Think-Pair-Share What did you notice about this guided meditation? (No right or wrong answers) Compare and contrast Kabat-Zinn and Puddicombe (Headspace) What questions or observations do you have? Presentation Schedule Available on Honors Program Website (see link in e-mail) Contact me ASAP if questions or concerns Applications of Mindful Practices A Brief Overview Several will be covered in presentations
Applications of Mindful Practices A Brief Overview Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Combines meditation, yoga, selfcompassion New understanding of/relationship with stressful problems Applications of Mindful Practices A Brief Overview Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Positive effects on Health/wellness Emotion regulation Performance at work Quality of life Applications of Mindful Practices A Brief Overview Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy Integrates meditative practice with cognitive therapy Cognitive therapy is designed to change thinking patterns associated with distress and undesirable behaviors
Applications of Mindful Practices A Brief Overview Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy Become familiar with states of mind associated with mood disorder Develop a new relationship with states of mind Research on Beneficial Effects of Mindfulness Meditation/MBSR Overview of some selected studies General impact on well-being Effects on brain activity/structure Effects on markers of inflammation via brain changes Research on Beneficial Effects of Mindfulness Meditation/MBSR General impact on well-being Bergen-Cico, Possemato, & Cheon (2013). Examining the efficacy of a brief mindfulness-based stress reduction (Brief MSBR) program on psychological health. Journal of American College Health, 61, 348-360.
Bergen-Cico et al Brief MBSR Undergraduates enrolled in courses on addictive behaviors Brief MBSR = 5 weeks for about 2 hours each week: various meditation exercises (e.g., breathing, yoga) plus discussion (n = 72) Bergen-Cico et al Brief MBSR Comparison group = discussions of with no meditation (n = 47) Before and after assessments of mindfulness self-compassion trait anxiety Bergen-Cico et al Brief MBSR Results MBSR group increased mindfulness and self-compassion Comparison group did not show changes No effects on trait anxiety for either group
Bergen-Cico et al Brief MBSR Brief MBSR and Psychological Health FIGURE 1. Kentucky Inventory of Mindfulness Scale (KIMS) mindfulness composite score (ANCOVA, p =.003). Bergen-Cico et al Brief MBSR Bergen-Cico, Possemato, & Cheon FIGURE 4. Self-compassion Scale (SCS) (ANCOVA, p =.008). Research on Beneficial Effects of Mindfulness Meditation/MBSR Effects on brain activity Ferrarelli et al. (2013). Experienced mindfulness meditators exhibit higher parietal-occipital EEG Gamma activity during NREM sleep. PLOS One, 8, e73417, doi: 10.1371/ journal.pone.0073417.
Ferrarelli et al. Brain activity Look at long-term or enduring effects of practice Previous studies showed beneficial effects of meditation states Long-term effects revealed during sleep no one could be in a meditative state Ferrarelli et al. Brain activity EEG measures different kinds of brain wave activity Gamma frequency activity reflects attention, learning, memory Ferrarelli et al. Brain activity Experienced meditators averaged 8126 hrs of meditation (n = 29) At least three years daily practice At least three one-week retreats Meditation naives (n = 29) No previous meditation experience
Ferrarelli et al. Brain Activity Figure 2. NREM Gamma increase in LTM compared to meditation naives had a large effect size (ES=0.8, Panel A), and was significantly correlated with the length of meditation daily practice (rho = 0.475, p = 0.017, Panel B). doi:10.1371/ journal.pone.0073417.g002 Research on Beneficial Effects of Mindfulness Meditation/MBSR Effects on immune system mediated by brain changes Creswell et al. (2016). Alterations in resting state functional connectivity link mindfulness meditation with reduced interleukin-6: a randomized controlled trial. Biological Psychiatry, http:// dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych. 2016.01.008. Previous studies suggest MM may increase functional connectivity between brain system called default mode network (mind wandering) with a region active when we exercise selfcontrol (dorsolateral pre-frontal cortex) Such connections should enhance emotion regulation & stress resilience
Inflammation = general indication of negative biological impact of stress Related to many medical conditions, especially those sensitive to stress (autoimmune, cancer, etc.) Interleukin-6 is a marker of systemic inflammation you want it low Two key questions addressed Does MM increase the connectivity between DMN and the Executive Control region? If so, does strengthened connectivity lead to less inflammation ( mediation of causal effect) Two key questions addressed MM à stronger functional connections à less inflammation The effect of MM on inflammation is hypothesized to be via its effect on functional connections
Two groups compared Mindfulness meditation three-day retreat ( Health Enhancement through Mindfulness or HEM) Relaxation Training three-day retreat ( Health Enhancement through Relaxation or HER) Key innovation: Credible placebo to compare with presumed treatment All participants were highlystressed, unemployed job seekers Key strengths of study Credible placebo control group CT scans before and after the meditation/relaxation retreat Blood samples taken prior to retreats and at 4-month follow-up to assess IL-6 (inflammation)
A) Changes* and Inflammation B)LeftdlPFC(MNI::22,52,10)C)RightdlPFC(MNI:26,44,34) * 30 Table 2. Circulating IL-6, by Treatment Group and Time Mean HEM SE Mean HER SE Log-Transformed IL-6 Baseline.13.07 -.06.08 4-Month Follow-Up.08.08.08.07 Raw IL-6 Baseline 1.87.31 1.17.32 4-Month Follow-Up 1.45.32 1.41.30 Notes: Means and Standard Errors (SE) from IL-6 MLMs, with Baseline Age as a covariate. IL-6= Circulating Interleukin-6; SE= standard error; HEM= Health Enhancement thru Mindfulness program; HER= Health Enhancement thru Relaxation program; All IL-6 values are in pg/ml. Changes mediate Inflammation (A) LeftdlPFC Connectivity Patha: C.20*** Pathb: (C.43***) Mindfulnessvs. RelaxationTraining Pathc:.190** Pathc :(.133) BaselineC4Month ILC6 (B) RightdlPFC Connectivity Patha: C.20*** Pathb: (C.34*) Mindfulnessvs. RelaxationTraining Pathc:.190** Pathc :(.143) BaselineC4Month ILC6
Changes mediate Inflammation (B) Patha: C.20*** RightdlPFC Connectivity Pathb: (C.34*) Mindfulnessvs. RelaxationTraining Pathc:.190** Pathc :(.143) BaselineC4Month ILC6 Questions? Comments? Let s think about Our feet
One minute paper What was the most important thing you learned today? What was the muddiest or most confusing aspect of today s class? What other questions or comments do you have?