Meditation Group Research Articles

The impact of mindfulness meditation on self-esteem and self-compassion among prisoners

The impact of mindfulness meditation on self-esteem and self- compassion was examined among 56 inmates at a local jail. Participants were assigned to a 1 h weekly mindfulness meditation or wait list control group. Participants in the meditation group were further divided into less experienced or more experienced. Results supported that the more experienced meditators had higher self-esteem, self-compassion and felt less isolation than the other two groups. Curiously, the less experienced meditation group experienced lower self-esteem and self-compassion compared to the control group. Discussion of these findings and directions for future research are offered.

Long-term effects of a mindfulness and self-compassion program with Primary Healthcare professionals

The effectiveness of mindfulness and self-compassion-based interventions (MSCI) on emotional fatigue and stress in Primary Healthcare (PHC) professionals has been demonstrated in the short term. The aims of this work were to assess whether these effects persist after two years, and if the observed results differ between those who practiced mindfulness regularly during the follow-up (meditators) and those who did not. Prospective study - pre-post and two years after performing an MSCI that was offered to all PHC professionals in Navarra, with group sessions of 2.5 hours / week for 8 weeks. Attending at least 75% of the sessions and practicing at home for 45 minutes a day were mandatory. At the three moments of the study, questionnaires were distributed to measure levels of mindfulness (FFMQ), self-compassion (SCS), perceived stress (PSQ) and burnout (MBI). At the end of the follow-up period, participants were asked if they were meditators and the time they dedicated to this weekly. Forty-eight professionals were enrolled and 41 (83% women) met the inclusion criteria, without loss to follow-up. Mean scores in mindfulness, self-compassion and perceived stress significantly improved after the intervention and in the long term (p <0.001), without observing differences in the level of burnout. The group of meditators achieved a greater long-term improvement in self-compassion (3.6 points vs. 1.6). The effectiveness of an MSCI persists two years later regardless of meditator status, although there is a significant improvement in self-compassion in the meditators.

Differential DNA methylation in experienced meditators after an intensive day of mindfulness-based practice: Implications for immune-related pathways

The human methylome is dynamically influenced by psychological stress. However, its responsiveness to stress management remains underexplored. Meditation practice has been shown to significantly reduce stress level, among other beneficial neurophysiological outcomes. Here, we evaluated the impact of a day of intensive meditation practice (t2−t1 = 8 h) on the methylome of peripheral blood mononuclear cells in experienced meditators (n = 17). In parallel, we assessed the influence of a day of leisure activities in the same environment on the methylome of matched control subjects with no meditation experience (n = 17). DNA methylation profiles were analyzed using the Illumina 450 K beadchip array. We fitted for each methylation site a linear model for multi-level experiments which adjusts the variation between t1 and t2 for baseline differences. No significant baseline differences in methylation profiles was detected between groups. In the meditation group, we identified 61 differentially methylated sites (DMS) after the intervention. These DMS were enriched in genes mostly associated with immune cell metabolism and ageing and in binding sites for several transcription factors involved in immune response and inflammation, among other functions. In the control group, no significant change in methylation level was observed after the day of leisure activities. These results suggest that a short meditation intervention in trained subjects may rapidly influence the epigenome at sites of potential relevance for immune function and provide a better understanding of the dynamics of the human methylome over short time windows.

The Effects of a 1-Month Meditation Retreat on Selective Attention Towards Emotional Faces: an Eye-Tracking Study

Retreats are a usual component of mindfulness practice. There is robust evidence in favor of their beneficial effects on mental health and mood regulation. Yet, there is much less evidence on changes in key psychological mechanisms associated with retreats. During retreats, participants engage in intensive meditation practices focused on training attention, which is one of the main components of meditation. The aim of the current study was to assess changes, associated with retreats, in attentional bias towards emotional stimuli using eye-tracking methodologies. Participants were volunteers who attended a 1-month Vipassana retreat (N = 20) and a control group of meditators (N = 25) equivalent in age, gender, and years of experience in meditation, who did not attend the retreat. Gaze patterns exhibited towards emotional stimuli (i.e., pairs of happy-neutral, sad-neutral, and happy-sad faces) were assessed on two occasions. In the retreat group (RG), the assessment was conducted one day before starting the retreat and one day after ending it, whereas in the control group (CG), the two assessments were separated by a 1-month period. Regarding the maintenance of attention, results showed that the RG group had a significant reduction in the time spent looking at sad faces in the sad-neutral pairs of faces. In relation to deployment of attention, there was no significant change associated with the retreat or the passing of time. These findings provide preliminary evidence that retreats may be effective at diminishing the salience of negative stimuli which, in turn, may be beneficial for emotional functioning.

Effects of Mindfulness and Sufi Meditation on Anxiety and Mental Health of Females

The present study is designed to compare two different types of meditations, Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Programme (MBSRP; Zinn, 2003) and Sufi Meditation (SM) in the treatment of neurotic anxiety and enhancement of mental health in female population. The study is comprised of a total of 200 participants upon whom Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAS; Hamilton, 1959) was administered and two groups of subjects each comprising of 50 (n = 50) subjects with high anxiety and 50 (n = 50) with low anxiety scores (n = 100) derived, further bifurcated into four subgroups wherein 25 (n = 25) subjects with low anxiety randomly assigned to both groups and remaining 25 (n = 25) with high anxiety assigned randomly to each groups. Pre- and post-test measures on HAS and Psychological Well-Being Scale (Ryff, 1989) for both groups was obtained and analyzed. The overall results of study showed that Mindfulness meditation group showed significantly higher score on HAS as compared to Sufi meditation group. According to the results, Sufi meditation was more effective in lowering anxiety and enhancing mental health, since it matches the belief system of the population. Hence results provide a base for future research to combine both types of meditations developing a new healing dimension.

A Mindfulness Workshop for Health Science Graduate Students: Preliminary Evidence for Lasting Impact on Clinical Performance

Introduction. Health science graduate students take high stakes examinations and experience stress and burnout, which can negatively influence performance in clinical courses. The intent of this study was to pilot a curriculum in mindful practice for graduate health science students under high levels of perceived stress. The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of an abbreviated mindfulness workshop to determine if it would provide lasting benefit for students during clinical experiences 9 months later. Methods. Twenty-three graduate students across 4 health professions participated in a 6-week workshop for stress management in March 2017. Students were executed to practice mindfulness activities for 15 minutes daily over the 6 weeks. Weekly meetings included meditation, mindful movement, and small group discussion. A mixed methods approach incorporated pre- and postworkshop measures exploring students' levels of worry, perceived stress, feelings of isolation, self-judgment, self-kindness, overidentification, and mindfulness. Additional survey data were collected 9 months later to determine if the tools learned in the workshop influenced clinical performance. Qualitative comments were coded using generic qualitative analysis, and member checking confirmed themes. Results. Overall, students demonstrated improvements in all measures of stress over the 6-week workshop. Additionally, they reported positive influences on clinical performance in the affective and cognitive domains 9 months later. Four main themes were extracted from the data. These were I Have Tools; Think, Pause, Allow; Silence the Critic; and, I Am Not Alone. Overall, the participants experienced significant improvements in mindfulness scores and self-compassion, and showed improvements in perceived stress and worry (Cognitive-Affective Mindfulness Scale-revised). Discussion and Conclusion. Altogether, these data suggest that (1) graduate students can learn to manage worry, feelings of isolation, and self-judgment using tools and strategies from mindful practices; (2) students who practice mindfulness in a 6-week workshop report lasting effects during clinical performance 9 months later; and (3) students benefit from a community of peers and a shared space to share their thoughts and feelings as emerging health professionals. Suggestions are made for integrating mindful practices into graduate health science education.

PENGARUH RELAKSASI PROGRESIF DAN MEDITASI TERHADAP TINGKAT STRES PASIEN HIPERTENSI

Hypertension is a risk factor to the three biggest causes of premature death. The psychological impact is happening is that patients undergo stress, anxiety, depression, fear and anxiety. The method used is a quasi-experimental research design using design with equivalent control group design. The sampling technique is done by simple random sampling. Number of samples 70 people for a progressive relaxation group and for group meditation. Data analysis techniques of progressive relaxation effect of interventions to decrease stres levels by Paired t-test. Effect of meditation interventions to decrease stres levels also Paired t-test. Effectiveness of progressive relaxation and meditation in reducing stres using independent t-test.The results showed significant effect the progressive relaxation of the stres levels in hypertension patients. The mean value before 56.2571 and 41.7429 afterward, t=7,992 and p=0.000.Meditation can reduce stres levels in hypertension patients significantly.The mean value previously 59.4000, 24.1714 afterward, t = 11 223, p = 0.000. Meditation more effective than progressive relaxation in lowering stres levels in patients with hypertension in the Health Center of North Kuta, Badung, 2016. The difference in means at 14.5143 while the progressive relaxation group the mean difference in the meditation group 35.2286, t=-5712 and p=0.000. Conclusion the progressive relaxation and meditation can lower the stress level in patients of hypertension (p=0.000).Meditation is more effective to lower the stress level in patients of hypertention (p=0.000)Key Wards: Progressive Relaxation, Meditation,Stress,Hypertention

Longitudinal Effects of a 2-Year Meditation and Buddhism Program on Well-Being, Quality of Life, and Valued Living

Most research on mindfulness and meditation has focused on structured therapeutic interventions, such as mindfulness-based stress reduction, or meditation retreats. Such programs have received moderate empirical support for improving psychological outcomes in clinical and nonclinical populations, but there remains a paucity of research on intensive or long-term mindfulness or meditation programs for experienced practitioners, especially those that incorporate Buddhist teachings. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effects of a long-term integrated mindfulness/meditation and Buddhism program, Dharma in Daily Life (DIDL). Well-being, quality of life, valued living, and theorized processes of change were measured using a naturalistic, quasi-experimental design over the course of the 2-year program and 6-month follow-up. Participants included 17 individuals enrolled in the program and 14 individuals recruited from community meditation groups. Participation in the program predicted increases in subjective well-being and mindfulness over time compared to the control group. Regardless of condition, frequency of meditation predicted lower psychological inflexibility and higher mindfulness, well-being, and progress toward values. Length of meditation session predicted a greater ability to observe experience, and prior meditation experience predicted greater nonreactivity to experience. Although preliminary, results suggest that participation in a long-term integrated mindfulness/meditation and Buddhism program may positively impact mindfulness and general well-being. Frequency of meditation sessions appears to be a particularly important variable. These findings warrant further investigation of such programs and practice parameters, as well as how each may affect key outcomes.

What Makes Mindfulness-Based Interventions Effective? An Examination of Common Components

Mindfulness-based approaches to meditation usually rely on not one but several specific techniques or elements, but what elements are responsible for which of the commonly found positive effects is not yet known. To help answer this question, we compared the effects of three different meditation techniques that are commonly used in mindfulness-based approaches. Fifty-six students with no prior meditation experience participated in a breathing, body scan, or loving-kindness meditation condition. Participants followed meditation instructions that they were given on audio files, for daily practice and weekly meetings over a period of 6 weeks. Dependent variables were mindfulness, concentration, self-compassion, emotional regulation and experience, and life satisfaction. The body scan meditation condition reported greater effects on almost all dependent variables than those in the breathing meditation condition with effect sizes from β = .16 to .61. The group showed the highest increase in the mindfulness dimension acceptance but not presence. Loving-kindness meditation showed higher effect sizes in concentration than the breathing meditation group. Specific meditation techniques may have effects other than expected on psychological variables. Considering the limitations of this study, further research is needed to assess the specific effects of single mindfulness techniques.

Mindfulness Meditation and Anxiety in Adolescents on an Inpatient Psychiatric Unit

This study presents the impact of chaplain-provided mindfulness meditation (MM) groups on state-anxiety in adolescent inpatients on an acute psychiatric unit, an understudied topic that warrants further research given that anxiety is a demonstrated predictor of suicide attempts in adolescents and the elevated suicide risk of this population. 53 adolescent patients, age 13-19, attended optional 30-minute MM groups while hospitalized for inpatient psychiatric care. State-anxiety was assessed immediately before and after each MM session, and psychiatric symptom severity upon admission was compared between patients choosing to attend MM and those who did not. State-anxiety was found to decrease significantly between pre and post MM upon first exposure regardless of patient age, sex, and prior experience with MM. Findings also suggest the possibility that patients experiencing symptoms of psychosis may benefit more from MM as compared to other patients. Admission symptom severity was not found to be an indicator of MM attendance. These findings suggest the possibility that MM could be an effective and relatively immediate transdiagnostic intervention to lower state anxiety in adolescents on an inpatient psychiatric unit and invite further implementation and research by staff chaplains on such units.

Mindfulness Meditation and Anxiety in Adolescents on an Inpatient Psychiatric Unit

This study presents the impact of chaplain-provided mindfulness meditation (MM) groups on state-anxiety in adolescent inpatients on an acute psychiatric unit, an understudied topic that warrants further research given that anxiety is a demonstrated predictor of suicide attempts in adolescents and the elevated suicide risk of this population. A total of 53 adolescent patients, age 13–19, attended optional 30-minute MM groups while hospitalized for inpatient psychiatric care. State-anxiety was assessed immediately before and after each MM session, and psychiatric symptom severity upon admission was compared between patients choosing to attend MM and those who did not. State-anxiety was found to decrease significantly between pre- and post-MM upon first exposure regardless of patient age, sex, and prior experience with MM. Findings also suggest the possibility that patients experiencing symptoms of psychosis may benefit more from MM as compared to other patients. Admission symptom severity was not found to be an indicator of MM attendance. These findings suggest the possibility that MM could be an effective and relatively immediate transdiagnostic intervention to lower state anxiety in adolescents on an inpatient psychiatric unit and invite further implementation and research by staff chaplains on such units.

Can Mindfulness Meditation Improve Short-term and Long-term Academic Achievement in a Higher-education Course?

Mindfulness meditation involves focusing one's attention on the present moment in a non-judgmental way. Several recently published investigations have demonstrated that a brief session of mindfulness meditation, practiced before a higher-education course lecture, can improve performance on a quiz over lecture content given immediately following the lecture. It is less clear how mindfulness meditation, practiced before multiple course lectures, impacts performance on quizzes over time as well as on a cumulative exam over all lecture contents. The present experiment compared a mindfulness meditation group to an active control group; each practiced 6 min of mindfulness or relaxation prior to seven course lectures. Following each lecture, a quiz was given over lecture contents to measure short-term academic achievement. A cumulative exam was later given over all lecture content to measure long-term academic achievement. In contrast to prior published investigations, there were no effects of mindfulness meditation on academic achievement. Given these promising yet inconsistent effects, future work should explore the moderators (i.e., individual differences; duration, frequency, and style of meditation practice) of mindfulness meditation's salutary benefits.

Matching pursuit based indices for examining physiological differences of meditators and non-meditators: An HRV study

Since meditation has recently been used as a complementary therapy, the study of physiological effects of different kinds of meditation has been augmented over the last decade. In this study, a robust method based on the matching pursuit (MP) algorithm was proposed to examine the heart rate variability (HRV) differences of meditators and non-meditators. The non-meditators were comprised of metronomic breathing (MB) and spontaneous nocturnal breathing (SNB) groups. The meditators were comprised of pre Chinese Chi meditation (pCCM), during CCM (dCCM), pre Kundalini yoga meditation (pKYM), and during KYM (dKYM). Following MP based decomposition of HRV into its sparse parts, eleven indices were extracted for the MP coefficients. The efficiency of the indices was also examined through statistical significance between the groups. It was shown that for almost all indices, significant differences between the classes were observed. Furthermore, a probabilistic neural network (PNN) with a variable sigma (σ) value, was trained to classify the physiological responses of the groups. A maximum accuracy of 99.61% was detected for dKYM using 5-fold cross validation scheme. It was also shown that lower σ values give higher classification rates and upper σ values provide more robust accuracies. In conclusion, the proposed method is a promising technique for showing significant differences between HRV responses of different non-meditator and meditator groups.

The Immediate and Sustained Positive Effects of Meditation on Resilience Are Mediated by Changes in the Resting Brain.

While recent studies have explored the maintenance of the effect of meditation on stress resilience, the underlying neural mechanisms have not yet been investigated. The present study conducted a highly controlled residential study of a 4-day meditation intervention to investigate the brain functional changes and long-term effects of meditation on mindfulness and resilience. Thirty participants in meditation practice and 17 participants in a relaxation retreat (control group) underwent magnetic resonance imaging scans at baseline and post-intervention and completed the Cognitive and Affective Mindfulness Scale (CAMS) and Resilience Quotient Test (RQT) at baseline, post-intervention, and the 3-month follow-up. All participants showed increased CAMS and RQT scores post-intervention, but only the meditation group sustained the enhancement after 3 months. Resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) between the left rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC) and the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC), precuneus, and angular gyrus was significantly increased post-intervention in the meditation group compared with the relaxation group. The changes in rACC-dmPFC rsFC mediated the relationship between the changes in the CAMS and RQT scores and correlated with the changes in the RQT score both immediately and at 3 months post-intervention. Our findings suggest that increased rACC-dmPFC rsFC via meditation causes an immediate enhancement in resilience that is sustained. Since resilience is known to be associated with the preventative effect of various psychiatric disorders, the improvement in stress-related neural mechanisms may be beneficial to individuals at high clinical risk.

Relationship between Meditation and Waking Salivary Cortisol Secretion among Long-Term MBSR Instructors

Background: A potential relationship between long-term meditation practice and stress reduction remains virtually unexplored. The purpose of this study was to characterize stress using salivary waking cortisol in a group of long-term meditators with training in the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program. Materials and Methods: Four salivary cortisol samples were collected from meditators (n = 84) during the first hour of awakening. The waking cortisol rhythm was summarized using cortisol area under the curve (AUC) with respect to increased secretion above baseline (AUC_I) and cortisol AUC above ground (above zero, AUC_G); data on meditation duration and depth, perceived stress, and other covariates were collected via self-reported questionnaire. Results: Individuals in the highest quartile of years meditating (> 26 years) had statistically significantly elevated AUC_G values (p = 0.01) as compared to individuals in the lowest quartile of years meditating (≤10 years). This relationship was more pronounced among individuals waking at or before 6: 30 a.m. Conclusions: Overall, an increasing number of years of meditation practice was related to a higher waking cortisol response. These intriguing findings warrant additional exploration, as the stress response can be complex.

Altered auditory feedback perception following an 8-week mindfulness meditation practice

Our own ongoing motor actions are perceived through sensory feedback pathways, and are integrated with neural processes to modulate further actions. This sensory feedback mechanism is known to contribute to the rehabilitation of impaired motor functions. Recent evidence also suggests that mindfulness meditation improves our awareness to sensation; therefore, enhancement of awareness to sensory feedback through mindfulness meditation training may have potential clinical applications. This study investigated an effect of eight-week practice of mindfulness meditation on speech perception/production processes. Among the thirty healthy participants, half of them engaged in regular meditation practice of 10 min per day for eight weeks, and the other half were not given any instructions for their daily life. The change of speech performance in sentence reading under 200 ms delayed auditory feedback (DAF) condition were assessed compared to without delay condition. Also, event-related potential response to the short sound of /a/, were measured. The result showed that, after the eight-week practice, the meditation group showed significantly improved speech fluency in the DAF condition, when 16-min meditation was introduced before the experiments. Furthermore, significantly increased auditory evoked potentials were observed in the central-parietal region when the participants listened to the delayed auditory feedback sound of their own voice. These findings provide the first glimpses into the possible relationship between mindfulness meditation and auditory feedback. Different instructions for daily activity between the meditation and control groups should be considered in further studies.

Transcendental Meditation May Be as Effective as Exposure Therapy for PTSD

Back to table of contents Previous article Next article Clinical and Research NewsFull AccessTranscendental Meditation May Be as Effective as Exposure Therapy for PTSDNick ZagorskiNick ZagorskiSearch for more papers by this authorPublished Online:3 Jan 2019https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.pn.2019.12b12AbstractVeterans with PTSD who participated in transcendental meditation sessions over a 12-week period showed symptom improvements similar to those who participated in prolonged exposure therapy sessions.Exposing people with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to their traumatic memories has been regarded as an important, if not essential, part of the therapeutic process. This is the basis of prolonged exposure therapy, in which people with PTSD relive their trauma in a safe environment, so that the memories are no longer associated with fear, distress, and other negative emotions.A study of veterans with PTSD now shows that transcendental meditation is comparable to prolonged exposure therapy—considered the gold standard psychotherapy for PTSD. Transcendental meditation involves the silent repetition of a personal mantra to achieve restful alertness and avoid distracting thoughts.The study findings were published November 15, 2018, in Lancet Psychiatry.“Our findings provide further evidence that PTSD treatments can be effective without an exposure component. Because trauma exposure can be difficult for patients, similarly effective treatments that do not require exposure could be appealing to veterans and other groups with PTSD,” wrote lead author Sanford Nidich, Ed.D., a professor of physiology and education at the Maharishi University of Management Research Institute in Iowa, and colleagues.Transcendental meditation might be an especially appealing alternative since it is a relatively effortless technique, Nidich said. “There is no intense concentration or contemplation needed; a person just learns to progressively experience a quieter and calmer state of mind.”Transcendental meditation is also consistent with military culture, noted Vernon Barnes, Ph.D., of Augusta University, in an editorial that accompanied the study: “Transcendental meditation is self-empowering, completely transportable, and inconspicuous. The technique can be practiced anywhere at any time, without specialized equipment or the need for personnel support.”The study by Nidich and colleagues included 203 veterans from the Veterans Administration San Diego Healthcare System who had a current diagnosis of PTSD resulting from an event during active military service. The participants were randomly assigned to receive 12 sessions of transcendental meditation, prolonged exposure therapy, or PTSD health education (which served as the control group) over 12 weeks. The meditation and health education sessions were provided in group settings, while the exposure therapy was given in one-on-one settings.The researchers used the clinician-administered PTSD scale (CAPS) and participant-administered PTSD Checklist–Military version (PCL-M) to assess PTSD symptoms at the start of the study and again after 12 weeks. The study participants were also asked about depressive symptoms using the nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9).After 12 weeks, the veterans undergoing transcendental meditation and exposure therapy experienced comparable results in terms of reducing clinician- and patient-rated PTSD symptoms as well as depressive symptoms. Both treatments were superior to providing health education.Nidich noted that patients who received transcendental meditation had greater improvements on all three behavioral scales (CAPS, PCL-M, and PHQ-9) compared with those who received prolonged exposure, though these results were in the statistical margin of error. CAPS scores, for example, decreased by an average of 16 points in the meditation group, 11 points in the prolonged exposure group, and 2.5 points in the health education group. (A reduction of 10 points or more is considered clinically meaningful.)The goal of the study was not to prove one method is superior to the other, Nidich said. Rather, the goal was to examine whether these two treatments are on equal footing, so that veterans with PTSD would have another evidence-based option to choose from when considering treatment.It is also possible that transcendental meditation and exposure therapy can be used together for even greater PTSD improvements, he continued. “This approach hasn’t been tested yet, but I don’t see any reason why they can’t work together, even though one intervention is trauma focused and the other is not,” he said. Such an approach would just need to involve good communication between the psychotherapist and the certified meditation instructor to avoid any potential confusion on behalf of veterans as to when they should think about their trauma.This study was supported by grants from the U.S. Department of Defense. ■An abstract of “Non-Trauma-Focused Meditation Versus Exposure Therapy in Veterans With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Randomised, Controlled Trial” can be accessed here. The accompanying commentary, “Transcendental Meditation and Treatment for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder,” is available here. ISSUES NewArchived

Effect of mindfulness meditation on attention and visual scanning in elderly people - A randomized control trial

Background: World population is aging. Elderly age is associated with decline in cognitive functions. Aims and Objectives: This study aims to study the effect of mindfulness meditation (MM) on elderly age-induced decline in attention and visual scanning. Materials and Methods: A total of 100 elderly participants were randomly divided into meditation group (MG; n = 50) and control group (CG; n = 50). MG participants followed 45 days of MM schedule. Six letter cancellation test (SLCT) was used for pre- and post-study evaluation of attention and visual scanning. Results: There was a significant improvement (P < 0.05) in scores of SLCT for MG participant. There was no significant change in SLCT scores of CG participants. Conclusion: MM practice counters the elderly age-induced decline in attention and visual scanning.

Didgeridoo Sound Meditation for Stress Reduction and Mood Enhancement in Undergraduates: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

BackgroundCollege students report feeling frequently stressed, which adversely impacts health. Meditation is one effective method for reducing stress, but program length and required effort are potential obstacles. Research on sound meditation, involving focused listening to sounds, is nascent but may appeal to undergraduates. The effects of listening to didgeridoo, an Australian wind instrument producing a low, resonant, droning sound, have not been studied.ObjectiveThis study compared the effect of a 30-minute didgeridoo sound meditation versus silent meditation with focus on one’s breath on acute self-perceived stress and mood in undergraduates without prior meditation experience.MethodsSeventy-four undergraduates were randomized to 2 interventions: (1) didgeridoo meditation (n = 40) performed live by a musician or (2) silent meditation (n = 34) taught by a meditation instructor. Immediate pre–post effects of the session were examined using the 4-Dimension Mood Scale and an item assessing acute self-perceived stress. Intervention acceptability was assessed postintervention.ResultsTwo-way mixed analyses of variance were performed. Both groups reported significantly increased relaxation after meditation (Group D, P = .0001 and Group S, P = .0005). Both groups reported decreased negative arousal (Group D, P = .02 and Group S, P = .02), energy (Group D, P = .0001 and Group S, P = .003), tiredness (Group D, P = .0001 and Group S, P = .005), and acute stress (Group D, P = .0001 and Group S, P = .0007). Group Didgeridoo experienced significantly more relaxation (P = .01) and less acute stress (P = .03) than Group Silent. Fifty-three percent of silent participants and 80% of didgeridoo participants agreed that they would attend that type of meditation again. Forty-seven percent of silent participants and 80% of didgeridoo participants enjoyed the meditation.ConclusionDidgeridoo sound meditation is as effective as silent meditation for decreasing self-perceived negative arousal, tiredness, and energy and more effective than silent meditation for relaxation and acute stress in undergraduates. Didgeridoo meditation participants reported higher levels of enjoyment and higher likelihood of attending another session. Further investigation into didgeridoo and sound meditation is warranted.

Effect of anapanasati meditation on anxiety: a randomized control trial.

Meditation has shown positive results in improving the psychological disorders such as anxiety. There is a need to study the therapeutic benefits of Anapanasati meditation, a mindfulness meditation technique. The study aims at investigating the effect of Anapanasati meditation on individuals with moderate anxiety. A total of 112 participants who were willing to participate in the study were recruited for the study. Anapanasati meditation was used as an intervention. The participants were divided into two groups experiment and control groups. Experiment group had 56 persons performing Anapanasati meditation and Control group had 56 persons not performing any type of meditation. The experiment group practiced one hour of Anapanasati meditation daily under the supervision of experts for six months and continued their daily routine and control group was not given any intervention, but they continued their daily routine. State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) is used to assess the anxiety level. The STAI score before and after Anapanasati meditation was analysed for both experiment and control groups using Paired Samples T test. The experiment group has shown significant reduction in the STAI (P < 0.05) score after the intervention whereas in the control group the reduction in STAI score was not significant. This study has shown that after six months of intervention, the subjects with moderate anxiety who practiced Anapanasati meditation had a significant decrease in their STAI score and the control group has not shown significant change in the STAI score.