Effects of the Transcendental Meditation Technique on Trait Anxiety: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Orme-Johnson, David W.; Barnes, Vernon A.

doi:10.1089/acm.2013.0204

Cited by 118 publications

(82 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…Practice of TM primarily increases EEG alpha-coherence and synchrony, especially in the prefrontal cortex, and is associated with deep relaxation and improved executive functioning. 27 Metaanalyses have found that the TM technique was more effective than other meditation and relaxation techniques for reducing trait anxiety. 28 Participants were encouraged to practice their meditation program individually in their prison cells, sitting with eyes …”

Section: Transcendental Meditation Programmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transcendental Meditation and Reduced Trauma Symptoms in Female Inmates: A Randomized Controlled Study

Nidich

Seng

Compton

et al. 2017

TPJ

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Context: Compared with the general population, trauma experiences are higher among incarcerated women.Objective: To evaluate the effects of Transcendental Meditation (TM) on trauma symptoms in female offenders.Design: Twenty-two inmates at the Coffee Creek Correctional Facility in Wilsonville, OR, with at least 4 months left of incarceration were enrolled in this randomized controlled pilot study. Subjects were randomly assigned to either the TM group (n = 11) or a wait-list control group (n = 11).Main Outcome Measures: Subjects were measured at baseline and 4-month posttest using the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist-Civilian version (PCL-C; primary outcome) with intrusive thoughts, avoidance, and hyperarousal subscales (secondary outcomes). Twenty of the subjects (10 in each group) took part in their treatment assignment and completed posttesting.Results: Significant reductions were found on total trauma (p < 0.036), intrusive thoughts (p < 0.026), and hyperarousal (p < 0.043) on the PCL-C. Effect sizes ranged from 0.65 to 0.99 for all variables. Eighty-one percent of the TM subjects were compliant with their program. Conclusion:The results of this study indicate feasibility of the TM program in a female prison population and suggest that TM may be an effective tool for decreasing trauma symptoms. Future large-scale research is warranted.

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Section: Transcendental Meditation Programmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transcendental Meditation and Reduced Trauma Symptoms in Female Inmates: A Randomized Controlled Study

Nidich

Seng

Compton

et al. 2017

TPJ

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“…In addition, stress can adversely affect a range of health conditions, including both mental health and cardiovascular outcomes. 4 Meditation instruction has been shown in multiple previous studies to favorably modify physiologic indicators of stress and to improve clinical outcomes for patients with anxiety, 5 posttraumatic stress disorder, 6 substance use disorders, 7 and cardiovascular disease.…”

Section: Two Papersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mind-Body Training for At - Risk Populations: Preventive Medicine at its Best

Elder

2017

permj

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“…During 2006-2009 out of 33,045 physician office visits, stress management counseling was the least common type of counseling accounting for only 3% of the patients. Research has shown that stress can negatively affect health but cardio-respiratory synchronization via alternate nostril breathing techniques such as Pranayama [107,61] and meditation practice can help attenuate some of these symptoms associated with stress-related disorders and anxiety [108][109][110] due to the shift from a sympathetic state to a parasympathetic state [56,111].…”

Section: Clinical Applications Arising From Our Understanding Of the mentioning

confidence: 99%

Meditation Experiences, Self, and Boundaries of Consciousness

Jerath¹,

Cearley²,

Barnes³

et al. 2016

IJCAM

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Our experiences with the external world are possible mainly through vision, hearing, taste, touch, and smell providing us a sense of reality. How the brain is able to seamlessly integrate stimuli from our external and internal world into our sense of reality has yet to be adequately explained in the literature. We have previously proposed a three-dimensional unified model of consciousness that partly explains the dynamic mechanism. Here we further expand our model and include illustrations to provide a better conception of the ill-defined space within the self, providing insight into a unified mind-body concept. In this article, we propose that our senses "super-impose" on an existing dynamic space within us after a slight, imperceptible delay. The existing space includes the entire intrapersonal space and can also be called the "the body's internal 3D default space". We provide examples from meditation experiences to help explain how the sense of 'self ' can be experienced through meditation practice associated with underlying physiological processes that take place through cardio-respiratory synchronization and coherence that is developed among areas of the brain. Meditation practice can help keep the body in a parasympathetic dominant state during meditation, allowing an experience of inner 'self '. Understanding this physical and functional space could help unlock the mysteries of the function of memory and cognition, allowing clinicians to better recognize and treat disorders of the mind by recommending proven techniques to reduce stress as an adjunct to medication treatment. allows us to experience an internal representation of the external environment. In the following sections we discuss the purpose of brain oscillations in consciousness, and further explain the formation of our previously proposed 3D default space theory, see [11]. Brain oscillations and the 3d default spaceWe consider brain oscillations dynamic because sensory and cortical information is organized around the thalamus which allows us to experience the external world. Alpha, gamma, retinogeniculo-cortical, and corticothalamic oscillations are essential in forming the 3D default space because they allow constant and continuous communication between the brain and the body-without them, we do not think that consciousness can emerge.Alpha oscillations vibrate at 8-14 Hz, strongly influencing brain activity [12,13] It is through these fast alpha and gamma oscillations that we suggest an 'internal' neural space is formed, providing an infrastructure for visual consciousness. Neuronal synchronization with the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) through oscillations at 60-120 Hz is indicated by oscillatory activity in the retina, LGN, and cortex [21,22], which allows the brain and retina to receive and process visual stimuli as one organ. These retinogeniculocortical oscillations assist in the formation of the dynamic template that reduces external space into our internal world space we call the 3D default space. These fast oscillations an...

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Effects of the Transcendental Meditation Technique on Trait Anxiety: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Abstract: Overall, TM practice is more effective than treatment as usual and most alternative treatments, with greatest effects observed in individuals with high anxiety. More research is needed in this area, especially with high-anxiety patients, conducted under medically supervised conditions.

Cited by 118 publications

References 37 publications

Transcendental Meditation and Reduced Trauma Symptoms in Female Inmates: A Randomized Controlled Study

Transcendental Meditation and Reduced Trauma Symptoms in Female Inmates: A Randomized Controlled Study

Mind-Body Training for At - Risk Populations: Preventive Medicine at its Best

Meditation Experiences, Self, and Boundaries of Consciousness

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