The Acute GABAergic Effects of Mindfulness Meditation in the Motor Cortex of University Students

Background: Previous research demonstrated the cortical silent period (CSP) protocol, a measure of GABAB related cortical inhibition, reliably reflects differences between psychiatric populations and healthy controls. Furthermore, cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) and mindfulness meditation (MM) programs have been shown to affect CSP positively. In this pilot study, we assessed acute effects of MM by measuring pre-post differences in participants with minimal experience with meditation. Methods: The CSP protocol was employed to measure cortical inhibition before and after a single 40 minute guided meditation session. Furthermore, involvement with the practice before and after the appointment was used to determine if experience affected the degree of change in cortical inhibition and whether this change could predict a participants likelihood of attending weekly meditation tutorials. Finally, increases were expected to be correlated with 5 measures of self-reports of anxiety, depression, and mindfulness. Results: Significant pre-post differences were found after 40 minutes of MM in 67 students with minimal experience with meditation (t(66) = 2.334, p = 0.011). Students who had no prior meditation experience (< 2 hours) exhibited significant increases in CSP (delta x = 0.014 s) compared to those with more experience (F(1, 1) = 5.388, p = 0.024, η2 = 0.079). Change in CSP did not predict likelihood of continued attendance (F(1, 1) = 1.242, p = 0.269). Finally, baseline CSP measures were found to be negatively correlated with self-reports of negative automatic thoughts (r = -0.303, p = 0.008, n = 63). Discussion: Findings indicated improved cortical inhibition in minimally experienced MM practitioners after 40 minutes of meditation and that experience plays a role in the effectiveness of a single guided mindfulness meditation session. Furthermore, the degree of change in CSP was predicted by the severity of self-reported automatic thoughts possibly as a result of the decreased difficulty of staying focused with fewer intrusive thoughts allowing for a more equanimous meditation session. This evidence suggests GABAergic neurotransmission may prove to be involved in a neurophysiological mode of action and that automatic thoughts may be a psychological variable involved in a cognitive mechanism underlying the health benefits associated with mindfulness meditation

Heart rate variability is enhanced in controls but not maladaptive perfectionists during brief mindfulness meditation following stress-induction: A stratified-randomized trial

Heart rate variability (HRV) is a vagal nerve-mediated biomarker of cardiac function used to investigate chronic illness, psychopathology, stress and, more recently, attention-regulation processes such as meditation. This study investigated HRV in relation to maladaptive perfectionism, a stress-related personality factor, and mindfulness meditation, a stress coping practice expected to elevate HRV, and thereby promote relaxation. Maladaptive perfectionists (n=21) and Controls (n=39) were exposed to a lab-based assessment in which HRV was measured during (1) a 5-minute baseline resting phase, (2) a 5-minute cognitive stress-induction phase, and (3) a post-stress phase. In the post-stress phase, participants were randomly assigned to a 10-minute audio instructed mindfulness meditation condition or a 10-minute rest condition with audio-description of mindfulness meditation. Analyses revealed a significant elevation in HRV during meditation for Controls but not for Perfectionists. These results suggest that mindfulness meditation promotes relaxation following cognitive stress and that the perfectionist personality hinders relaxation possibly because of decreased cardiac vagal tone. The results are discussed in the context of developing psychophysiological models to advance therapeutic interventions for distressed populations.The authors have no conflicts of interest: they have no financial or personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence their work. The authors gratefully acknowledge the assistance of all persons and volunteers whose participation was essential in the successful completion of the study. The authors would also like to thank Professor John B. Allen for his advice on HRV analysis, and the Statistical Consulting Service offered by the Institute for Social Research at York University. Joel Katz is supported by a Canadian Institutes of Health Research Canada Research Chair in Health Psychology

Reductions in Negative Automatic Thoughts in Students Attending Mindfulness Tutorials Predicts Increased Life Satisfaction

University education confronts students with stressful developmental challenges that can lead to mental health problems. Innovative programs must address an increasing prevalence of these problems but are impeded by the high costs involved. In this study, thirty-nine undergraduate students attended weekly one hour mindfulness meditation tutorials during a single (14 week) semester. Tutorials involved 40 minutes of guided meditation, followed by open-ended discussions on mindfulness and related scientific research. Multiple regression analysis tested associations between self-reported changes in mindfulness, in negative automatic thoughts and in satisfaction with life.Reductions in automatic thoughts accounted for a significant proportion of variance in life satisfaction and decreases in automatic thoughts were associated with an increased life satisfaction. This finding suggests guided meditation tutorials merit consideration in promoting student mental health on university campuses.

Reductions in negative automatic thoughts in students attending mindfulness tutorials predicts increased life satisfaction

University education confronts students with stressful developmental challenges that can lead to mental health problems. Innovative programs must address an increasing prevalence of these problems but are impeded by the high costs involved. In this study, thirty-nine undergraduate students attended weekly one hour mindfulness meditation tutorials during a single (14 week) semester. Tutorials involved 40 minutes of guided meditation, followed by open-ended discussions on mindfulness and related scientific research. Multiple regression analysis tested associations between self-reported changes in mindfulness, in negative automatic thoughts and in satisfaction with life.Reductions in automatic thoughts accounted for a significant proportion of variance in life satisfaction and decreases in automatic thoughts were associated with an increased life satisfaction. This finding suggests guided meditation tutorials merit consideration in promoting student mental health on university campuses.Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC

Mindfulness as an Alternative for Supporting University Student Mental Health: Cognitive-Emotional and Depressive Self-Criticism Measures

Increases in university-based mental health problems require alternative mental health programs, applicable to students with elevated psychological risks due to personality traits. This study examined the cognitive-emotional outcomes of a university mindfulness meditation (MM) program and their relationship with Self-Criticism (SC), a personality factor linked to depressive vulnerability. University students (n = 71) were assessed at baseline with the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire (DEQ), a measure of depressive personality traits, and two outcome measures: Profile of Mood States (POMS) and Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI). Students attending the MM program were reassessed for outcomes at 3 follow up assessments over 2 semesters. Repeated measures analyses of variance revealed improved within-subjects effects with large or very large effect sizes for the subsample that completed the MM program (n = 18) on the POMS Tension-Anxiety, POMS Depression, POMS Fatigue, and Anxiety Sensitivity Index. Multiple linear regression using self-criticism as a predictor of change in depressed mood revealed that higher self-criticism predicted greater reductions in POMS Depression. This study provides evidence for MM-related cognitive-emotional benefits, suggesting that students with elevated self-critical traits may derive exceptional benefits evident in greater reductions of depressed mood

Mindfulness as an Alternative for Supporting University Student Mental Health: Cognitive-Emotional and Depressive Self-Criticism Measures

Increases in university-based mental health problems require alternative mental health programs, applicable to students with elevated psychological risks due to personality traits. This study examined the cognitive-emotional outcomes of a university mindfulness meditation (MM) program and their relationship with Self-Criticism (SC), a personality factor linked to depressive vulnerability. University students (n = 71) were assessed at baseline with the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire (DEQ), a measure of depressive personality traits, and two outcome measures: Profile of Mood States (POMS) and Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI). Students attending the MM program were reassessed for outcomes at 3 follow up assessments over 2 semesters. Repeated measures analyses of variance revealed improved within-subjects effects with large or very large effect sizes for the subsample that completed the MM program (n = 18) on the POMS Tension-Anxiety, POMS Depression, POMS Fatigue, and Anxiety Sensitivity Index. Multiple linear regression using self-criticism as a predictor of change in depressed mood revealed that higher self-criticism predicted greater reductions in POMS Depression. This study provides evidence for MM-related cognitive-emotional benefits, suggesting that students with elevated self-critical traits may derive exceptional benefits evident in greater reductions of depressed mood

Functional capacity and heart rate response: associations with nocturnal hypertension

Abstract Background Absences of normative, 10–20 % declines in blood pressure (BP) at night, termed nocturnal non-dipping, are linked to increased cardiovascular mortality risks. Current literature has linked these absences to psychological states, hormonal imbalance, and disorders involving hyper-arousal. This study focuses on evaluating associations between nocturnal non-dipping and indices of functional cardiac capacity and fitness. Methods The current study was a cross-sectional evaluation of the associations between physical capacity variables e.g. Metabolic Equivalent (MET) and Maximum Heart Rate (MHR), Heart rate reserve (HRR), and degree of reduction in nocturnal systolic blood pressure (SBP) or diastolic blood pressure (DBP), also known as ‘dipping’. The study sample included 96 cardiac patient participants assessed for physical capacity and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring. In addition to evaluating differences between groups on nocturnal BP ‘dipping’, physical capacity, diagnoses, and medications, linear regression analyses were used to evaluate potential associations between nocturnal SBP and DBP ‘dipping’, and physical capacity indices. Results 45 males and 14 females or 61.5 % of 96 consented participants met criteria as non-dippers (<10 % drop in nocturnal BP). Although non-dippers were older (p = .01) and had a lower maximum heart rate during the Bruce stress test (p = .05), dipping was only significantly associated with Type 2 Diabetes co-morbidity and was not associated with type of medication. Within separate linear regression models controlling for participant sex, MHR (β = 0.26, p = .01, R2 = .06), HRR (β = 0. 19, p = .05, R2 = .05), and METs (β = 0.21, p = .04, R2 = .04) emerged as significant but small predictors of degree of nighttime SBP dipping. Similar relationships were not observed for DBP. Conclusions Since the variables reflecting basic heart function and fitness (MHR and METs), did not account for appreciable variances in nighttime BP, nocturnal hypertension appears to be a complex, multi-faceted phenomena

Reductions in Negative Automatic Thoughts in Students Attending Mindfulness Tutorials Predicts Increased Life Satisfaction

University education confronts students with stressful developmental challenges that can lead to mental health problems. Innovative programs must address an increasing prevalence of these problems but are impeded by the high costs involved. In this study, thirty-nine undergraduate students attended weekly one hour mindfulness meditation tutorials during a single (14 week) semester. Tutorials involved 40 minutes of guided meditation, followed by open-ended discussions on mindfulness and related scientific research. Multiple regression analysis tested associations between self-reported changes in mindfulness, in negative automatic thoughts and in satisfaction with life. Reductions in automatic thoughts accounted for a significant proportion of variance in life satisfaction and decreases in automatic thoughts were associated with an increased life satisfaction. This finding suggests guided meditation tutorials merit consideration in promoting student mental health on university campuses.