The Permanente Journal
January 30, 2014
Charles Elder, Sanford Nidich, Francis Moriarty et al.
117 citations
Teachers and support staff at a therapeutic school for students with severe behavioral problems who learned the Transcendental Meditation program showed significantly greater reductions in perceived stress, depression, and overall burnout after four months compared with a wait-list control group. Effect sizes ranged from 0.40 to 0.94. The program was effective in reducing psychological distress in this employee population.
Psychosomatic Medicine
January 1, 1998
Robert H Schneider, Sanford Nidich, John Salerno et al.
95 citations
Oxidative stress, which may contribute to aging and chronic diseases like atherosclerosis, was lower in older adults who practiced the Transcendental Meditation technique compared to those who did not. Long-term practitioners (average 16.5 years) had serum lipid peroxide levels 15% lower than controls, as measured by the TBARS assay. The two groups did not differ in smoking, fat intake, or vitamin supplementation, and the lower red meat consumption among meditators did not account for the difference. These preliminary results suggest that stress reduction through Transcendental Meditation may be associated with reduced oxidative stress, though prospective trials are needed to confirm a causal effect.
Frontiers in Education
March 4, 2021
Laurent Valosek, Staci Wendt, Jan Link et al.
A meditation-based wellness program reduced emotional exhaustion, the core component of burnout, and improved resilience, perceived stress, fatigue, and depression in teachers. Seventy-eight participants were randomly assigned to the Transcendental Meditation program or a wait-list control group. At a four-month follow-up, the meditation group showed significant reductions in emotional exhaustion, perceived stress, and fatigue, and significant increases in resilience. Depression also improved but with less certainty. Eighty-seven percent of participants complied with daily home meditation practice. The findings suggest that meditation can help alleviate teacher burnout and related psychological distress.
The Permanente Journal
January 1, 2017
Sanford Nidich, Angela Seng, Blaze Compton et al.
Incarcerated women experience higher rates of trauma than the general population. In a pilot randomized controlled trial, 22 female inmates at a correctional facility were assigned to either a Transcendental Meditation (TM) program or a wait-list control group. After four months, the TM group showed significant reductions in total trauma symptoms, intrusive thoughts, and hyperarousal compared with controls. Effect sizes were large, ranging from 0.65 to 0.99. Compliance with the TM program was 81%. The findings suggest TM may be a feasible and effective intervention for reducing trauma symptoms in incarcerated women, though larger studies are needed.
The Permanente Journal
January 1, 2016
Sanford Nidich, Tom O'connor, Thomas Rutledge et al.
Incarcerated men with moderate- to high-risk criminal profiles who practiced Transcendental Meditation for four months showed significant reductions in trauma symptoms—including anxiety, depression, dissociation, and sleep disturbance—as well as perceived stress, compared with those receiving usual care. The benefits were especially pronounced among those with high trauma levels, with effect sizes ranging from 0.67 to 0.89. These findings align with earlier research on Transcendental Meditation's effects on trauma and stress.