As more brain scientists turn their focus on Mindfulness Meditation, we understand more about how people who have begun to practice mindfulness create neural connections that process experiences differently from those who are not practitioners. Essentially, mindfulness offers many benefits to mind and body. Even with very little practice. Here are four studies reported in The Harvard Gazette.

• https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2018/06/mindfulness-meditation-and-relaxation-response-affect-brain-differently/
•  https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2012/11/meditations-positive-residual-effects/
•  https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2011/04/turn-down-the-volume/
•  https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2011/01/eight-weeks-to-a-better-brain/

 

What’s important about YOU in this life? What are your priorities? What is your purpose? These questions beg us to look deep within to gain insight. Once these questions are answered, they pave a path for us to experience inner joy.

Do obstacles stand in the way of your path to joy? Take up the challenge to find ways to overcome them.

Jump start the process by taking the time to go on a mindfulness meditation retreat. Remember: retreats are a lasting gift to yourself. They are opportunities for making positives changes in your life.

See Lake Oswego Review article link about my upcoming retreats. Note: The date of the 5-day retreat was reported as May but it is actually MARCH 10 -15. Register soon. See details for all mindfulness meditation retreats on http://mindfulnessmeditation.us.

Many new students come to my Mindfulness Meditation class with the goal or desire to stop the troubling “mind chatter” going on in their head. The human default mode network (DMN as it is known in neuroscience) is that of mind-wandering or ”monkey mind.” I always explain to them that there is nothing wrong with monkey mind. In fact, it is a sign of a normal and healthy brain function. During mind chatter, the flow of blood provides nutrients to nourish the brain. A disruption to the mind chatter can be a symptom of brain abnormalities such Alzheimer’s or a coma.

I further explain to my students that it is not the “chattering” that causes their troublesome experience rather it is the “content and quality” of thoughts that are produced during such chattering. If the thought content and quality are negative, (for example: I don’t like myself, I failed, I am not desirable, etc.) then the affect is adverse. If, however, the thought content and quality are positive, (for example: I feel great after that exercise, I enjoyed that meal, I like where I am, etc.) then their affect is wholesome.

If you study the content and quality of your thoughts produced during mind chatter, you will find that they are always in the languages and experiences that of your past: there is no way that they would contain anything to which you have never been exposed. For example, you will never think of pepes unless you know that it is a delicious dish from Java where the fish/chicken/tofu is smeared with curry and other exotic herbs, wrapped in banana leaf and barbecued. Your thoughts do not chatter in Sundanese or Arabic, unless you know those languages.

Wisdom is a heuristic learning process. We develop wisdom as we live for it is derived from our direct experience, coupled with our reflection upon our experience.
 
So how can we apply our life’s wisdom to achieving more happiness? We are, of course, social beings. This means that we live in interdependency with others. The wisdom of “right relationships” points towards how they bring joy to life.
 
Happiness is critical for a good quality of life and makes life worth living. The more and deeper we connect with others, the happier we become. Contrariwise, we suffer when we disconnect with others and from the subsequent friction that arises. As the Dhamampada teaches (the Buddha’s path to wisdom that is part of the ancient Pali cannon):

​The good news is that happiness is in our control according to Sonja Lyubomirsky, a psychologist at the University of California Riverside and author of The Myths of Happiness and The How of Happiness. See an interview with her below and learn more. 

​May peace and happiness be with you like a never-departing shadow.

For those of you who have attended my classes or presentations, you know that understanding the science of why mindfulness meditation practice is so effective for our health and well-being is one of my passions. Here is a link to a Google University talk by Philippe Golden, a researcher in clinically applied affective neuroscience at Stanford University's Department of Psychology who also has a solid background in Buddhist studies. Enjoy this a fascinating talk from 2008.

This election cycle has heightened the rhetoric of those speaking out against different ethnic groups and women. In the 10 days after Donald Trump became the official president-elect, 867 hate incidents were documented nationwide by the South Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Alabama. The affects of racial hate are in front and center our own Portland metro backyard. In West Linn High School, students walked out in mid-November to protest students who called a fellow Muslim student a terrorist and a Latino student "illegal." At Lake Oswego High School, a racist comment was posted for several weeks on the student-run Facebook page and an anti-Semitic photo was posted in the school cafeteria.
 
Over the past few months, Dr. Larry Sherman, Professor of Neuroscience at the Oregon Health & Science University, gave several public talks on You and Your Racist Brain: The Neuroscience of Prejudice. He was also invited to speak to at Lake Oswego High School in early December in response to the post-election hate incidents on campus. In Dr. Sherman’s view, racism exists when one group dominates, excludes or seeks to eliminate another group on the basis of differences that it believes are inherent, hereditary and unalterable. He further explains that racism, in large part, involves learned behaviors that stem from the human brain’s tendency to engage in prejudice, a process where our brains make judgments that are not based on experience or reason.
 
I agree with Dr. Sherman’s definition of racism and his linkage between the brain, conditioning and prejudice. Moreover, when we look at racism from the perspective of Mindfulness as a form of unwholesome judging, we can gain more insight about its direct affect upon us.
 
From a Mindfulness perspective, racism falls into the category of judging, which includes comparing. Judging is a normal part of our human makeup that is shared by all beings as a way to navigate life. Our ability to judge helps us to discern, for example, the differences between:

• survival versus demise,
• hunger versus being satiated,
• right versus wrong,
• big versus small,
• us versus them,
• superior versus inferior,
• rich versus poor,
• acceptable versus deplorable.

 
This ability to discern through judging and comparing can be beneficial in Mindfulness practice to distinguish between the concepts of wholesome versus unwholesome and happiness versus suffering. So it is not the act of judging or comparing that may cause us to suffer, but its applications and how we relate to them.
 
With wisdom as our guide, we can discern what kind of judging can cause stress and what kind of comparing can help us to eliminate suffering. Judgments or comparisons that cause friction, a breakdown in harmony, compromise peacefulness, threaten happiness, promote greed, hate and delusion (the latter three, known as the Three Roots of Suffering, according to the Buddha) are clearly unwholesome.
 
As we tune into our awareness of body, mind and feelings through Mindfulness Meditation, we can really sense how unwholesome conduct feels very different compared to wholesome conduct. When we turn our awareness mindfully to racism, we may experience the sensations of tightness, heaviness, constriction, uneasiness. Our heart may feel queasy and racy. We may feel an impulse to strike or run away. Our mind may become muddled or obsessed. We may feel unsafe. We may feel ill will, hate or fear arising. We may also experience that our sleep quality — and our health — are adversely affected. Indeed, Dr. Sherman views racism as “a public health problem” due to the high cortisol effects of stress on our bodies — both for victims and perpetrators.
 
The opposite of racism is tolerance. The experience of tolerance through Mindfulness practice may give us a bodily-felt sense of ease, release, warmth, lightness, groundedness, composure, contentment, and confidence. When we practice tolerance, we more likely experience a stronger impulse towards kindness, generosity, compassion, tranquility, happiness, and better health.
 
In our practice, we can overcome unwholesome judging by bringing awareness to our minds and noticing what arises. Our detached inner dialogue may include phrases such as:

• “Ooh … this is intolerance.”
• “This is unwholesome judging.”
• “The mind feels this way.”
• “The emotion feels like this.”
• “The body is stressed out.”

This internal feedback loop is our direct, authentic, experiential response to what is unwholesome.
 
Our practice of Mindfulness is enough to allow what is unwholesome to lose its grip and power over us. Take some time to contemplate which option is more beneficial for your well-being — tolerance or intolerance. As we deepen our awareness of cognition and bodily-felt experiences through meditation, we gain an insight that nurtures our wisdom in pursuit of a life free from suffering. We may reclaim, once again, our inner peace, and stay on the path to cultivate our happiness.

Sleep is an amazing restorative. It both recharges the brain to improve memory and cleanses the brain of waste built up in cellular networks. Its biological importance is underscored by the fact that we spend about eight hours a day or 33% of our lives sleeping.
 
However, when sleep is elusive we suffer. Sleep deprivation affects the frontal lobes of our brain thereby making us more reactive, less able to concentrate, and impairing our judgment and decision-making capabilities. Outcomes can be disastrous, as when people fall asleep at the wheel and cause fatal accidents. Lack of sleep also affects hormones related to feeling satiated and is a contributing factor to obesity.
 
In a recent sleep study conducted by Dr. David S. Black, an assistant professor of preventive medicine at the University of Southern California, people were divided into two groups. One group learned behaviors that could help them develop good sleep hygiene, like establishing a regular bedtime routine and avoiding caffeine and alcohol before bed. The other group underwent a six-week program on mindfulness meditation led by a certified teacher. At the end of the yearlong study, the people who learned the mindfulness approach had greater improvements in sleep quality and fewer symptoms of insomnia, depression and fatigue than those who received standard care. Moreover, unlike sleep-inducing drugs, mindfulness practice does not cause adverse side effects.
 
For nights of soothing, relaxing sleep and vivid dreams, I have found the following practices especially helpful and wish to share them with you. Try and do best you can.

A student recently suggested that I view psychiatrist Robert Waldinger’s 13-minute TED Talk on the longitudinal Harvard study of adult development that has tracked 700 men over a period of 75 years. Dr. Waldinger, the study’s fourth director, summarized the findings as follows:

1. Good relationships keep us happier and healthier.
2. Social relationships are good for us, and loneliness kills.
3. Good relationships don’t just protect our bodies; they protect our brains.

 
While the presentation is well-done, I have a few bones to pick about setting up the notion of happiness to rely chiefly on our outside relationships.
 
So often it is said that “relationships are the key to happiness,” and we begin to reflect upon our relations to others (friends, family, community, etc.). However, as we look deeper into the true nature of relationships, the connection between relationships and happiness is not that simple and may even be misleading. It is disingenuous to say that our suffering is caused by lack of availability or not having a relationship. A person may express self-pity and say that s/he is an only child and that both parents are dead. On the other hand, a person may have many siblings and living parents but chooses to be in touch with them rarely. Toxic relationships, such with as abusive parents or a spouse, may actually cause suffering instead of happiness. A person’s misconstrued sense of being unwanted by others, may even lead to violent acts such as in the case of the infamous Columbine High School massacre.
 
Mindfulness practice emphasizes a person's internal capacity for and cultivation of well-being. When a person succeeds in improving his/her relationship with himself/herself, such as removal of destructive emotions or attitudes, then his or her relationship with others will naturally improve with ease.
 
Suppose you know a person who has a tendency to be impatient, an example of a destructive emotion. Notice how this quality plays out to affect that person's well-being as well as its impact on others. Impatience breeds a lack of tolerance, an agitated mind, and an energy that is not peaceful in nature. The impatient person is usually high-strung, easily agitated, and hot-headed. Inside the person’s body, the heart pounds and there is tension whenever temper flares up. People around this person often feel unsafe, disrespected, not heard, and offended. As a response to the disturbance they feel, others guard against attack and prepare for possible retaliation by the impatient one. Thus a tendency toward impatience causes unproductive and even harmful relationships all around and inside.
 
But positive change is possible. We have the potential to rewire ourselves for better, happier relationships. The impatient person may eradicate impatience by realizing its unproductive nature. A person’s commitment to understanding the benefits of being patient, then consciously cultivating the practice of being patient, can shift the entire nexus of relationships (with self and others) to be peaceful and more productive.
 
In addition, through Mindfulness practice, we can develop inner strength and peace to the point of self-sufficiency with regard to our ability to cultivate inner happiness. We learn to rely less on what or how other people treat us and enjoy going inside to find solace.
 
No doubt, peaceful, supportive, loving relationships bring us joy. However, our true happiness relies more on our cultivation of inner skills than outer relationships.

A new month. Another BIG question to ponder.

How does meditation practice affect your decision-making choices?

Let the dialogue begin. Feel free to share your thoughts as comments below.

Another month, another question to ponder and share thoughts with other like-minded practitioners: How does your meditation practice affect your relationship to yourself and your relationships with others?