The neuroscience of mindfulness

Neuroscience is a vast subject, so we have tried to present the basic information you may need in order to
understand the neuroscience behind mindfulness. Much of the content of this page has been extracted or
adapted from Dr Shanida Nataraja's boo !"he #lissful #rain$ Neuroscience and proof of the power of
meditation!, which is available in the Mindfulnet %ma&on shop located on the resources page. %ll
extracts and illustrations have been reproduced with the permission of the publisher ' author.
A brief introduction to the brain.
"he human brain is a reddish grey mass, with the consistency of firm jelly, which weighs on average the
same as three bags of sugar and houses ()) billion individual brain cells called neurones. *ach neurone
has a cell body which houses its processor, the nucleus. #ranching from the bodies are numerous finger
lie dendrites which branch and re+branch, fanning out to extensive, tree lie structures that intertwine
with dendritic trees of other neurones. *ach neurone maes up to ())) different connections with its
neighbours and different areas of the brain. "his extensive connectivity allows electrical signals, and thus
information to travel from one brain processing centre to another in a matter of milliseconds.
"he human brain is organised in a hierarchical manner$ the oldest parts controlling the more primitive,
instinctual behavioural reflexes, the newest parts controlling the more sophisticated cognitive, sensory
and motor functions. "he human brain is made up of three main blocs$ the forebrain, the midbrain and
the hindbrain.
"he oldest part of the human brain, the hindbrain, evolved more than -)) million years ago. .t closely
resembles the brain of a modern reptile, so is sometimes called !the mammalian brain!. .t is responsible
for automatic physiological reflexes that control breathing, heart rate and digestion, and coordinate
movement and sense perception.
"he midbrain contains neurones responsible for temperature control and the fine tuning of movement. .t
relays sensory information from the bodies sensory organs to the forebrain. .t also plays an important part
of the limbic system, a group of brain structures associated with the expression of emotion.
"he most evolved part is the forebrain which is composed of cerebral hemispheres, and is what we
most commonly thin of as the brain, and the hypothalamus and thalamus. .n the last ()),))) years, the
weight of the human brain has tripled, and most of this growth has been in the cerebral hemispheres. "he
neurones of the forebrain control cognitive, sensory and motor function, as well as regulating
reproductive functions, eating, sleeping and the display of emotion
Right Brain and Left Brain
%lthough you may often hear people referring to !left brain thining! or !right brain thining! there
are extensive connections between the two brain hemispheres and information is processed by using both
hemispheres of the brain. .maging studies have shown that most cognitive tass such as problem solving
or strategic planning or strategic planning activates neurones in more than one brain region
simultaneously, or at least in close succession.
/or example is you are inspecting a new, never seen before object, the left hemisphere examines the
object logically to see how it has been made, what it is made from, any distinguishing mars, and
attempts based on the information gathered to guess what the object might be, and may try to logically
catagorise it. "his gives a partial description. "he right hemisphere loos at the object more holistically,
notes any functions in its design, or clues about what it may have been used for, how it feels, or any
emotions it may evoe. "he right hemisphere puts this into the context of what it already 'nows' about
the world and then offers creative suggestions for its function. #y woring together as a team, sharing
logical and creative information, the two hemispheres can generate a more complete description.
/or simplicity of explanation, the left hemisphere is associated with analytical, rational and logical
processing, where as the right hemisphere is associated with abstract thought, non verbal awareness,
visual ' spatial perception and the expression and modulation of emotions.
.n the western world, most individuals navigate through their everyday life in a fashion dominated by left
brain thining. Missing out on right brain activity results in too much thinking going on$ too much frantic
doing, not enough time being.
Right brain, left brain and mindfulness
%ccording to neuroscientist, Dr Shanida Nataraja, westerners use the left hemisphere of their brain too
much.
/or simplicity of explanation, the left hemisphere is associated with analytical, rational and logical
processing, where as the right hemisphere is associated with abstract thought, non verbal awareness,
visual ' spatial perception and the expression and modulation of emotions. .n the western world, most
individuals navigate through their everyday life in a fashion dominated by left brain thining. Missing out
on right brain activity results in too much thining going on$ too much frantic doing, not enough time
being.
0racticing mindfulness can bring about calmness, stilling the brain chatter, and help us shift towards right
brain mode.
#y engaging our right brain we activate the parasympathetic nervous system 1as opposed to the adrenaline
releasing sympathetic system2. More parasympathetic activity means less stress and therefore better
health.
%ccording to Neuroscientist Dr Shanida Nataraja's studies, those new to meditation practices such as
mindfulness often put pressure on themselves to be successful and !get there! 3uicly + a left brain !are
we there yet4! approach + and conse3uently tae longer to benefit. Shinda suggests that the ey is to be
ind to yourself, acnowledging thought and letting go. "his activates certain pathways in the brain which
reduce left brain activity.
What happens in our brains when we meditate?
Mindfulness is classed as a passive form of meditation. "he following illustrations and description of the
overall chain of brain processes during mindfulness meditation is an extract from Dr Shanida Nataraja's
boo !"he #lissful #rain$ Neuroscience and proof of the power of meditation!, which is available in the
Mindfulnet %ma&on shop located on the resources page. "he extracts and illustrations have been
reproduced with the permission of the publisher ' author.
"he meditator begins with the intention to clear his mind of thoughts. "his intention is reflected in an
increase in activity in the attention association area. %s he slowly 3uietens his mind, there are further
increases in activity in the attention association area. %t the same time, activity in the frontal cortex
regions surrounding the attention association area decreases. "his is the result of focused attention and
reflects a filtering out of all information that is not deemed important. %ttention is drawn to the present+
now experience, which triggers a shift to right+brained activity, as attention is predominantly a right+
brained function. "his shift from 'intellectualised' left+brain thining is a further explanation of why the
experience cannot be described or analysed$ the right brain does not have the ability to categorise and
analyse the experience, it intuitively 'feels' it.
%t the same time, the meditator also becomes less aware of sensory information stemming from his
external environment, and therefore less aware of his orientation in space and time. "his dissolving of the
self 5 non+self boundary is reflected in a decrease of activity in the right parietal lobe. Not only does it
have an impact on activity in the right orientation association area 1leading to a loss of sense of space
and5or time2, but it also has an impact on activity in the right verbal+conceptual area, leading to an
inability to convey the experience efficiently through language. 1see step 1 in illustration above2
"his chain of events is thought to result in the activation of two important structures in the limbic
system. "here are extensive connections between the parietal lobe's orientation association area and the
hippocampus 1see step on illustration above2, which in turn stimulates the amygdala. "hese two
structures are responsible for assigning emotional significance to our experiences. "he activation of the
hippocampus conveys emotional significance of the experience and imprints the emotionally charged
experience and imprints in our long term memory.
6hen practicing mindfulness the activation of the amygdala confers emotional significance to the lac of
sensory information. "hrough these actions on the hypothalamus, the amygdala modifies the activity of
the autonomic nervous system 1see step ! in illustration above2.
/irst a blissful, peaceful state arises from the maximal activation of the parasympathetic 1relaxation2
nervous system, and then, as the different neural, hormonal and other triggers swing in, there is a maximal
activation of the sympathetic 1arousal2 nervous system, producing a mentally clear and alert
state. 0hysiological effects, such as changes to breathing rate, heart rate or blood pressure are the result of
the amygdala's effect on midbrain structures that control these functions 1see step " in illustration above2.
#oth of the left and right orientation and verbal+conceptual association areas are therefore switched off. %
lac of activity in the right orientation association area gives rise to a sense of unity and wholeness, where
as lac of activity in the left orientation association area results in the dissolving of the self5non+self
boundary
#ognition $mpro%ed By &indfulness &editation
Some of us need regular amounts of coffee or other chemical enhancers to mae us cognitively sharper. %
newly published study suggests that mindfulness would prepare us just as well.
6hile past research using neuroimaging technology has shown that meditation techni3ues can promote
significant changes in brain areas associated with concentration, it has always been assumed that
extensive training was re3uired to achieve this effect.
Surprisingly, the benefits may be achievable even without all the wor. 0sychologists studying the effects
of a meditation techni3ue nown as !mindfulness ! found that mindfulness+trained participants showed a
significant improvement in their critical cognitive sills 1and performed significantly higher in cognitive
tests than a control group2 after only four days of training for only 7) minutes each day.
The neuroscience of emotions
*motions are triggered in the brain by thoughts, which are often unconscious.
6hen we are confronted by a potential threat, this can trigger fear, anger or the urge to flee 1sometimes
called !amygdala hyjac!2. "he reaction is often disproportionate to the actual provocation.
6hen in the grip of these emotions, your capacity for higher !rational brain! thining is diminished, and
you are liely to revert to rote behaviours stored in the basal ganglia.
"he practice of mindfulness helps us to recognise and observe our thought patterns. 0ractitioners develop
the ability to recognise when thoughts arise, and observe them in a detached manner, without the need to
become involved in them 1thus not triggering an emotional or !automatic! reaction2.
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