from PTSD, a Rabbi recovering from a stroke, and an athlete trying to rebuild her life. Each individual finds ways that work for them to create stillness, calming the chaos experienced within.</p>
<p>The viewer is subtly invited to join in. Near the end of the film, the cacophony of images returns, this time with the chaos transforming into calmness and offering a few meditative moments of stillness. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/296586/original/file-20191011-188787-1vjnhuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/296586/original/file-20191011-188787-1vjnhuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/296586/original/file-20191011-188787-1vjnhuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/296586/original/file-20191011-188787-1vjnhuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/296586/original/file-20191011-188787-1vjnhuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/296586/original/file-20191011-188787-1vjnhuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/296586/original/file-20191011-188787-1vjnhuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/296586/original/file-20191011-188787-1vjnhuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Modern life seems chaotic. There may be power in stillness.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/long-exposure-blurred-vehicle-motion-on-674535700?src=-1-2">Taras Vyshnya/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>No quick fix</h2>
<p>Importantly, those featured in the film demonstrate that meditation is not a panacea, and also <a href="https://theconversation.com/we-dont-yet-fully-understand-what-mindfulness-is-but-this-is-what-its-not-110698">not an escape</a>. It’s a practice they develop and <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-motivated-brain/201803/why-is-behavior-change-so-hard">consistently prioritise</a>. </p>
<p>Each person, struggling with various traumas, learns to not ignore their past, but rather to accept and sit quietly with it. Meditation becomes an approach for the characters to face and accept their challenging histories, rather than avoid or be destroyed by them. </p>
<p>The film also points to the potential for contemplative practices to develop collective well-being. Through meditation and stillness, the individuals develop compassion for others, opening up the possibility for connection. </p>
<p>The film ends with a hopeful vision, suggesting the beautiful transformation that could emerge if each of us were to embrace our individual potential and contribute our part to the world.</p>
<h2>Hopeful but sceptical</h2>
<p>The stories in this film are compelling, though at times hard to follow. The images and music are engaging, but the driving story and key messages are at times unclear. The statements and claims by the futurists and researchers featured deserve continued debate and study by the scientific community. </p>
<p>Is meditation the answer to changing the world? The personal transformation of six individuals is a far cry from global transformation. Then again, change occurs one person at a time, and perhaps in stillness, creative solutions to the problems facing our society can indeed emerge. </p>
<p><em>The Portal opens in cinemas today</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/123513/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Peggy Kern does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A new film contends that meditation can transform us from individuals in chaos to calm beings - and in turn change the world.Peggy Kern, Associate professor, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1156482019-06-07T08:21:21Z2019-06-07T08:21:21ZThe problem with mindfulness<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272218/original/file-20190502-103071-ufgvyc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Mindfulness, it seems everybody’s doing it. You might have even tried it yourself – or have a regular practice. Thanks to the help of an app on your phone that speaks to you in dulcet tones, you are reminded to “let go” and to “observe your breath”. From the public education to healthcare, the corporate world to the criminal justice system, <a href="https://www.themindfulnessinitiative.org.uk/about/mindfulness-appg">parliament</a> to the <a href="https://www.forces.net/news/meditating-mod-military-personnel-try-mindfulness">military</a>, mindfulness is promoted as a cure all for modern ills. </p>
<p>Yet the evidence for the efficacy of mindfulness is not strong. In <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1745691617709589">an article published in Perspectives on Psychological Science</a>, a number of psychologists and cognitive scientists warn that despite the hype, scientific data on mindfulness is limited. They caution:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Misinformation and poor methodology associated with past studies of mindfulness may lead public consumers to be harmed, misled, and disappointed.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Studies on mindfulness are known for their <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1745691617709589?journalCode=ppsa">numerous methodological and conceptual problems</a>. This includes small sample sizes, lack of control groups, and insufficient use of valid measures. </p>
<p>To this list, the possibility of competing interests can also be added. In a recent <a href="https://retractionwatch.com/2019/04/17/plos-one-pulls-highly-cited-mindfulness-paper-over-undeclared-ties-other-concerns/?fbclid=IwAR2i5e2jd3R3m8z2SR0u1NUBCkOAigcK0XtqNaf7DVHlCHdVif6unX3VjAo">example</a>, the mega-journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0124344">PLOS ONE retracted</a> a meta-analysis on mindfulness after concerns were raised over the methodology behind the results, including “double counting” and “incorrect effect estimates”. The PLOS retraction also cited undeclared financial conflicts of interest by the authors. The journal noted that none of the authors agreed with the retraction. </p>
<p>Despite these issues, mindfulness has never been more popular and its influence in mainstream culture is massive, as can be seen in the creation of <a href="https://www.campaign.ox.ac.uk/news/future-of-mindfulness-research-at-oxford-secured-with-new-professorship">a new professorship</a> in mindfulness and psychological science at the University of Oxford. </p>
<p>The position was created by the <a href="http://oxfordmindfulness.org/">Oxford Mindfulness Centre</a>, which became affiliated with the <a href="http://oxfordmindfulness.org/about-us/about/oxford-mindfulness-foundation/">university’s Department of Psychiatry</a> in 2011, after <a href="https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/06144314/filing-history?page=4">initially</a> establishing as a private company in 2007 and later registering as a charity. It has since become a key player in shaping both the academic studies of mindfulness and the public’s perception of the practice.</p>
<h2>A brief history of mindfulness</h2>
<p>Mindfulness is a type of meditation derived from the Buddhist tradition. It encourages the observation of present thoughts, emotions and bodily sensations in a non-judgemental way. But how did it gain such prominence in Western mainstream culture? </p>
<p>For a start, the modern concept of Buddhism that Westerners relate to today did not exist a century ago. This new style of Buddhism is known as “<a href="http://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780195393521/obo-9780195393521-0041.xml">Buddhist Modernism</a>”, or “Protestant Buddhism” – a reform movement of the late 19th century. </p>
<p>This form of Buddhism was developed as a result of the influence of Christian missionaries and to the colonialism and imperialism of South-East Asia by European nations. To respond to their colonial situation, the elite of the movement reshaped Buddhism by aligning it to Western science and philosophy. This was done by representing Buddhism as rational, universal and compatible with science – with an emphasis placed upon meditation and personal reflection. </p>
<p>The advocates of this reform projected modern Western values onto Buddhist teachings who claimed to teach the “<a href="https://s3.amazonaws.com/academia.edu.documents/32886776/J_Am_Acad_Relig-2004-McMahan-897-933.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAIWOWYYGZ2Y53UL3A&Expires=1558635548&Signature=6gNCu83q9X03bLRr0gIDWvSmFu0%3D&response-content-disposition=inline%3B%20filename%3DModernity_and_the_Early_Discourse_of_Sci.pdf">pure</a>” Buddhism as taught by the historical Buddha himself.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/271786/original/file-20190430-136787-10thhn9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/271786/original/file-20190430-136787-10thhn9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271786/original/file-20190430-136787-10thhn9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271786/original/file-20190430-136787-10thhn9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271786/original/file-20190430-136787-10thhn9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271786/original/file-20190430-136787-10thhn9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/271786/original/file-20190430-136787-10thhn9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Mindfulness is being sold to us and we are buying it.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
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<p>Contemporary meditation teachers, including Jon Kabat-Zinn (JKZ), the founder of <a href="https://www.religiousstudiesproject.com/podcast/what-is-mindfulness-a-critical-religious-studies-approach/">Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction</a>(MBSR) – an eight-week programme that offers mindfulness training to help people with stress and pain – inherited and popularised this version of Buddhism. </p>
<p>When pressed about the Buddhist elements of their courses, teachers such as JKZ argue the technique is not Buddhist, but the “<a href="https://www.umassmed.edu/contentassets/abf4d773534442238acf329476591dde/jkz_paper_contemporary_buddhism_2011.pdf">essence</a>” of the Buddha’s teachings. These are said to be “<a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs12671-017-0758-2">universal</a>” and compatible with science. Or as JKZ has put it, “<a href="https://www.umassmed.edu/contentassets/abf4d773534442238acf329476591dde/jkz_paper_contemporary_buddhism_2011.pdf">the Buddha himself was not a Buddhist</a>”.</p>
<p>These associations with Buddhism allows advocates of mindfulness to relish the legitimacy associated with the historical Buddha – yet at the same time avoid any undesired “religious” connotations. Likewise, when mindfulness is declared as “universal” then it seems to be less about Buddhism and more about a “<a href="https://www.mindful.org/what-is-mindfulness/">basic human ability</a>”.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/mcmindfulness-buddhism-as-sold-to-you-by-neoliberals-88338">McMindfulness: Buddhism as sold to you by neoliberals</a>
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<h2>Science and mindfulness</h2>
<p>The idea that mindfulness is secular because it is scientifically tested is a common strategy used by advocates of mindfulness to disassociate the practice from its religious foundation and to promote it in clinical and educational settings. </p>
<p>It is <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/320688499_Ethics_Transparency_and_Diversity_in_Mindfulness_Programs">well documented</a> that JKZ intentionally downplayed the Buddhist roots of mindfulness to introduce it in clinical settings. In <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14639947.2011.564844">JKZ’s own words</a>, he “bent over backward to structure it [MBSR] and find ways to speak about it that avoided as much as possible the risk of it being seen as Buddhist”. In essence then he translated Buddhist ideas into scientific and secular language. </p>
<p>This approach takes advantage of the authority of science in modern Western cultures as well as the perceived opposition of “science” with “religion”. And by aligning mindfulness with science, its opposition to “religion” is implicitly conveyed. </p>
<h2>Legitimatising mindfulness</h2>
<p>Appealing to science and empirical studies are not the only methods that mindfulness leaders have used to lend explicit legitimacy to mindfulness.
The flourish of <a href="https://www.bangor.ac.uk/mindfulness/postgraduate-courses/">MA</a> and <a href="https://www.bangor.ac.uk/mindfulness/projects.php.en">PhD</a> programmes, specific <a href="https://link.springer.com/journal/12671">journals</a>, <a href="https://www.icm2019.org/">conferences</a>, <a href="https://www.city.ac.uk/news/2019/april/launch-centre-excellence-mindfulness-research">university affiliated research centres</a> – and now the professorship – demonstrate the movement’s efforts to legitimise and secure the future of mindfulness as an academic enterprise. </p>
<p>But although mindfulness claims to offer a staggering collection of possible health benefits – and aligns itself with science and academia to be seen as credible – as yet there is remarkably <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/wheres-the-proof-that-mindfulness-meditation-works1/?redirect=1">little scientific evidence</a> backing it up. </p>
<p>That’s not to say a lot of people don’t find it beneficial. Indeed, <a href="https://nccih.nih.gov/research/statistics/NHIS/2012/mind-body/meditation">many people practice mindfulness</a> everyday and feel it helps them in their lives. The problem is though that there is still a lot researchers do not know about mindfulness – and ultimately the field needs a much more systematic and rigorous approach to be able to support such claims.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/115648/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Masoumeh Sara Rahmani received funding from University of Kent to study Unbelief in the context of the Mindfulness movement.</span></em></p>Mindfulness aligns itself with science and academia to be seen as credible but it lacks any real evidence.Masoumeh Sara Rahmani, Research Associate in Anthropology of Religion, Coventry UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1156202019-05-13T10:40:54Z2019-05-13T10:40:54ZAre yoga and mindfulness in schools religious?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/270835/original/file-20190424-121228-17u0d3p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Yoga classes are becoming more prevalent in America's schools.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/schoolchildren-lotus-position-relaxing-on-lesson-521052871?src=xeOOZ2iVOQQQG5PrEGyiDQ-1-8">Africa Studio / www.shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The number of U.S. children age 4 to 17 practicing yoga rose from 2.3% to 8.4% – or from 1.3 million to 4.9 million – between <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25671583">2007</a> and <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db324-h.pdf">2017</a>, federal data show. The number of children meditating rose to 3.1 million during the same period.</p>
<p>The rise is due in part to more yoga and mindfulness programs being established in America’s schools. A <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4831047/">2015 study</a> found three dozen different yoga organizations offering yoga programs in 940 K-12 schools. </p>
<p>Yoga and mindfulness could become the fourth “R” of public education. But up for debate is whether the “R” in this case stands for relaxation or religion.</p>
<p>As <a href="http://indiana.edu/%7Erelstud/people/profiles/brown_candy">a professor of religious studies</a>, I have served as an expert witness in four public-school yoga and meditation legal challenges. I testified that school yoga and meditation programs fit legal criteria of religion.</p>
<p>In one case, the court agreed that yoga “may be religious in some contexts,” but ultimately concluded that the school district’s yoga classes were “devoid of any religious, mystical, or spiritual trappings.” In two other cases in which I testified, <a href="https://www.education.pa.gov/K-12/Charter%20Schools/Charter%20Board%20Appeal%20Opinions/2013-10,%20Education%20for%20New%20Generations%20Charter%20School%20-%20recon.pdf">yoga</a> and <a href="https://courtsapp.montcopa.org/psi/v/detail/Case/201078753#/">meditation</a> based charter schools were found to violate a <a href="https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/LI/uconsCheck.cfm?txtType=HTM&yr=1949&sessInd=0&smthLwInd=0&act=014&chpt=17A">state law</a> prohibiting public schools from providing “any religious instruction.”</p>
<p>My research and experience leads me to believe that there are problems with how yoga is being implemented in schools. My goal is not to ban yoga or mindfulness from school settings. But I believe there are legal and ethical reasons to work toward greater transparency and voluntary participation in yoga.</p>
<h2>A question of religion</h2>
<p>Although many Americans believe that yoga and mindfulness aren’t religious, <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2018/09/why-schools-are-banning-yoga/570904/">not everyone accepts</a> that the practices are completely secular. </p>
<p>My new book, <a href="https://www.uncpress.org/book/9781469648484/debating-yoga-and-mindfulness-in-public-schools/">“Debating Yoga and Mindfulness in Public Schools: Reforming Secular Education or Reestablishing Religion?”</a> examines these issues. The book argues that integrating yoga and mindfulness into public schools could violate laws against government establishment of religion.</p>
<p>The Yoga Alliance, an organization that purports to be the the “largest nonprofit association representing the yoga community,” argued in 2014 that DC yoga studios should be exempt from <a href="https://www.yogaalliance.org/the_dc_yoga_tax_isnt_really_a_yoga_tax">sales tax</a> because the purpose of yoga is “spiritual rather than fitness.” However, when <a href="https://caselaw.findlaw.com/ca-court-of-appeal/1696669.html">parents sued</a> a California school district in 2013 alleging that its yoga program violates the prohibition against the state establishment of religion, the Yoga Alliance rebutted that yoga is exercise and “not religious.” Thus, the Yoga Alliance seems to take the position that yoga is spiritual but not religious. Courts have not, however, made this distinction.</p>
<p>In some legal cases the courts have concluded that yoga and meditation are religious practices. A 1988 Arkansas case known as Powell v. Perry, for instance, concluded that “<a href="https://yogaencinitasstudents.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/yesyogarb.pdf">yoga is a method of practicing Hinduism</a>.” The 1995 <a href="https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-9th-circuit/1224987.html">Self-Realization Fellowship Church v. Ananda Church of Self Realization </a>
case classified the “Hindu-Yoga spiritual tradition” as a “religious tradition.”</p>
<p>The <a href="https://casetext.com/case/malnak-v-yogi">1979 Malnak v. Yogi</a> case defined Transcendental Meditation as a “religion” and therefore ruled that an elective high school Transcendental Meditation class was unconstitutional.</p>
<p>The Supreme Court has ruled repeatedly that public schools may not endorse religious practices such as <a href="https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/370/421/#tab-opinion-1943887">prayer</a> and <a href="https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/374/203/#tab-opinion-1944457">Bible</a> reading, even if kids are allowed to “opt out.” The Court ruled that <a href="https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/482/578/#tab-opinion-1957185">practicing religion in the classroom is coercive</a> because of mandatory attendance, teacher authority and peer pressure.</p>
<h2>Mindfulness = Buddhism?</h2>
<p>“Mindfulness” likewise does “<a href="https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/bfm%3A978-0-387-09593-6%2F1.pdf">double duty</a>.” It sounds like merely “paying attention.” However, promoters of mindfulness, such as Jon Kabat-Zinn, say they use it as an “umbrella term” as a <a href="https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/bfm%3A978-0-387-09593-6%2F1.pdf#page=24">“skillful” way</a> to introduce Buddhist meditation into the mainstream.</p>
<p>In a Buddhist Geeks podcast, Trudy Goodman, founder of Insight LA and a mindfulness teacher, speaks of mindfulness as “<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160405015832/http:/www.buddhistgeeks.com/2014/08/bg-331-stealth-buddhism/">stealth Buddhism</a>,” noting that secularly framed classes “aren’t that different from our Buddhist classes. They just use a different vocabulary.”</p>
<p>Founder of Yoga Ed. <a href="https://www.hinduismtoday.com/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=1328">Tara Guber has admitted</a> to making semantic changes to get her program into a school district where some parents and school board members objected to it, arguing that it was teaching religion. Guber spoke of how yoga can “shift consciousness and alter beliefs.”</p>
<p>Some research shows that yoga and mindfulness have <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3151546/">spiritual</a> <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18374738">effects</a> even when they are presented secularly.</p>
<p>One study found that over 62 percent of students in “secular” yoga <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25030795">changed their primary reason</a> for practicing. “Most initiate yoga practice for exercise and stress relief, but for many, spirituality becomes their primary reason for maintaining practice,” the study states.</p>
<p>I propose that respect for cultural and religious diversity can best be achieved through an <a href="https://www.insightsassociation.org/article/opt-vs-opt-out-debate">opt-in</a> model of informed consent. That is to say, it may be constitutional for yoga and mindfulness to be available on school grounds, but students should be able to choose to get into the programs, not – as I point out in various cases in my book – be forced to take extra steps just to get out.</p>
<p>Students and their parents must be given enough information about offered programs – including risks, benefits, alternatives, and potential effects – to make an informed choice about whether to participate.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/115620/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Candy Gunther Brown has received research funding from organizations that include the Lilly Endowment, Packard Foundation, Louisville Institute, Mellon Foundation, and John Templeton Foundation, and compensation from law firms representing school districts for expert witness service.</span></em></p>Yoga and mindfulness are becoming more prevalent in America’s public schools. But are they subtly promoting religion? A scholar who has served as an expert witness in several yoga cases weighs in.Candy Gunther Brown, Professor of Religious Studies, Indiana UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1066082018-11-25T19:05:18Z2018-11-25T19:05:18ZMindfulness can help PhD students shift from surviving to thriving<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/246340/original/file-20181120-161633-k6lyi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Self-help strategies such as mindfulness now have a proven place for supporting the PhD journey.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">www.shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Undertaking a PhD can be very stressful, due to a range of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2018.1425979">challenges</a>. These include having to develop discipline expertise as well as generic skills (such as academic writing and maintaining motivation) during a largely solo pursuit. </p>
<p>Concern has been growing about the prevalence of mental health issues (such as depression and anxiety) among PhD candidates. A <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nbt.4089">survey</a> of more than 2,000 graduate research students from 26 countries published this year found they were six times as likely to experience depression or anxiety as the general population.</p>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/doing-a-phd-can-be-a-lonely-business-but-it-doesnt-have-to-be-19192">Doing a PhD can be a lonely business but it doesn’t have to be</a>
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<p>A <a href="https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/515b/5cc53ff418e226ccb64ad8d8238508bb5075.pdf">study</a> of PhD students in the United States showed that of those who identified as experiencing depression or anxiety, 84% did not seek help from university support services. Perhaps, then, the best way to help PhD candidates is to give them the skills and strategies to manage their stress.</p>
<p>Earlier this month, we published a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2018.1515760">study</a> in the <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vach20">Journal of American College Health</a>. It provides evidence that practising mindfulness can help reduce stress, improve levels of depression and anxiety, and enhance feelings of hope, optimism, resilience and self-efficacy about completing a PhD. </p>
<h2>How mindfulness can help</h2>
<p>In recent years, <a href="https://www.mindful.org/what-is-mindfulness/">mindfulness</a> has become increasingly popular as a method for managing feelings of stress and distress. </p>
<p>Mindfulness research has exploded in the past five years. A medline (the major medical literature search engine) keyword search on the topic today reveals 5,815 search results, with more than 70% of these in the last five years. The quality of this research is also increasing, with 584 systematic reviews (the strongest level of evidence that combines lots of similar studies) included in these results. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/246967/original/file-20181123-149721-1l72065.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/246967/original/file-20181123-149721-1l72065.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246967/original/file-20181123-149721-1l72065.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246967/original/file-20181123-149721-1l72065.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246967/original/file-20181123-149721-1l72065.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246967/original/file-20181123-149721-1l72065.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246967/original/file-20181123-149721-1l72065.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Mindfulness techniques like meditation or guided breathing activities can help PhD students manage stress and anxiety.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">from www.shutterstock.com</span></span>
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<p>Our research is the first to examine the psychological impacts of mindfulness in a controlled trial with PhD students. It followed the <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1365-2923.2010.03877.x">findings</a> of a randomised controlled trial conducted at our institution by Emma Warnecke. </p>
<p>Her study showed that a guided mindfulness practice could significantly decrease perceived stress and anxiety among 66 undergraduate medical students. This is a relatively small study, but it used the gold standard design of a randomised controlled trial, and showed statistically and clinically significant results. </p>
<p>Our new study used the same <a href="http://www.utas.edu.au/health/students/medicine/stress-management">guided mindfulness practice</a> over an eight-week period as a daily intervention in a randomised control trial design. More than 80 students at our university volunteered to take part, and were randomly allocated to a control or intervention group. </p>
<h2>How we measured stress</h2>
<p>Psychological distress was measured before and after the eight-week trial period using the <a href="https://www.mindgarden.com/132-perceived-stress-scale">perceived stress scale</a> (PSS) and the <a href="http://www2.psy.unsw.edu.au/dass/over.htm">Depression, Anxiety and Stress scale</a> (DASS). </p>
<p>We also measured levels of <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/full/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-032516-113324">psychological capital</a>, which is a positive psychological state of development composed of four psychological resources: feelings of hope, optimism, resilience, and self-efficacy. </p>
<p>Psychological capital was originally developed in the field of positive organisational behaviour, and previous research has primarily explored how psychological capital influences workplace attitudes, behaviours and performance. In recent years, scholars have begun to explore how it may also influence educational performance. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/246968/original/file-20181123-149724-1tbqsy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/246968/original/file-20181123-149724-1tbqsy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246968/original/file-20181123-149724-1tbqsy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246968/original/file-20181123-149724-1tbqsy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246968/original/file-20181123-149724-1tbqsy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246968/original/file-20181123-149724-1tbqsy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/246968/original/file-20181123-149724-1tbqsy1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">PhD students are six times more likely than the general population to experience depression or anxiety.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock.com</span></span>
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<p>Pre- and post-intervention surveys collected from both groups provided data on the stress candidates experienced, how it affected their studies, the strategies they used to manage things that stressed them out, and their experiences of completing the intervention. Some 14 members of the intervention group also volunteered to be interviewed about their experiences. </p>
<p>For some candidates, mindfulness practice provided a period of peace and calm which gave them a time to relax, regroup, and recharge their batteries. For others, it provided an opportunity to deal with negative feelings and then shake them off. Some said the practice gave them more clarity and focus, new ways to deal with challenges, or enabled more productive work. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/phd-completion-an-evidence-based-guide-for-students-supervisors-and-universities-99650">PhD completion: an evidence-based guide for students, supervisors and universities</a>
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<p>Several candidates felt increased confidence in their ability to complete their PhD, for example by giving them a tool to deal with challenging times. Candidates also reported that completing the practice regularly had its own particular benefits, such as by helping them become more disciplined and structured in their habits.</p>
<h2>Room for improvement</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/07448481.2018.1515760">study</a> showed completing the mindfulness practice significantly reduced candidates’ reported levels of depression and improved their psychological capital. Perhaps just as importantly, these effects occurred even though study participants actually practised the mindfulness meditation much less often than requested. </p>
<p>The intervention group was asked to complete the 30-minute mindfulness intervention daily, a total of 56 practices over eight weeks. But the average number of sessions completed was 35. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/ten-types-of-phd-supervisor-relationships-which-is-yours-52967">Ten types of PhD supervisor relationships – which is yours?</a>
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<p>An even greater effect may be possible if students practised more often. Alternatively, a daily practice may not be required in participants who are used to learning new complex skills so often. Or, shorter practices (such as 5-10 minutes) could be used with similar effect, such as those available through apps such as <a href="https://www.smilingmind.com.au/">smiling mind</a>. </p>
<p>Placing attention not only on the academic but also the psychological aspects of learning is key to successful outcomes and well-being. Self-help strategies such as mindfulness now have a proven place for supporting the PhD journey. Integration of these approaches with peer support programs such as the <a href="http://www.mentalhealthcrc.com/education/write-smarter-feel-better">Write Smarter Feel Better</a> program developed by the CRC for Mental Health provides a win-win to reduce loneliness on the journey to a PhD, and turn surviving into thriving.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/106608/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Mindfulness exercises can help PhD students manage the stress of completing their thesis.Karen Barry, Senior Lecturer, Plant Pathology, University of TasmaniaEmma Warnecke, Associate Professor, Director, Student Development and Support, School of Medicine, University of Tasmania, University of TasmaniaMegan Woods, Senior Lecturer in Management, Tasmanian School of Business and Economics, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/970462018-06-25T13:40:47Z2018-06-25T13:40:47ZWhat happens to your body when you’re stressed – and how breathing can help<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/221548/original/file-20180604-175425-je9dwo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Stress can make us superhuman but it's also our kryptonite.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Stress is great. It makes us faster, stronger, more agile and our brains have better recall and flexibility. That’s why people are willing to put themselves in <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-build-a-mentally-healthy-workplace-step-by-step-65826">stressful work situations</a> or engage in <a href="https://theconversation.com/adrenaline-zen-what-normal-people-can-learn-from-extreme-sports-72944">extreme sports</a>. </p>
<p>The problem is that uncontrolled, stress can leave us frozen to the spot and unable to think – something all too familiar for people having to speak in public or students sitting in the exam hall.</p>
<p>Stress developed because it gives an <a href="http://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/human-evolution.html">evolutionary advantage</a>. For early man, and with predators everywhere, food could be scarce and diseases prevalent. By understanding what is happening inside our bodies and why, we can learn to control stress and use it our advantage.</p>
<h2>Your body, when stressed</h2>
<p>When you’re feeling stressed, it’s a sign that your body is going into emergency mode. The turbo button is pressed, the engine of your body has roared into overdrive and you become superhuman. This means becoming ultra vigilant, able to react quickly and increase memory recall, and to remember every aspect of what you are seeing, hearing and feeling. It is this increased attention to detail that gives us the <a href="https://www.livescience.com/2117-time-slow-emergencies.html">feeling of time standing still</a>, during a car crash for instance. </p>
<p>Inside the body, a complex cascade of hormones is triggered by the release of a hormone called <a href="http://www.yourhormones.info/hormones/corticotrophin-releasing-hormone/">CRH</a> (corticotropin releasing hormone), by a small part of the brain known as the <a href="https://www.healthline.com/human-body-maps/hypothalamus">hypothalamus</a>. This results in an increase in breathing, blood pressure and heart rate, to help pump blood and oxygen <a href="https://www.bhf.org.uk/heart-health/how-a-healthy-heart-works">around the body more effectively</a>.</p>
<p>At the same time the liver breaks down more <a href="https://theconversation.com/liver-molecule-linked-to-diabetes-1876">glycogen</a>, a high energy storage substance similar to the starch in plants. It is made in the body by combining glucose (sugar) molecules – and breaking it down again produces the glucose that our bodies actually use for energy.</p>
<p>Blood is moved from other areas of your body to <a href="http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/stress-body.aspx">support the muscles</a> – which show increased strength and endurance. Your immune system switches up a gear and your blood prepares itself to clot – in case you’re injured. Your brain also starts working much better – fed by the glucose and oxygen being pumped around your body. </p>
<h2>What about burnout?</h2>
<p>Like a powerful engine, when we’re stressed we burn hot, but if we do it for too long, <a href="https://theconversation.com/five-ways-to-deal-with-burnout-using-lessons-from-elite-sport-81522">we burn out</a>. In the short term, physiological changes, including increased blood pressure, higher levels of glucose in our blood and decreased appetite, are important adaptations, which normally cause little damage to the body. But <a href="http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/understanding-chronic-stress.aspx">chronic stress</a> can result in a suppressed immune system, diabetes, heart attacks, strokes and a range of other conditions.</p>
<p>Our bodies do their best to only use these stress adaptations when they are most needed – maximising the benefit and minimising the potential for damage. But despite this, the body tends towards stress, given its potential <a href="https://hbr.org/2016/08/how-to-use-stress-to-your-advantage">advantage in our survival</a>.</p>
<h2>Breathing to control stress</h2>
<p>One of the simplest things you can do to relieve stress is to breathe – something we all know how to do. The presence of breathing techniques in both <a href="https://breathmeditation.org/the-buddhist-tradition-of-breath-meditation">traditional meditation techniques</a> and modern relaxation methods reflects the importance of taking deep breaths. The immediate impact of doing this can be seen in the reduced production of one of the stress hormones, noradrenaline. Levels of cortisol, another stress hormone, will also start to reduce.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/221550/original/file-20180604-175411-azlawu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/221550/original/file-20180604-175411-azlawu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/221550/original/file-20180604-175411-azlawu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/221550/original/file-20180604-175411-azlawu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/221550/original/file-20180604-175411-azlawu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=559&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/221550/original/file-20180604-175411-azlawu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=559&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/221550/original/file-20180604-175411-azlawu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=559&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Knowing how to calm yourself when things get too much, is an important skill.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
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<p><a href="http://science.sciencemag.org/content/355/6332/1411">Research</a> by scientists in the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, at Stanford University, have now identified that these changes are linked to a group of nerves in our brains called the “pre-Bötzinger complex”, which regulates our breathing. The scientists found that changes in the expression of certain genes in these nerves – which are physically connected to critical areas in the brain associated with relaxation, attention, excitement and panic – can calm an individual. The clear implication being that changes in breathing directly affect stress levels.</p>
<p>Modern meditation techniques are epitomised in the concept of <a href="https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-depression/mindfulness/">mindfulness</a>, which brings together these breathing techniques and the idea of “living in the moment”, putting concerns for the past and future into context. Psychologically, this helps to reduce the level of anticipation associated with unnecessary forward planning and concerns, while physically reducing important stress hormones.</p>
<p>By learning simple coping strategies, understanding what makes us stressed, keeping stress at manageable levels through breathing techniques, and taking regular breaks from it, we can begin to learn to use stress to our advantage, rather than letting it control us.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/97046/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michael Porter does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Deep breathing is one of the simplest ways to deal with stress.Michael Porter, Lecturer in Molecular Genetics, University of Central LancashireLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/907862018-03-16T17:09:25Z2018-03-16T17:09:25ZSix common misconceptions about meditation<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/210798/original/file-20180316-104642-9ixz1t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">This isn't the only way to meditate.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/beautiful-woman-lotus-position-meditating-by-467205314?src=MIwkwnF87j_m5YEM1CMiTg-1-80">Microgen/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Meditation has been hailed as a way to boost <a href="https://theconversation.com/beyond-spirituality-the-role-of-meditation-in-mental-health-4326">mental health</a>, help <a href="https://theconversation.com/mindfulness-meditation-offers-help-with-the-travails-of-chronic-illness-1197">chronic pain</a>, <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2017/01/24/mindfulness-meditation-lowers-stress-hormone-decreases-inflammation/">reduce stress</a> and build a new appreciation for the world around us. </p>
<p>But even with all this interest, misconceptions about what this ancient practice can do for human health and well-being are still circulating. </p>
<h2>1. There is only one type of meditation</h2>
<p>Only some meditations involve sitting quietly with legs crossed. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2008/jul/06/healthandwellbeing.relaxation21">Qi Gong</a> and <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1744388110000824">Tai Chi</a>, for example, focus on meditative movement. This combines a relaxed but alert state of mind with slow movements and gentle breathing. Others, like <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=NMEtDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT8&dq=dusana+dorjee&ots=C5YcwkOdpg&sig=00ZPsfjQmNL4nQYGSLO_UY9tTtA#v=onepage&q=dusana%20dorjee&f=false">Tibetan Buddhist meditation</a> involve visualisations and/or mantras. There is also “thinking meditation” where one reflects on topics such as <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=9VSlGKoL3iIC&oi=fnd&pg=PT10&dq=Khandro+Rinpoche&ots=eTDgMP8Vj_&sig=2rLR8Zf1rIZJv-6H-_L4604FhMQ#v=onepage&q=Khandro%20Rinpoche&f=false">impermanence</a>, while staying relaxed yet focused and reflective.</p>
<p>Many types also encourage bringing meditation into ordinary daily activities – such as mindful <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12671-014-0360-9?wt_mc=Affiliate.CommissionJunction.Authors.3.EPR1089.DeepLink&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=commission_junction_authors&utm_campaign=3_nsn6445_deeplink&utm_content=deeplink&utm_term=3987228">dish washing</a> involving paying attention to the sensations of the water and hand movements. Similarly, there is eating meditation, where one expresses gratitude for the food and wishes for others less fortunate.</p>
<h2>2. It’s all about being still and quiet</h2>
<p>Stable non-reactive attention is developed in all meditation types, but it is particularly targeted in <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.3758/CABN.7.2.109">mindfulness practices</a>. Other meditation types cultivate qualities such as <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=WvClrjplnbcC&oi=fnd&pg=PA8&dq=Wallace+four+immeasurables&ots=uUiPS_fprc&sig=J00FVktI8Ig7f9ypJesN7HxL1mA#v=onepage&q=Wallace%20four%20immeasurables&f=false">compassion, generosity or forgiveness</a>. Another form – sometimes called <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4595910/">deconstructive meditation</a> – specifically develops contemplative insight into the working and nature of our minds. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/210796/original/file-20180316-104694-q64qgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/210796/original/file-20180316-104694-q64qgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/210796/original/file-20180316-104694-q64qgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/210796/original/file-20180316-104694-q64qgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/210796/original/file-20180316-104694-q64qgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/210796/original/file-20180316-104694-q64qgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/210796/original/file-20180316-104694-q64qgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Tai Chi in practice.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/young-woman-praticing-tai-chi-chuan-592443896?src=QDjMU5kgcIaXyCb468-2ag-1-11">Ulza/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>Meditation training typically progresses from practices which stabilise attention to cultivating compassion and other related qualities, then insight. Importantly, at each of these <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=KXK_AAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=dusana+dorjee+mind,+brain&ots=qdlYgLg_Pq&sig=7uwVRIyXXxkYDRY-o0ZxaDIcnMQ#v=onepage&q=dusana%20dorjee%20mind%2C%20brain&f=false">stages</a> the meditator reflects on their motivation and intentions for the practice, which is likely to affect the outcomes too. While some may meditate to reduce anxiety or back pain, others seek spiritual awakening, for example. </p>
<h2>3. You have to be able to “empty the mind”</h2>
<p>While meditating does often involve quieting of the mind, this doesn’t mean the mind goes blank. Meditation involves developing the ability to observe one’s <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cpp.700/full">thoughts, emotions and sensations</a> with the quality of non-reactivity – that is being able to notice and pause rather than react – and develop a wider compassionate perspective. </p>
<p>The idea that one needs to empty the mind has probably come from misunderstandings about some advanced meditation types such as <a href="http://wisdomquarterly.blogspot.co.uk/2010/04/meditative-absorption-first-jhana.html">meditative absorptions</a>, <a href="https://www.mixcloud.com/alanwallacefall2012retreatpodc/91-awareness-of-awareness-1/">awareness of awareness</a> practices or some <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?hl=en&lr=&id=NMEtDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT8&dq=dorjee+neuroscience&ots=C5YcwkPelb&sig=Ah-lAyBNGme_SBUC1fRJQBmyrik#v=onepage&q=dorjee%20neuroscience&f=false">Dzogchen</a> meditations. These are accompanied by very few ordinary thoughts, sensations and emotions. But even with limited thinking, these meditative states have qualities of ease, clarity, compassion, alertness and reflective awareness. Forcefully trying to limit thinking would be unhealthy at any stage of meditation training.</p>
<h2>4. Meditation will put you at ease from day one</h2>
<p>Meditation isn’t simply a smooth ride to a quiet mind. Increased awareness of <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cpp.700/full">unhealthy mental habits</a> and behaviour is common at the beginning of practice, and during transitions towards more advanced stages of meditation. These challenging experiences can actually give rise to some <a href="http://deanehshapirojr.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Adverse-Effect-of-Meditation.pdf">adverse effects</a> – such as increased anxiety or disorientation. This is why it is important to practice under the guidance of an experienced and qualified meditation teacher who is able to provide advice on how to work with such experiences.</p>
<h2>5. We know all there is to know about the benefits</h2>
<p>Research has already supported the benefits of some types of meditation on things like <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140673614622224">depression</a> and to some extent <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/1809754?wptouch_preview_theme=enabled">stress reduction</a>. However, some other common claims aren’t backed up by scientific research. There is mixed or insufficient evidence on the effects of meditation <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1359105315569095">on reduction in stress hormone levels</a>, for example, and on <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/nyas.13082/full">ageing</a> too.</p>
<p>Though research into how meditation affects the human brain continues, at present our understanding of the long-term effects of meditation is very limited. Most studies tend to follow the effects of meditation from before to after an eight-week course, or one-month retreat, rather than years or potentially a lifetime of meditation.</p>
<p>Neither have the benefits been defined by type of meditation. Different meditation styles – and even <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12671-010-0016-3">different types of mindfulness</a> – have different forms and aims and so might have different impacts on human psychology and physiology.</p>
<h2>6. It is only for reducing pain, stress or anxiety</h2>
<p>The aim of meditation in its traditional context – including and beyond Buddhism – has been the exploration of meaning and purpose in life, and connecting with deeper <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01788/full">existential awareness</a>. This core aspect is often neglected in the current teaching. Research mostly – <a href="http://www.psyneuen-journal.com/article/S0306-4530(10)00243-X/abstract">but not always</a> – focuses on immediate health benefits of meditation, rather than existential well-being.</p>
<p>The existential awareness dimension of meditation practice is closely intertwined with the motivation and intentions behind meditation practice. So if we want to truly understand meditation, perhaps there needs to be a greater focus on this essential aspect. Learning more about this would also help address some <a href="http://www.stressless.org.nz/uploads/5/4/9/2/54921403/beyond_mindfulness.pdf">current concerns</a> about the use of meditation techniques outside traditional contexts as a means to increase productivity and reduce stress.</p>
<p>Meditation certainly has potential to contribute to our health and well-being, and its real power is still unexplored and unharnessed. If you are considering taking on or continuing with meditation practice, do your research and work out which practice (under proper guidance) will work best for you personally.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/90786/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dusana Dorjee has received funding in support of her research on meditation from the British Academy, the Mind and Life Institute and the ESRC. She also works for a community interest company providing training on a mindfulness and well being course for primary schools. </span></em></p>There’s far more to meditation that sitting peacefully with crossed legs.Dusana Dorjee, Honorary Lecturer, Bangor UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/899622018-01-24T19:16:06Z2018-01-24T19:16:06ZWhy we should put yoga in the Australian school curriculum<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202027/original/file-20180116-53310-1dblfsi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Given the evidence base, offering mindfulness based yoga programs in schools may help young people learn to manage stress.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><hr>
<p><em>This <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/back-to-school-2018-48951">series</a> draws on the latest research on back to school transitions. In it, the experts explain how best to prepare children for school, and counter difficulties such as stress or bad behaviour.</em></p>
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<p>Young people in Australia experience very high stress in schools, which has negative impacts on their academic performance and mental health. It is crucial schools teach students how to identify and best manage stress. These skills will continue to benefit them throughout their lives. </p>
<p>Adolescence is <a href="http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(12)60072-5/abstract">a critical stage at which to intervene</a> as health-related behaviours established during this period <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257754111_Tracking_of_Physical_Activity_from_Early_Childhood_through_Youth_into_Adulthood">are often carried into adulthood</a>. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25773322">School-based stress management programs</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4600929/">such as mindfulness based yoga programs</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26919395">have been shown to be effective</a> in the United States. Similar programs would benefit Australian school children.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-mindfulness-nobody-really-knows-and-thats-a-problem-83295">What is mindfulness? Nobody really knows, and that's a problem</a>
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<h2>Australian school kids are highly stressed</h2>
<p><a href="http://www.keepeek.com/Digital-Asset-Management/oecd/education/are-students-happy_3512d7ae-en#.Wl51C5NdI00#page1">Nearly half (47%) of Australian students feel very tense</a> when they study, compared to the international average of 37%.</p>
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<p>Based on the OECD average, 67% of Australian students report feeling very anxious even if well prepared for a test, compared to the international average of 56% <a href="http://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/docserver/download/9817021e.pdf?expires=1516332128&id=id&accname=guest&checksum=07DA4E9802C5845EC52A54E749E9907D">(64% for girls and 47% for boys)</a>. </p>
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<p>In the 50% of young people in years seven to 12 who report feeling moderately to extremely stressed over exams, the number one source of pressure <a href="https://about.au.reachout.com/parents-reach-out-at-exam-time-to-beat-study-stress-2017/">comes from themselves</a>. Coping with stress <a href="https://www.missionaustralia.com.au/what-we-do/research-evaluation/youth-survey">is a top issue of concern to young people</a>.</p>
<h2>The impact of school stress on young Australians and society</h2>
<p><strong>Drop out</strong></p>
<p>School related academic <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01443410.2010.513959">stress</a> and <a href="https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/jjep1953/46/4/46_442/_article">burnout</a> <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1041608015000382">decreases student academic motivation</a> and <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0190740914001261">increases the risk for dropout</a>. </p>
<p>Australian <a href="http://www.mitchellinstitute.org.au/reports/costs-of-lost-opportunity/">early school leavers earn approximately A$27,500 less a year than school completers</a>. People with higher rates of education <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/getmedia/0cbc6c45-b97a-44f7-ad1f-2517a1f0378c/hiamhbrfhsu.pdf.aspx?inline=true">report fewer illnesses and better mental health and well-being</a>. </p>
<p>In 2014, there were almost 38,000 early school leavers aged 19, <a href="http://www.mitchellinstitute.org.au/reports/costs-of-lost-opportunity/">costing Australia A$315 million a year</a>. Dropping out can also have wider social impacts, like <a href="https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED501899">repeated inter-generational problems</a> of low academic outcomes, <a href="http://www.voced.edu.au/content/ngv%3A26783">unemployment</a>, poverty, less participation in the political process and contribution to the community. </p>
<p><strong>Academic achievement</strong></p>
<p>In Australia, students with low well-being <a href="https://docs.education.gov.au/system/files/doc/other/scoping_study_into_approaches_to_student_wellbeing_final_report.pdf">are likely to have poorer academic achievement</a>. Frequent positive emotions during class are associated with <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/pits.20306/abstract">more student engagement</a>, while negative emotions are associated with less engagement in years seven to ten. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14499305">Stress</a> can also <a href="http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.clinpsy.1.102803.143948">impair mental health</a> which <a href="http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.clinpsy.1.102803.143948https://www.intechopen.com/books/a-fresh-look-at-anxiety-disorders/impact-of-anxiety-and-depression-symptoms-on-scholar-performance-in-high-school-and-university-stude">further reduces academic performance</a>. </p>
<p>In high school, people experiencing depression symptoms have <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25598650">poorer educational achievement</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20606058">concentration difficulties, troubles completing school tasks</a>, and trouble <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140197107000929">with social relationships, self-learning, reading and writing</a> as well as <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/pits.20300/full">higher rates of risky behaviour</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202248/original/file-20180117-53317-14bqp86.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202248/original/file-20180117-53317-14bqp86.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202248/original/file-20180117-53317-14bqp86.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202248/original/file-20180117-53317-14bqp86.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202248/original/file-20180117-53317-14bqp86.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202248/original/file-20180117-53317-14bqp86.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202248/original/file-20180117-53317-14bqp86.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Stress is linked to poorer academic performance.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The impact of stress and poor stress management follows young people into higher education. In 83% of Australian TAFE and undergraduate students, <a href="https://www.headspace.org.au/assets/Uploads/headspace-NUS-Publication-Digital.pdf">the main factor affecting people’s studies was stress</a>. </p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29246231">US undergraduates</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10336754">perceived stress</a> and higher anxiety about exams <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/232558235_Test_Anxiety_and_Academic_Performance_in_Undergraduate_and_Graduate_Students">translates to poorer final grades and academic performance</a>.</p>
<p><strong>Risky behaviour</strong></p>
<p>Substance use has been <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01028/full">shown</a> to be a dominant stress management strategy in year 11 students in the US. In Canada, students who felt connected to their school <a href="https://secure.cihi.ca/estore/productFamily.htm?pf=PFC540&lang=fr&media=0">report</a> better health, higher self-worth, less anxiety and less likelihood of smoking, drinking alcohol and associating with peers who commit crimes. </p>
<p>Academic resilience and buoyancy increases the likelihood of success in school <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022440507000131">despite setbacks, stress or pressure in the academic setting</a>. Resilient and buoyant students <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1041608013001118">are able to maintain high levels of achievement</a>, <a href="https://www.scholarcentric.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/SC_Resiliency_Academic_Performance_WP.pdf">despite stressful events</a>. </p>
<h2>Schools can better support students with yoga programs</h2>
<p>Schools can change educational policies and practices to <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-4614-2018-7_25">address the needs of students</a> <a href="https://www.ccyp.wa.gov.au/media/1422/report-education-children-at-risk-of-disengaging-from-school-literature-review.pdf">at risk of academic failure</a>. Student stress levels relate to how supportive they feel their teachers and schools are, rather than the number of school hours or the frequency of tests, <a href="https://www.oecd.org/pisa/pisa-2015-results-in-focus.pdf">according to an OECD survey</a>.</p>
<p>The practice of yoga and mindfulness <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3410203/">has become popular</a> in recent years <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17718647">as a form of stress management</a> in Australia. These practices <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28963884">decrease physiological markers of stress</a> <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28863392">in diverse populations</a>. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-yoga-makes-us-happy-according-to-science-77840">How yoga makes us happy, according to science</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>There is no definitive classification of yoga, but <a href="https://www.oupjapan.co.jp/en/node/2171?language=en">common elements</a> are: </p>
<ul>
<li><p>controlled breathing </p></li>
<li><p>meditative techniques </p></li>
<li><p>asanas (the physical yoga postures or positions)</p></li>
<li><p><a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.ez.library.latrobe.edu.au/doi/10.1093/clipsy.bph077/full">mindfulness practice</a>, which is the process of focusing awareness on the present moment and acknowledging and accepting feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations, in a non-judgmental way. </p></li>
</ul>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202249/original/file-20180117-53317-eszp6i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202249/original/file-20180117-53317-eszp6i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=310&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202249/original/file-20180117-53317-eszp6i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=310&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202249/original/file-20180117-53317-eszp6i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=310&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202249/original/file-20180117-53317-eszp6i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=389&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202249/original/file-20180117-53317-eszp6i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=389&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202249/original/file-20180117-53317-eszp6i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=389&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Studies show yoga improves self-image and management of negative emothions.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Mindfulness-based communication <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02673843.2016.1175361">improves resilience in first-year college students</a>, while students who take part in some moderate or vigorous physical activity are less likely to report they <a href="http://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/docserver/download/9817021e.pdf?expires=1516148072&id=id&accname=guest&checksum=4CCF64D1F8C38D49CA1AD5CD9A6402E5">feel very anxious about schoolwork</a>. </p>
<p>In high school settings, studies from the US and India show mindfulness based yoga programs <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mbe.12107/abstract">can improve grades</a> or <a href="https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2015/259814/">mitigate decreases in grades across the school year</a>, <a href="https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2015/794928/">improve emotional regulation</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3968701/">improve memory</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21647811">anger control and fatigue/inertia</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22343481">improve mood and decrease anxiety</a>. </p>
<p>A <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23643372">qualitative study</a> showed yoga improves self-image and management of negative emotions and optimism. Students think yoga could reduce interest in the use of drugs and alcohol and increase social cohesion with family and peers. </p>
<p>At home, parents can consider practising mindfulness together with their kids, and can access a range of mindfulness and meditation online programs and apps for young people, such as through <a href="https://www.headspace.com/">Headspace</a> and <a href="https://www.smilingmind.com.au/?gclid=CjwKCAiA4vbSBRBNEiwAMorER_twGZSXmdEMYaCUqtXSkIWibJu2NzF9IUmpFvrBwTHYR0X3j9FycxoCABUQAvD_BwE">Smiling Mind</a>.</p>
<p>Given the evidence base, offering mindfulness based yoga programs in schools may help young people learn to manage stress and increase their ability to bounce back in response to stress.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/89962/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michaela Pascoe does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Yoga and mindfulness programs in schools have been proven to mitigate or reduce some of the negative impacts of stress on academic achievement and future outcomes.Michaela Pascoe, Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Exercise and Mental Health, Victoria UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/879792017-12-12T14:26:07Z2017-12-12T14:26:07ZDreading conflict during the holidays? Let it go, let it go, let it go<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/195918/original/file-20171122-6061-lau1nt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Happiness is possible during the holidays.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/happy-woman-raising-arms-on-winter-251459962?src=1u9yTTjJL6OrZg-QcjAGIQ-1-62">Antonio Guillem/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Every holiday season, families and friends convene to share affection, kindness and experience. In the ideal holiday atmosphere, one often depicted in commercials and media, such get-togethers are places of warmth, appreciation and general happiness.</p>
<p>If you find yourself in such a family, count yourself lucky and blessed. </p>
<p>If your holiday is marked with stress and difficulty, then you may be part of the rest of America, where the holiday season brings real issues to light in addition to the positive experiences of the season.</p>
<p>In my day-to-day work as a psychologist, specializing in mental health therapy with young adults, the holidays always bring to bear deep-seated issues. For many, family is something they have avoided by moving away for college, and thus coming home for the holidays forces them to engage in what they do not want to do and have successfully avoided for months. For the ill-equipped person, this sets the stage for disaster and even poor health. <a href="https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/stress/index.shtml">Long-term stress</a> has been linked to digestive problems, heart disease, sadness and depression. Some studies have shown that people undergoing stress have more viral infections. </p>
<p>Fortunately, we can prepare ourselves for these encounters, go into them with open eyes and perhaps manage them better.</p>
<h2>The power of acceptance</h2>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/196563/original/file-20171127-2021-afgxua.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/196563/original/file-20171127-2021-afgxua.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/196563/original/file-20171127-2021-afgxua.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/196563/original/file-20171127-2021-afgxua.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/196563/original/file-20171127-2021-afgxua.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/196563/original/file-20171127-2021-afgxua.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/196563/original/file-20171127-2021-afgxua.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Trying to control another person’s drinking is impossible.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/drunk-business-man-santa-hat-alcohol-206073064?src=RPCx24jpAD6k7ERqXehubg-1-21">Marcos Mesa Sam Wordley/Shutterstock.com</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>I work with people who often say things like “If only my dad didn’t drink too much,” “I wish my mom would accept how I choose to live my life,” “I need my brother to stop teasing me all the time.”</p>
<p>While it is true that these statements reflect deeply held desires and such changes would bring drastic amounts of relief to the person’s life, there is also a reason these events have not occurred or changes have been made. </p>
<p>I call this the “rejecting reality” standpoint, and all humans get held back by it. We spend years longing for a reality that is not true. A mom who doesn’t care about our weight, a dad who will express his affection toward us, a sibling who doesn’t take his own issues out on us. Under the rejecting reality mindset, we enter our homes for the holidays full of hope this time will be different, only to be disappointed for another year. </p>
<p>And what happens when we are hurt? We withdraw or lash out, causing more conflict. Such a cycle may exist in your family dynamics for years if you start to closely examine it.</p>
<p>The alternative, then, is to begin to cultivate what I term the “acceptance mindset.” This mindset involves dealing with exactly what is true, what is factual and what is realistic rather than all the things that we wish could be. Such a mindset involves opening ourselves to the pain involved in fully realizing our less-than-ideal lives. It means I will go to holiday dinner knowing full well my brother is going to tease me or my mom is going to comment on my appearance. Entering with this reality makes us less reactive and more capable of choosing what if anything we want to do about this dynamic.</p>
<h2>To change or let go</h2>
<p>I teach my clients a life skill called the “letting go process.” It involves three steps:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Notice and allow an experience to be there.</p></li>
<li><p>Decide if the experience is useful or not.</p></li>
<li><p>If useful, do something about it. If not, let it go.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Such a process has to be utilized continually during the holidays, when we are often once again confronted with dynamics and personalities we try to escape in our day-to-day lives. </p>
<p>So what does this look like in practice? </p>
<p>Jane is going home for a week to be with her family for the holidays. She is already dreading the trip, and in particular having to interact with her mother, who Jane knows will comment on her weight gain and criticize her for being single. </p>
<p>So, using the letting go system, when Jane arrives and Mom asks her why Jane looks fatter than the last time Mom saw her, Jane:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Notices her hurt and frustrations with Mom after the comment and adopts the attitude of being ok having these feelings in the moment.</p></li>
<li><p>Considers the usefulness of the feelings.</p></li>
<li><p>Decides on whether to go a “change” route or a “let go” route.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>The change route would involve engaging in a behavior to address the experience she is having: namely, Mom’s comments toward her. Jane could take an assertive stance and respond with an “I statement” such as “I feel really upset when you comment on my weight and I would appreciate it if you refrained from doing so for the rest of the time I am home.”</p>
<p>At this point we do not know how Mom will respond, but we focus less on that outcome and instead on the process of what Jane can control. The process here is Jane’s own behavior in response to Mom. Mom may get defensive or angry, but Jane can feel good that she is standing up for herself.</p>
<p>Alternatively, Jane could also choose to go the letting go route. By being able to notice her hurt and frustration in the moment, Jane becomes less reactive and is better able to not engage with Mom in an argument like has happened in the past. Jane is able to respond to Mom in a different way, or possibly not at all, changing the subject entirely. </p>
<p>Jane could simply respond by asking Mom how she is doing or acknowledge that yes, she has gained weight. Jane is able to prevent her reaction from further escalating the possible conflict in the moment. This may seem overly simplistic, but with practice we can better let go of things that used to catch us and trap us into acting in unproductive ways.</p>
<h2>Putting it into practice</h2>
<p>As you head into your holiday events, take a minute to notice what thoughts, feelings and urges come up for you. This is just information, and all of it can help us prepare a plan. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/196564/original/file-20171127-2042-exo8gc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/196564/original/file-20171127-2042-exo8gc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/196564/original/file-20171127-2042-exo8gc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/196564/original/file-20171127-2042-exo8gc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/196564/original/file-20171127-2042-exo8gc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/196564/original/file-20171127-2042-exo8gc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/196564/original/file-20171127-2042-exo8gc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">We have choices in life about which path to take.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/hiker-man-choose-road-fork-between-290828405?src=ofo3pAtXV1YGax7fpGvIyA-2-20">Aitormmfoto/Shutterstock.com</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>With this information available to you ahead of time, consider which route you want to go. Do you need to go a change route and address an issue, or do you need to let it go as something out of your control? You will now be more fully able to accomplish whichever route you choose.</p>
<p>And just because something did not go well the first time you did it does not mean it cannot go well the next time. So even if Mom didn’t respect your wishes last time, it may be worth it to try it again, even if the reward is just that you can feel good about the process of being assertive for yourself.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/87979/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nicholas Joyce does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>We all know the holidays can be stressful, but we may not realize that we often continue the cycle. Here’s how to let things go and enjoy the holidays instead of dreading them.Nicholas Joyce, Psychologist, University of South FloridaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/751682017-03-30T02:17:24Z2017-03-30T02:17:24ZWhy there’s more to fixing health care than the health care laws<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/162982/original/image-20170328-3815-6i601h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Family practicing mindfulness together.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/father-daughter-on-morning-gymnastics-152266862?src=EPCRTG0FuhgNNg4a_pqUSg-2-45">From www.shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>There is so much <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/24/us/politics/health-care-affordable-care-act.html">debate</a> currently about how best to provide health insurance coverage in our country that we risk losing sight of what it really means to be healthy and of how health care should be optimally provided. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.who.int/about/mission/en/">World Health Organization defines health</a> as “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” For the most part, the current health care delivery system conceptualizes disease as derangement in one part or a few parts of the human body, which is likened to a machine with smaller and smaller fixable parts. </p>
<p>Disease treatment in conventional medicine primarily relies on the use of medications or invasive interventions to treat the dysfunctional body part(s). It generally does not address the health of the whole person at the root level. Such a peripheral approach to health care overlooks the fundamental causes of disease and misses opportunities to realize true healing and health. </p>
<p>To achieve truly successful health care, we need to emphasize the primacy of healing the whole person on a fundamental level. This will catalyze a paradigm shift in the way health care is provided and consumed. Research has shown that such an <a href="https://nccih.nih.gov/health/integrative-health">integrative medicine approach,</a> which considers the mind-body connection, lifestyle choice, social and environmental influence, individuality of body constitution and the therapeutic relationship, not only yields good health outcomes but is cost-effective as well.</p>
<p>As a professor of medicine and a practicing geriatrician and integrative medicine physician, I see on a regular basis the inadequacies of the current medical paradigm in addressing the chronic conditions often observed in aging. But I am inspired, as often, by the power of a whole-person approach to health restoration and creation. </p>
<h2>Evidence expands on benefit of mind-body connection</h2>
<p>Modern medical advances have led to the discovery of lifesaving therapies. However, for most people with chronic medical conditions, is taking daily multiple medications the optimal long-term solution to maintain health? Should we accept the spending of hundreds of dollars a month on treatments that might not truly cure diseases as the inevitable path of health care in the 21st century? </p>
<p>Clinical training in medical school and residency focuses on fixing those parts of the body that are seen as diseased. By contrast, focusing on healing the whole person on a fundamental level means addressing the underlying interplay of lifestyle choices and psychological and social factors that ultimately contribute to health or disease. To heal the whole person, a paradigm shift in health care delivery is needed, in which the primary focus is on healthful lifestyle choices that create true health of mind and body. </p>
<p>Evidence from clinical research has already given us a glimpse of how a wholesome, mind-and-body healing approach leads to changes in the body, which are measurable with laboratory tests and lead to better health outcomes. In a randomized, controlled trial led by Dr. Dean Ornish, <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022534701685185">men with early stage prostate cancer who followed a lifestyle change program</a> that included a plant-based diet, meditation, yoga-based stretching and moderate aerobic exercise had decreased blood PSA levels overall. Men who did not follow the program had increased PSA levels (suggesting progression of prostate cancer) and were more likely to undergo conventional cancer treatment.</p>
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<p>Remarkably, blood from these men who made lifestyle changes <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022534701685185">inhibited the growth of prostate cancer cells in the laboratory</a> almost eight times more than the blood from men who did not make changes, suggesting that lifestyle changes resulted in the presence of substances in the blood that have anti-cancer effects. </p>
<p>Shorter telomeres (regions with protective functions at the ends of chromosomes, and the subject of a <a href="http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/2009/">2009 Nobel Prize</a>) are associated with aging and disease, and men with early prostate cancer who made lifestyle changes favorably <a href="http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/article/PIIS1470-2045(13)70366-8/abstract">increased the telomere lengths</a> in their blood cells over five years, while men who did not make lifestyle changes had decreased telomere lengths.</p>
<p>In taking care of people with diabetes, I have repeatedly witnessed the reversal of elevated blood sugar levels in those who make earnest dietary and lifestyle changes, without the need to take any diabetes medications or with a much-reduced need for medications. Lifestyle changes (in a program covered by Medicare and major insurance carriers) have been shown to <a href="http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/188274">reverse the atherosclerotic narrowing of coronary arteries</a> (blood vessels supplying the heart) in people with coronary artery disease, which can lead to heart attacks. </p>
<p>Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn’s work also demonstrates that <a href="http://www.ajconline.org/article/S0002-9149(10)01055-6/abstract">a rigorous whole-food, plant-based diet can reverse coronary artery disease</a>, the leading cause of death worldwide.</p>
<p>Also, a growing body of research evidence supports the benefits of mindfulness practices on physical and emotional well-being. Importantly, the effects of mindfulness practices can also be measured by objective laboratory tests. In a study involving breast cancer survivors, mindfulness meditation <a href="http://ascopubs.org/doi/full/10.1200/JCO.2015.65.7874">improved fatigue and reduced fear of recurrence</a>. </p>
<p>While it is not surprising that <a href="http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/1809754">mindfulness meditation reduces anxiety</a>, an eight-week mindfulness meditation practice led to <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3004979/">increased density in the left hippocampus</a>, a region of the brain involved in memory (and damaged in individuals with Alzheimer’s disease). Mindfulness meditation also resulted in improved responses of the immune system to <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12883106">influenza vaccine</a>. A review study found that the practice of tai chi, which combines meditation with slow, graceful movements and deep breathing, is associated with <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4055508/">improved memory-related function</a> in both healthy older adults and those with memory impairment. </p>
<p>Such holistic approaches to health also reduce health care costs. A study by Harvard researchers showed that a mind and body training program <a href="http://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/stress-busting-mind-body-medicine-reduces-need-for-health-care-201510168450">reduced the need to utilize health care resources</a> by 43 percent after one year and decreased emergency department visits by half. </p>
<p>In a Medicare-sponsored demonstration study, patients with coronary artery disease who participated in lifestyle change programs were hospitalized less often (by 30-46 percent) than those who did not participate in such programs, and the lifestyle-change participation resulted in health care cost savings of <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S000287031300075">US$1,000-$3,500 per patient</a> over three years.</p>
<h2>We all have a role to play in our health</h2>
<p>The concepts discussed here are not new. The field of <a href="https://nccih.nih.gov">integrative health and medicine</a>, which champions healing of the whole person in mind and body and views health and disease through the unique bio-psychosocial determinants of each person, has much to teach the remainder of the health care system about how best to treat disease at the root of the problem, prevent disease and create health. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.nap.edu/read/10027/chapter/1">Institute of Medicine (now the National Academy of Medicine) had already warned</a>, more than a decade ago, that the current health care system is inadequate in addressing the needs of the aging population and the growing epidemic of chronic diseases. A fundamental change in how all of us (health care consumers and health care providers alike) view health and disease is direly needed to usher in the health care system of the 21st century that we all have the right to have.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/75168/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>George Wang does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>With changes to health care insurance on hold, now may be a good time to focus not on health insurance but on health. More and more studies show that we do have some control over that. Here’s how.George Wang, Assistant Professor of Medicine, Columbia UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.