The effects of mindfulness meditation on rumination in depressed people

Mindfulness meditation is a practice of focus, awareness, and non-judgmental acceptance of one\u27s thoughts (Deyo et al., 2009; Kenny et al., 2007). Rumination is a maladaptive pattern of thought that is common in people with depression and other mood disorders. It can lead to further episodes of depression, and can be very destructive in that way (Nolen-Hoeksema, 2008). This paper reviews several studies on mindfulness meditation, depression, and rumination, with a focus on certain areas and phenomena such as alpha asymmetry (Keune et al 2013) and gamma band activity (Berkovich-Ohana et al., 2012). Modalities such as fMRI and EEG are both used in these studies. Finally, directions for further research are considered, while accepting the challenges unique to this and inherent in any neuroscientific research

The Mindfulness Meditation Effect on Brain Electrical Activity: Stress Assessment, Concentration State and Quality of Life

Being healthy is much more than not being sick. It is essentially living day-to-day under a physical and mental well-being. In Europe a large part of the population suffers from depression, anxiety or stress. This public health problem needs urgent treatment for which the individual's psychic self-regulation can respond. The proposed alternative for improving quality of life is an approach to Mindfulness meditation. It is hoped that the beneficial effect of this practice in a continuous way, living the present in "mindfulness", contributes to improve the individual mental state releasing from a depressive past effect or from a future wrapped in anxiety. Based on visual stimuli, concentration test and stress-inducing challenges, 30 individuals are evaluated at regular intervals during 8 weeks of Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) course. Physiological signals are recorded longitudinally through EEG, ECG and EDA. At the same time, each individual completes three inquiries assessing quality of life (WHOQOL), profile mood state (POMS) and depression, anxiety and stress scale (DASS). Applying the neurophysiologic processing and classification data, with synchronous sources isolation, it is intended to verify functional changes that occur in the pre-frontal cortex. This results will inferring that it is possible to change the cerebral electrical activity with the thought. At the same time, it is expected a slowed heart/sweating rate and an increase in the ability to concentrate, as well as a significant improvement in the individual emotional control response. The current PhD study in Biomedical Engineering intends to show that the Mindfulness meditation practice, being "here and now", promotes a healthy mental health, featured by attention self-regulation and the decrease of anxiety, depression or stress. It can be used as a promising treatment for clinical disorders affecting a large part of the population.publishersversionpublishe

The meditative mind: a comprehensive meta-analysis of MRI studies

Over the past decade mind and body practices, such as yoga and meditation, have raised interest in different scientific fields; in particular, the physiological mechanisms underlying the beneficial effects observed in meditators have been investigated. Neuroimaging studies have studied the effects of meditation on brain structure and function and findings have helped clarify the biological underpinnings of the positive effects of meditation practice and the possible integration of this technique in standard therapy. The large amount of data collected thus far allows drawing some conclusions about the neural effects of meditation practice. In the present study we used activation likelihood estimation (ALE) analysis to make a coordinate-based meta-analysis of neuroimaging data on the effects of meditation on brain structure and function. Results indicate that meditation leads to activation in brain areas involved in processing self-relevant information, self-regulation, focused problem-solving, adaptive behavior, and interoception. Results also show that meditation practice induces functional and structural brain modifications in expert meditators, especially in areas involved in self-referential processes such as self-awareness and self-regulation. These results demonstrate that a biological substrate underlies the positive pervasive effect of meditation practice and suggest that meditation techniques could be adopted in clinical populations and to prevent disease

An effective intervention can contribute to enhancing social integration while reducing perceived stress in children

La presente investigación evalúa si una intervención que involucra prácticas basadas en la atención plena, actividades socio afectivas e instancias sociocognitivas puede fomentar actitudes prosociales y relaciones sociales positivas y reducir el estrés percibido en los niños. El estudio se realizó con 44 niños (20 niñas and 24 niños) de entre 6 y 8 años (M= 7.25 años, DS= 0.43), y siguió un diseño cuasi experimental con dos momentos de medición (antes y después de la intervención). Analizamos los cambios relativos en los niveles de integración social, altruismo universal y estrés percibido. Nuestros resultados revelaron que los niños que participaron en la intervención mostraron una mejora en las pruebas de integración social y altruismo universal; es decir, los niños eligieron más compañeros como compañeros de juego y rechazaron a menos de ellos, al tiempo que evidenciaron mayores actitudes prosociales. Asimismo, se observó una disminución en los índices de estrés percibido luego de la intervención.This investigation evaluates whether an intervention involving mindfulness-based practices, socio-affective activities, and socio-cognitive instances can foster prosocial attitudes and positive social relationships and reduce perceived stress in The study was conducted with 44 children (20 girls and 24 boys) aged between 6 and 8 (M= 7.25 years, SD= 0.43), and followed a quasi experimental wait list design with two measurement time points (pre and post intervention). We analyzed relative changes in social integration, universal altruism and perceived stress levels. Our results revealed that children who participated in the intervention showed an enhancement in social integration and universal altruism tests, and a decrease in the perceived stress indices. That is, children chose more peers as playmates and rejected fewer of them, while evidencing more prosocial attitudes. Our findings suggest that this kind of intervention can contribute to fostering social integration and prosociality while promoting children’s health and wellbeing from an early age.Fil: Carro Regalado, Natalia Denisse. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Centro Regional Universidad Bariloche. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente; ArgentinaFil: D'adamo, Paola. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Instituto Patagónico de Estudios de Humanidades y Ciencias Sociales. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Instituto Patagónico de Estudios de Humanidades y Ciencias Sociales; ArgentinaFil: Lozada, Mariana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Centro Regional Universidad Bariloche. Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente; Argentin

Meditation-State Functional Connectivity (msFC): Strengthening of the Dorsal Attention Network and Beyond

Meditation practice alters intrinsic resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) in the default mode network (DMN). However, little is known regarding the effects of meditation on other resting-state networks. The aim of current study was to investigate the effects of meditation experience and meditation-state functional connectivity (msFC) on multiple resting-state networks (RSNs). Meditation practitioners (MPs) performed two 5-minute scans, one during rest, one while meditating. A meditation naïve control group (CG) underwent one resting-state scan. Exploratory regression analyses of the relations between years of meditation practice and rsFC and msFC were conducted. During resting-state, MP as compared to CG exhibited greater rsFC within the Dorsal Attention Network (DAN). Among MP, meditation, as compared to rest, strengthened FC between the DAN and DMN and Salience network whereas it decreased FC between the DAN, dorsal medial PFC, and insula. Regression analyses revealed positive correlations between the number of years of meditation experience and msFC between DAN, thalamus, and anterior parietal sulcus, whereas negative correlations between DAN, lateral and superior parietal, and insula. These findings suggest that the practice of meditation strengthens FC within the DAN as well as strengthens the coupling between distributed networks that are involved in attention, self-referential processes, and affective response

The effect of various physical exercise modes on perceived psychological stress

Background. Stress is an integral part of daily living, but chronic activation of the stress response without the ability to express the physical response results in overloading of the physiological and psychological systems. Objective. To decrease perceived stress by means of one known and/or one relatively unknown physical activity, namely aerobic exercise and somatic awareness exercise. Methods. This investigation made use of a quantitative, comparative, experimental research design over an 8-week period using pre- and post-tests. Participants were measured for psychological stress using a perceived stress scale. The participants were divided into those who were physically untrained and those who participated in exercise training programmes. Results. There were five groups in total. The physically untrained individuals were divided into four groups: a somatic awareness exercise group (n=9); an aerobic exercise group (n=15); a combination group taking part in both somatic awareness and aerobic exercise (n=8); and a control group (n=15). The 5th group contained individuals who participated in physical exercise prior to entering the programme; they were given somatic awareness exercise (n=9) in addition to their existing physical exercises. An independent samples t-test revealed significant changes for perceived stress in the aerobic, somatic, combination and exercise groups, with a 95% confidence level in comparison with the control group. Conclusion. Various physical modes such as aerobic exercise, somatic awareness training and a combination of the two may be used to decrease one’s perceived stress in moderately to highly stressed individuals who are sedentary or who are physically activ

Focused attention meditation changes the boundary and configuration of functional networks in the brain

Research has shown that focused attention meditation not only improves our cognitive and motivational functioning (e.g., attention, mental health), it influences the way our brain networks [e.g., default mode network (DMN), fronto-parietal network (FPN), and sensory-motor network (SMN)] function and operate. However, surprisingly little attention has been paid to the possibility that meditation alters the architecture (composition) of these functional brain networks. Here, using a single-case experimental design with intensive longitudinal data, we examined the effect of mediation practice on intra-individual changes in the composition of whole-brain networks. The results showed that meditation (1) changed the community size (with a number of regions in the FPN being merged into the DMN after meditation) and (2) led to instability in the community allegiance of the regions in the FPN. These results suggest that, in addition to altering specific functional connectivity, meditation leads to reconfiguration of whole-brain network architecture. The reconfiguration of community architecture in the brain provides fruitful information about the neural mechanisms of meditation

Mind over chatter: plastic up-regulation of the fMRI alertness network by EEG neurofeedback

EEG neurofeedback (NFB) is a brain-computer interface (BCI) approach used to shape brain oscillations by means of real-time feedback from the electroencephalogram (EEG), which is known to reflect neural activity across cortical networks. Although NFB is being evaluated as a novel tool for treating brain disorders, evidence is scarce on the mechanism of its impact on brain function. In this study with 34 healthy participants, we examined whether, during the performance of an attentional auditory oddball task, the functional connectivity strength of distinct fMRI networks would be plastically altered after a 30-min NFB session of alpha-band reduction (n=17) versus a sham-feedback condition (n=17). Our results reveal that compared to sham, NFB induced a specific increase of functional connectivity within the alertness/salience network (dorsal anterior and mid cingulate), which was detectable 30 minutes after termination of training. Crucially, these effects were significantly correlated with reduced mind-wandering 'on-task' and were coupled to NFB-mediated resting state reductions in the alpha-band (8-12 Hz). No such relationships were evident for the sham condition. Although group default-mode network (DMN) connectivity was not significantly altered following NFB, we observed a positive association between modulations of resting alpha amplitude and precuneal connectivity, both correlating positively with frequency of mind-wandering. Our findings demonstrate a temporally direct, plastic impact of NFB on large-scale brain functional networks, and provide promising neurobehavioral evidence supporting its use as a noninvasive tool to modulate brain function in health and disease

Mindfulness and Pain Regulation: The Role of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Individuals with Chronic Pain

Chronic pain is a significant and widely prevalent health condition which requires comprehensive care to address the many facets contributing to symptomatology. In 2016, 20% of American adults (about 50 million) reported experiencing chronic pain, of which 7.4% indicated that chronic pain frequently limited their life and participation in activities within the past 3 months (CDC, 2018). As a result, many individuals with chronic pain turn to opioid-based medication for pain relief, but long-term use of opioids actually increases pain sensation (Tobin, 2019). Moreover, opioid medication is unable to target underlying mental health components which emerge as part of chronic pain conditions. Thus, non-pharmacological treatment is needed to relieve the burden of chronic pain and improve cognitive and emotional processing as well as views of self (Skelly et al., 2018). Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a highly effective transdiagnostic intervention used to treat chronic pain by teaching individuals coping skills through mindfulness and behavioral activation (Bai et al., 2020; Dindo et al., 2017). Based on extensive data, ACT is shown to correlate with an increase in psychological flexibility, pain acceptance, and reductions in feelings of pain-related stigma (Aytur et al., 2022; Ding & Zheng, 2022; Meier et al., 2021; Feliu-Soler, 2018). Given the necessity of remote healthcare intervention, especially relevant during the recent pandemic, there is an urgent need to evaluate the efficacy of ACT in a tele-practice delivery model which will broaden the availability of the treatment to reach far larger numbers of patients. As a complement to ACT, recreational therapy (RT) is likely efficacious for treatment of chronic pain and associated symptoms. Similar to the underlying goals of ACT, RT focuses on personal values, improved functioning, quality of life, independence, and recovery (Froutan, 2022). The purpose of this paper is to expand upon a prior pilot study assessing feasibility of a non-pharmacological approach to chronic pain treatment using a tele-practice intervention that combines ACT with RT (TeleACT-RT). Specifically, this paper will evaluate the efficacy of the TeleACT-RT intervention on improving mindfulness in participants with chronic pain. With a focus on the concept of mindfulness, this study aims to extend the previous findings from the TeleACT-RT study by quantifying the impact of ACT on metrics of mindfulness using the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ; Baer et al., 2004, 2008). Results suggest that TeleACT-RT was associated with a significant increase in mindfulness scores after the intervention, as well as improved scores in numerous other domains (e.g., psychological flexibility, pain acceptance, and social role participation) (Roy, 2022). These findings complemented prior research suggesting that TeleACT-RT was associated with a wide range of improvements in chronic pain. (Roy, 2022). Roy et al. (2022) explored the feasibility of administering this intervention through a 6-week tele-practice TeleACT-RT modality within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic through a pilot-study. Findings from this study revealed positive behavior outcomes, encompassing increased psychological flexibility, pain acceptance, and lower extremity function, while simultaneously showing decreased feelings of pain-related stigma (Roy, 2022). Additionally, participants reported being satisfied with the tele-practice modality of delivery and provided positive feedback regarding their overall quality of life post-treatment with ACT

A Longitudinal Study Of The Effect Of Short-term Meditation Training On Functional Network Organization Of The Aging Brain

The beneficial effects of meditation on preserving age-related changes in cognitive functioning are well established. Yet, the neural underpinnings of these positive effects have not been fully unveiled. This study employed a prospective longitudinal design, and graph-based analysis, to study how an eight-week meditation training vs. relaxation training shaped network configuration at global, intermediate, and local levels using graph theory in the elderly. At the intermediate level, meditation training lead to decreased intra-connectivity in the default mode network (DMN), salience network (SAN) and somatomotor network (SMN) modules post training. Also, there was decreased connectivity strength between the DMN and other modules. At a local level, meditation training lowered nodal strength in the left posterior cingulate gryus, bilateral paracentral lobule, and middle cingulate gyrus. According to previous the literature, the direction of these changes is consistent with a movement towards a more self-detached viewpoint, as well as more efficient processing. Furthermore, our findings highlight the importance of considering brain network changes across organizational levels, as well as the pace at which these changes may occur. Overall, this study provides further support for short-term meditation as a potentially beneficial method of mental training for the elderly that warrants further investigation.published_or_final_versio