Please summarize what you read. After summarizing, you can reflect on the following questions to guide the rest of your writing, but you should not just list and answer them. What did you find most interesting? Most confusing? What do you want to learn more about? Is there any information that you find dubious or that you are suspicious of? You do not need to explicitly answer these, rather, I'm interested in your summary, and ultimately your thoughts and insight on these readings.
Please list the main key words you used in your post.
I felt like this chapter was even more terrible than the last. It’s getting hard for me to read about when I feel like I have read already read the same stuff last time, and the time before. I love the science behind meditation and all its many aspects and everything about it, I just want to learn something entirely new to the subject. I feel like some of this chapter was predictable. I feel terrible for saying this, it’s a great book. Just a lot of the same material as others. However I found a few interesting things. The first sentence I found interesting in chapter six was one that stated, “…the fact that science of meditation is fundamentally a science of conscious experiences.” I’m not sure why, I have most likely read similar statements though all the readings, but this time it stood out. This first section of this book felt predictable. It repeated a vast amount of information we have already learned multiple times before and was a bit boring. Next came the “Mind-Body Problem”. The mind-body problem described in this chapter is not the mind-body problem I foolishly thought it would be. Instead, it is described as it refers to questions related to the relationship between the nature of our bodies and the consciousness of our brains. Differences with the mind-body problem contrast between Western science and Buddhism when looking at the view of ontology. Ontology, describes what is believed to exist and is able to be studied in a scientific way. So, in relation to this, most Western science does not believe in “life after death or reincarnation”. Those of Dzogchen techniques do. Believing that consciousness continues to exist and is re born even after a passed individual is considered to be brain dead. The next section, Secular Mindfulness-Based Approaches and the Pyramid of Mind Training in Dzogchen, explains in the beginning that mindfulness-based approaches are based to enhance well-being. It does so by introducing and acknowledging an aray of new skills and relating the learned skills to challenges. As well as enhancing the awareness and attention as we have already previously learned about. One new aspect of this training was that it is done so though nine different stages. If I remember right from the reading, they are all based on specific skills or to increase specific aspects (energy balance, awareness, ..etc.) of the individual participating in the training. Dzogchen in Western Society was the next section. An interesting word I found was “yogi” (or yogini), it’s main goal is to limit the minds suffering. While yogic lineage main focus was on energy channels within the individual practicing. These practices are more than 1,200 years old and may be the most beneficial and accepted practice from Dzogchen. By transforming out mind we can not only help ourselves achieve the many benefits of these meditation practices, but our culture/society may benefit as well. I liked this thinking, transforming our nation into something better than the greedy consumer nation we are. However, the question to this is how susceptible would our nation be to such a change?
Term: mind body problem, yogi, yogini, mindfulness, well-being, balance,
This chapter talked about implication for future research in the science of meditation. As a person who is fascinated by science, specifically neuroscience, I assumed that this may be a chapter that I would enjoy reading. Alas, I was wrong. Once again, it seemed like the author used findings from the field of neuroscience to support her religion’s (for lack of a better word) tradition of meditation, and then dismissed it when it was inconvenient. The entirety of the book talks about meditation and how much one will benefit from it, while occasionally citing articles that support the association between meditation and various aspects of well-being. However, when it comes to the mind-body problem, and all neuroscience research leads to the rational assumption that the mind is a result of neurological activity, then suddenly Dusana Dorjee has a problem with Western scientific methods. I find this disappointing, as I had high hopes for this book initially. I still see that meditation has numerous benefits on well-being, including reduced stress, anxiety, and overall negative affect. I can understand the benefits of meditating, being equanimous, and especially being more mindful. I am sincerely not a fan, however, of the irrational emphasis on introspective methods and her overall reluctance to see the mind as emerging from the brain. I find it hard to take a book seriously when it advocates introspection as a scientific way of collecting data, and it’s even worse when she nonchalantly talks about reincarnation, as if somehow she expects the crazy notion to be validated by some pseudoscience. I get that reincarnation is a part of many religions of that part of the world, but as religion in general is extremely irrational, it has no place in science. This is why our scientists aren’t trying to collect objective data on some optimistic paradise in the clouds.
I did like the overall theme that meditation is meant to enhance your daily mindfulness, and thus your overall happiness. I think it is important to find an inner source of lasting happiness, as without happiness, life seems shallow and trivial. The author talked about how you should not trust material things to make you happy, as they are subject to be taken away from you. Possessions may be broken or lost, and if your happiness is a result of your possessions, then it is equally as fragile. Happiness should also not be the result of money, because money is just a number, and thus you can never be complete if you can always have more of it. I was initially confused by the fact that they said that you shouldn’t search for happiness in other people, as I assumed their teachings were all about interactions and love between one another. However, it made sense after they explained that you cannot control other people, and if you place your happiness in them, they may leave and take your happiness away. Therefore, the only lasting source of happiness comes from within. Regardless of all the other stupid stuff that this book said, this concept makes complete and total sense. Finding mental balance increases overall happiness, and that happiness cannot be taken away. I love this notion, and I am thankful that the book gave me this piece of insight.
Terms: meditation, Buddhism, neuroscience, mind-body problem, equanimity, mindfulness, happiness
This chapter talked about the future of meditation research and the process of research. It also mentioned more research projects on meditation which I found helpful because I’m trying to come up with something to do an honors project on next year. This chapter also talked about the mind-body problem which was something that interested me earlier this semester. That section also mentioned quantum physics as support for the mind-body problem which is something I researched earlier. For my exploration blog I will probably read the study it cited and see what that was all about. The next section talked about mindfulness-based approaches to Dzogchen which was all very wordy and too long and repeated the same information it gave when it specifically talked about mindfulness. The rest of the chapter mainly explained ways to merge Dzogchen and meditation into the lives of the more scientific, less metaphysical western society. It mentioned yoga, enlightenment, mental balance, and, once again, the benefits of meditation. It also quoted a “famous statement” neurons that wire together fire together” which I had never heard before.
Overall, this chapter was mostly a summary of everything mentioned in previous chapters. It was just as wordy as the other five chapters. One thing I did like about this book though was that it included a glossary which was very helpful. I really don’t have that much to say in this blog because the chapter was mostly a repeat of everything else in the book. I did like that it provided ideas to research and mentioned new studies. It gave me ideas for things I could research but I don’t think UNI has the technology required to do the neuroscientific research the book mentioned or the ideas I had. I think the future of meditation is bright. It is becoming less pseudo-scientific in western society. Yoga is very popular now and even the wellness classes I’ve taken at the WRC such as Zumba and abs classes have all recognized the importance of calming the mind and relaxing at the end of the workout. The pilates workout videos I used before Netflix got rid of them also stressed a sound mental state. Soon enough I’m sure meditation will become as popular as yoga and pilates in our society and more research will be funded and conducted.
Terms: quantum physics, mind-body problem, mindfulness, Dzogchen, yoga, enlightenment, mental-balance, meditation
This chapter talks a lot about past and current research and what that means for future research in mindfulness and meditation. One particular subject that I find interesting and that the text also labels as one of the most exciting areas of study within psychology today is neural plasticity. This subject has been studied more and more throughout the last decade and most of the results have shown definite correlates between meditation and attention and emotion processing. They found that after going through meditation training people’s levels of mindfulness and feelings of purpose in their lives increased. It also showed that their personality traits like neuroticism that involve negative emotions, decreased. Other studies have shown that the higher your score on mindfulness, the less activation that you would have in your right amygdala when being shown pictures with emotional facial expressions on them. And when participants that were trained in mindfulness watched clips of sad videos they showed an increase of activation in their somatosensory cortex and a decrease in their depression scores.
In Buddhist psychology, introspection is the underlying methodology used. However, neuroscientific evidence in meditation research is valued highly even though its approach is reductionist. The contradiction between the two approaches has caused a lot of underlying problems of what actually exists and is able to be studied. And it questions how something immaterial like our mind is able to impact our brain. This chapter also looks at Western meditation and asks the question of how effective it is when it focuses mostly on attention and emotional balance but tends to leave out motivation and the exploration of consciousness. It has been a question especially recently about how we can implement meditation practices like Dzogchen in Western society with how busy our day to day lives can be. Dzogchen has been honed and changed so that in Western culture it requires that you develop a lifestyle that allows you time to incorporate meditation into your life. This involves reducing the amount of distractions you have, implementing meditation practices into your everyday activities and routines, and also combining formal practice and even attending some retreats. This might sound easy for some people but even this narrowed list seems almost impossible for me to fit into my life.
This chapter was like a conclusion to the text and it gave a summary of the most basic results of meditation research in both Buddhism practices and Western psychology.
Terminology: neuroscientific evidence, meditation, research, mind-body problem, mindfulness, somatosensory cortex, neural plasticity, Dzogchen
Chapter six basically summed up the book, explained future research needed in meditation, the differences between secular and Dzogchen meditation, how to incorporate meditation into life in the modern world, and what enlightenment looks like. For the section on research, the author wrote that we’re currently too dependent on neuroscientific research to study what happens in the brain rather than using introspective, first person means of studying meditation. Dorjee also recommends using Dzogchen or other Buddhist philosophies as frameworks to guide research, such as using the pyramid of mind training.
As I briefly mentioned, the reading also contrasted secular and non-secular meditation. Secular forms of meditation are often working towards increases in concentration/attention and improved mental balance. Buddhist or Dzogchen meditation goes further, with its goal being achieved through separate steps leading to enlightenment and the cultivation of positively valenced emotions other than compassion.
My favorite part of the chapter was when it explained how meditation was first introduced into Tibetan society in the 700’s and how it had parallels to exposure in North America. The steps that can be taken to make a life conducive to meditation in the modern world include reducing distractions, approaching daily life in the same way as meditation, and occasionally having retreat days. For the part on distractions, I wholeheartedly agree that technology can be a huge time waster, but I believe that “superficial socialization” can be purposeful. While chit-chat may not be deep conversation, I tend to think that not every conversation can be deep and that through chit-chat we develop new relationships. With so much dependency on phones and other electronics, I feel like just getting people to participate in more “superficial socialization” face-to-face rather than on Facebook would have positive effects. Anyway, I digress. I found the retreat idea intriguing and one that I might try out one day a week meditating past the twenty-five minutes.
The section on enlightenment got me thinking about perfection and the belief that such a thing doesn’t exist. Enlightenment was described as achieving optimal mental balance, exploring the conscious mind, not being affected by the afflictive mind, resulting in a blissful state. Dorjee explains how many people in Western cultures believe enlightenment to be unattainable. I have to admit that while I really enjoy learning about enlightenment and fantasize about getting closer to it, I am guilty of thinking that enlightenment is impossible for anyone outside of the monastery. I have a feeling that I have a stereotype of what an enlightened person should be like, when in reality maybe someone who has achieved this in Western society would more resemble the manager in Taco Bell rather than the Dalai Lama. Another concern that the reading brought up for me was the emphasis of quality over quantity in meditation. Currently, I’m still striving towards meditating for the full 25 minutes every day when maybe my focus should be more on having the highest quality of meditation possible instead. The thought of meditating for years and not progressing and being unaware of the stagnating progress is an intimidating one. Overall, I’ve enjoyed the Dorjee book and found learning about the Dzogchen philosophies helpful in better understanding some the steps in meditation.
Terms: Dzogchen, meditation, enlightenment, Buddhist, pyramid of mind training, introspective, concentration, attention, compassion
This chapter served as a summary of the both and also discussed the current state of research in mediation as well as the future of it. One of the interesting aspects of the research for me was neural plasticity. Neural plasticity focuses on the brains ability to learn and more specifically change. This relates with meditation very strongly because meditation has been shown to increase attention and emotional processing. Similarly, research has shown that neuroticism, or negative emotions in general, decreased significantly with mindfulness training. There have been specific brain changes as well, such as less activation of a specific part of the amygdala which is known to be related to emotional processing.
This chapter held a pretty harsh critique of Western psychology. It starts by describing Buddhist psychology as introspective. While there are definite benefits to introspection, meditation is a form of introspection; it is incredibly difficult to study quantitatively. Buddhists also use science but rely on it much less than Americans. The author raises the question of “is it worth it?” to focus on my concrete aspects of psychology/the mind. In my opinion it absolutely is. Freud is the first example that comes to mind when I think of introspection. While Freud was incredibly important in the history of psychology, he also had a lot of ideas that have been disproven. We know that we can change the brain, but I think the author is pushing Western psychology into an uncomfortable corner by saying that we should only change the brain through introspection. The fact is, both cognitive behavior therapy and psychodynamic therapy incorporate those concepts while also relying on science. In the end, I’m always going to err on the side of evidence.
Terms: Neural plasticity, attention, meditation, neuroticism, emotional processing, mindfulness, Buddhist psychology, Western psychology, Freud, introspection
Dorjee Chapter 6 focused on the implications for the science of meditation. Overall, it was a summary of what we have learned thus far from our readings and explorations. People are always looking for ways to become happier individuals. Once we have found something to make us happy, we are searching for the next best thing. Buddhist teachings believe genuine happiness and lasting balance can be achieved through mind training for mental balance. Especially for Westerners, it is difficult to meditate with such a fast-paced life. The trick is to spend less time paying attention to social media and other electronics and to focus on expanding compassion and mindfulness. It can be done in the “down times” of our days, such as when we are showering or dressing ourselves. Although it is not directly meditation, it is an indirect way to enhance the mind. Mind-training enhances well-being, reduces stress, anxiety, and neuroticism, and improves mood. Brain structures also become less sensitive to anxiety and fear, and the immune system functions better.
Meditative findings in the brain are more reliant if there is neuroscientific evidence. This is where the mind-body problem emerges. The brain is not the same entity as conscious experience. There is always the question about the nature of the mind, consciousness, and brain, and their relationship to each other. I liked the statement, “If we believe that our conscious experience which arises from our mind can influence our brain, the question is, how can our mind as an immaterial entity influence and modify something material—our brain” (p. 115).
Key terms: meditation; genuine happiness; balance; well-being; stress; anxiety; neuroticism; mood; anxiety; fear; immune system; neuroscientific; mind-body problem; consciousness; compassion; mindfulness
This week’s reading, although a bit boring was actually a lot better than I had thought it would be. The most interesting aspect of the chapter was when it discussed neuroscience and how willing people are to accept research involved with neurology so quickly. The reasoning is that many people believe that studies, research, etc. involved in science must be factual and are easily convince. They shouldn’t necessarily be so convinced however because science is a process bound to make mistakes. In addition, there are many other aspects of research people fail to consider such as sample size, reliability, and more.
Another aspect I found interesting which was discussed in class was quantum-physics applying to the mind-body problem. This scientific theory suggests that there may not be free will, that everything is biologically and physically pre-determined. This meaning that attitudes are based off of our biology in our body and brain (increased dopamine- makes you a happier person). In addition our decisions are based off of our body’s needs and our attitudes formed from our brain. This basically implies that we may think we have free will, but in reality we will always make decisions based on our biological make up and physical world. This is a very interesting theory however I’m not sure I entirely agree with it. I believe in a more behavioral approach- that how you are raised helps determine the attitudes and decisions made. I do believe that biology definitely plays a major role in our attitudes and decision-making however I do not believe it completely controls us.
I think that I would like to learn more about the quantum-physics applying to the mind-body problem. Although I do not completely agree with it, I find it very interesting. Overall I found this chapter to be fairly interesting in the concept of research and its complications. No research is perfect, others and myself should remember to keep this in mind and that just because research was conducted does not make the results/discussion facts.
Terms: neuroscience, quantum-physics, mind-body problem, reliability, sample size, dopamine, behavioral psychology, free will
The final chapter in Dorjee leaves quite a lot to be desired. The chapter, once again, raises questions about the mind to brain phenomenon. As I’ve said before, I find this particular phenomenon to be exceptionally intriguing, baffling and difficult to understand. Dorjee, however, rehashes this concept in the final chapter, but suggests that to fully understand the phenomenon we need to adjust our scientific methodology to incorporate the introspective evidence on which Buddhist psychology is built. While I certainly have no problems using Buddhist psychology as a conceptual framework and, to some extent, highlighting the value of meditation and the experiences it can provide, I do not buy Dorjee’s suggestion that we adjust our “ontology” so that the Buddhist findings are considered scientifically valid. Perhaps my ias is towards quantitative research, but I find it hard to generalize the introspective findings to an entire population.
However, Dorjee’s question does raise a problem. While her solution is not palatable (to me, at least), she is at least trying to take steps to address the issue. Science, as it currently is, cannot easily investigate the mind to brain phenomenon. Moreover, the explanation of changes in conscious experience solely as neural activity, does not satisfy much in terms of human curiosity. The changes in neural activity explain the impact of meditation on the BRAIN, but fail to explain the impact on the MIND. I tend to be more interested in the mind than the brain, but though I recognize the problem with Dorjee’s solution, I don’t have a better one to offer. I’ll use the excuse that I don’t even have a BA yet, let alone a Ph.D. in Psychology and Neuroscience.
In order to not appear as a contrarian, I’ll also recognize the other “implications” identified by Dorjee. For example, Dorjee mentions that meditation can lead to “measurable changes in cognitive performance.” Even better, these changes are positive changes. So far, the research has largely consisted of integrating introspective reports with changes in brain and body physiology. Dorjee recommends the research move towards identifying more specific hypotheses on how meditation impacts the brain and the mind, beyond “enhancing cognitive performance.” However, the important thing to take from this is that meditation clearly improves cognition, among other things.
Ergo, our society really needs to have a discussion about incorporating meditation into our everyday lives. Education would be my preference, but, then again, I’m an idealist when it comes to education, hoping it to accomplish myriad improvements in our youth. However, there is a bias against meditation as something mystic, hippy-like and something only weird people do. This is particularly true in rural populations, unaccustomed to anything but prayer (e.g., my hometown).
Specifically, Dorjee recommends adjusting our Western lifestyle to incorporate elements of the traditional Dzogchen path to enlightenment. She highlights a need to prevent information overload and to allow time for daily meditation practice and time for longer retreats. Again, I think Dorjee’s recommendation is a bit naïve. While it would certainly be great to be abel to incorporate that, the issue is larger than simply having time for meditation.
When it comes time for the exploration blog, the specific implication I will investigate is the impact of meditation on education.
Terms: Dzogchen, cognitive performance, Buddhist, meditation
This chapter seems to do a sweep around of the whole book. It also explains parts that one may see in the future. For me personally it was tough to get through just because I do not like rereading the same information over and over again. So, I found this chapter more boring than anything. The chapter began by reviewing what we already read about. That meditation based mind training can lead to measurable changes in cognitive performance and brain structure. Most of the research done so far has revolved around these ideas. The next step is to take this information and move toward answer more question about the underlying mechanisms that cause these changes in the mind. They hope to accomplish this by stirring together introspective reports along with the measurable changes in the brain and body physiology.
The problem that the Buddhist introspections is running into is the idea from neuroscience. With neuroscience they aim to explain the changes in conscious experience of meditation practitioners in terms of neural activity. This contradiction between how something can be studied by science and how immaterial entity such as the mind can impact the brain material. If later on Buddhist introspective accounts become scientifically valid then people will begin to accept them as scientific fact, and may even lead to research being done using the Buddhist view.
It is interesting to compare the views of the Dzogchen and the four levels of the mind (as stated in previous chapter) to the other common views of today. As we have learned most other views concentrate on mindfulness programs that train the mind at just the levels of attention and emotion which makes it very limited. Perhaps these ideas can later be expanded by adding the teachings of the Buddhist view and the four levels of the mind.
You can see in this last chapter just how passionate the author becomes about exploring new ways to get the ideology of Buddhism out there. I am sure that there will be more experiments done on the matter, but as far as making everything valid in Buddhism I do not believe this can happen.
Terms: meditation, Buddhism, Dzogchen, introspection, four levels of mind, attention, emotion, brain
Chapter 6 is all about the future implication of meditation I the scientific field. In Western society people are hesitant to embrace traditional practices that claim health benefits but have no factual evidence. As the benefits of meditation are becoming more pronounced studies are being developed to test if meditation is the true reason or if it some other factor. Dorjee implies that it is these studies that will help expand the acceptance of traditional practices because as they find evidence of benefits people will be more likely to embrace these alternative means.
One of the points Dorjee makes is that we have become too dependent on scientific research like neuroscience. Introspection used to be the major influence in psychology as psychology is about the mental process and emotions of the individual. If people would accept introspective accounts of the benefits of meditation it would greatly expand the practice of meditation. Our reliance on neuroscience may be our downfall. For many, meditation has an effect similar to religion, an openness to new experience and a greater sense of holistic being. I think that this will be extremely complex and difficult to measure.
I actually enjoyed some of the implications of this final chapter. It provided a brief summary of the book and gave us a question to dwell on. Meditation has clear benefits for our lives, especially in todays hectic and busy society. Some of the greatest benefits of meditation are increased attention and lowered levels of stress and anxiety. It amazes me that people need hard evidence to give this safe alternative a try yet are willing to take potentially dangerous short cuts in other areas like weightloss. This chapter really made me realize how our modern, Western society is afraid of the traditional and eastern values.
Terms: meditation, neuropsychology, attention, stress, neuroscience
This last chapter of Dorjee was a summary chapter to the book. It discussed and touched on a lot of what we have already read in this book. It also discusses where research in meditation and mindfulness should go from here. There seem to be a lot of question that need to be answered before science can make a definitive conclusion on the neural effects of meditation. Aside from where the research should go from here, the chapter talked about meditation and the Tibetan society.
The chapter explained how meditation was first came Tibetan society. It talks about how even though Western society is practicing many forms of mediation; it is still not up to par with Dzogchen and other Buddhist societies. To help us Westerners train in traditional meditation based mind training and achieve mental balance it seems as if we would need for meditation and Buddhist ways to become our life. The book talks about how the differences are drastic and that the role mediation plays in the west is minimal. This chapter seems to sum up that the West needs to make quite a bit of changes in the way we act in our jobs settings and with our friends and family. The book is probably right. We are far from being as dedicated to meditation and mindfulness as the Dzogchen. This has potential to do with Westerns society’s need for proof which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. This takes us back to where the research on mediation needs to go from here.
I thought this chapter was a pretty good summary for the book. I liked that it acknowledged that there is still a lot of research that needs to be dome. It also acknowledged that we have been answering the east questions so far and it is time to find a way to dig deeper. I was disappointed because the chapter was a bit repetitive. We’ve read the book and have done research and at this point I felt like I was reading this information for the hundredth time. The book touched on emotions and attention and focus. I feel like the chapter could have been shorter and more to the point. Though, that’s kind of how I feel about the book over all. Don’t get me wrong, I liked the book, I just think I like the first book better.
Terms: mediation, mindfulness, attention, Dzogchen
The final chapter in Dorjee’s book discusses the research associated with meditation. Meditation is gradually evolving to answer more refined questions about underlying cognitive and amount and neural mechanisms and differential effects of the type and amount of meditation practice. Current research in cognitive neuroscience of meditation mostly ignores in-depth inquiries into modifications in introspective conscious experience arising from meditation practice and focuses on the “easy questions” about neural correlates of meditation. However, a recent research experiment by Jacobs et al.,(2011) is a good initial step in the trend towards the acquisition of converging evidence across levels of scientific investigation- from introspection, through measures of cognitive activity and body physiology impacting on cellular changes.
Jacobs et al. (2011) investigated the connections between meditation practices, feelings of purpose in life and mindfulness, emotional processing and hormonal activity linked to well-being. As part of the Shamatha project participants were training in calm-abiding and also practices cultivating positive emotions for approximately six hours a day for three months. A range of cognitive tests assessed changes in attention and emotion processing were performed before, after and also during the three months. Results from the retreat participants were compared with a group of matched controls who underwent the same meditation training at a later time. In addition to tests of attention and emotion processing, the researchers used self-report questionnaires to track modifications in variables such as purpose in life and mindfulness. They also assessed the biological marker telomerase which is a cellular enzyme supporting the development of molecular sequences called telomeres at the end of chromosomes. Blackburn (2000) found that decreased levels of telomerase are associated with shorter telomere sequences which are linked to faster aging and proneness to disease. It was found that retreat participants’ levels of mindfulness and feelings of purpose in life increased after meditation training. The results also showed a decrease in personality traits associated with negative emotions, particularly neuroticism. Most importantly, increased feelings of purpose in life and mindfulness led to an increase in levels of the telomerase enzyme. Through the links between meditation training, affect and beliefs about purpose in life and biological markers, this study brought us closer to understanding the somewhat exclusive connections between “mind variables” acquired using introspection-based questionnaire responses and the hard evidence” of biological changes in the body.
Another thing that chapter 6 discusses that I found very interesting was mindfulness and mind training. According to Dorjee, mindfulness-based approaches are among very few psycho-educational programs that enhance well-being and improve the quality of life. They can positively impact on the well-being of people with mental and psychosomatic conditions and also further enhance the well-being of healthy adults. The beneficial effects of mindfulness –based interventions on well-being are likely mediated by the acquisition of new skills in relating to challenging experience. It increase exposure to unwanted thoughts, sensations and feelings, and decreases rumination, repetitive negative thinking, which is an essential contributor to symptomatology in stress and anxiety related disorders. Mindfulness-based training increases the likelihood of early recognition of negative thoughts and habitual reactions and creates space for change to prevent further negative spiraling into maladaptive cognitions and behavior manifesting in conditions such as depression, eating disorders, and addictions (Baer, 2003; Frewen et al., 2008). Previous research has shown that mindfulness training can serve as a powerful and broadly applicable preventive tool increasing resilience and well-being in the population.
Terms: meditation, purpose in life, mindfulness, telomerase, well-being, neuroticism, biological markers