We aimed to quantify the effects of advanced meditation on brain electrical activity during sleep. This investigation addresses the need for objective neurophysiological measures of meditation's potential impact on brain aging and health. This study was a single-site, prospective cohort study (conducted August 25, 2021, through September 26, 2021) of meditators attending the "Samyama Sadhana"...
Relationship difficulties are a major source of anxiety in contemporary society, contributing to social withdrawal, emotional reactivity, and conflict, which in turn increase isolation and distress. Meditation has emerged as a promising strategy for managing these stressors by fostering self-awareness, resilience, and empathy. This study explores the Inner Engineering (IE) program, a...
Introduction Anxiety and depression have increased dramatically 2–3-fold with the COVID-19 pandemic. There is an urgent need for safe, cost-effective, and scalable approaches to alleviate this parallel mental health pandemic. Meditation has previously been shown to reduce stress, anxiety, and depression symptoms. Furthermore, online delivery of mind-body interventions will be impactful in...
Introduction: Samyama is an Isha Yoga 8-day residential meditation/yoga retreat combined with 60 days of preparation with vegan diet. We showed earlier Samyama retreat was associated with lower systemic inflammation and favorable lipid profiles along with other physical and mental health benefits. There is no mechanistic study on the impact of an advanced meditative process on multiple blood...
Introduction: The Covid-19 pandemic has been a major disruptor of routine life, resulting in increased stress and predisposing people to negative outcomes, such as insomnia, anxiety and hopelessness. Mind-body interventions have improved concentration, emotional balance, and positive emotions, with an enhanced sense of productivity, and self-confidence. We therefore hypothesized that exposure...
Background: Meditation is gaining recognition as a tool to impact health and well-being. Samyama is an 8-day intensive residential meditation experience conducted by Isha Foundation requiring several months of extensive preparation and vegan diet. The health effects of Samyama have not been previously studied. The objective was to assess physical and emotional well-being before and after...