Can mindfulness change your brain?

Mindfulness has seen a rise in popularity in recent years, in part due to the interest of science in the practice itself. Studies on mindfulness have found it to be an effective treatment for all sorts of issues. Depression, anxiety, stress, blood pressure, chronic pain, sleep, and heart disease, each show benefits from mindfulness.

What is mindfulness?

Mindfulness is the ability to be present at the moment, with awareness focused on the here and now. Mindfulness is an innate ability that can be cultivated with practice. It can be a meditative and intentional practice but can be done anywhere and anytime by focusing awareness at the moment, without judgment.

Changes in the brain

The interest of scientists has brought mindfulness and its potential impacts into closer focus. Thanks to magnetic resonance imaging or MRI researchers have pinpointed a major change in the brain due to mindfulness practice. The amygdala is the part of the brain that detects threats and activates necessary fear responses like the fight or flight response system. In those with anxiety, stress, and anxiety-related disorders, the amygdala may be overactive, causing a heightened fight or flight response.

MRI scans of those who practice mindfulness show that the amygdala shrinks, which may be the reason that mindfulness seems so helpful with stress, anxiety, and related issues. The prefrontal cortex of the brain, which is responsible for higher reasoning, concentration, and awareness appears to enlarge in those who engage in mindfulness. Scientists also observed that the way these regions of the brain interact changes, with connections between attention and concentration becoming stronger and connections between the amygdala and other areas becoming weaker. In essence, mindfulness can increase higher-order thinking, enabling us to down-regulate the stress response.

These results are part of the reason that if you visit a counselor or even your family doctor for stress, you are likely to receive a recommendation of attending mindfulness classes or instruction in mindfulness. Mindfulness practice is results and research-driven intervention for stress and other issues. If you’re interested in starting a mindfulness practice try this Raisin Meditation as a unique and fun way to start or look for mindfulness teachers and classes, or mindfulness trained therapists in your area.