The latest wellness trend spreading throughout the U.S has nothing to do with exercise or nutrition. Instead, people are heading to studios to sit with their breath and their thoughts. Yes, meditation is drawing crowds, according to this Washington Post piece. In Washington D.C. alone, three new meditation centers have opened in the last few […]

While many studies have focused on how mindfulness meditation affects newcomers to the practice, a new study out of the University of Pittsburgh examined the brains of long-time meditators specifically when they were not meditating. “MRI scans show that after an eight-week course of mindfulness practice, the brain’s ‘fight or flight’ center, the amygdala, appears […]

Walking can be another wonderful opportunity to cultivate mindfulness. Movement can strengthen our awareness and sometimes is a more accessible object for meditation than the breath.

“Greater than the tread of mighty armies is an idea whose time has come.” ~ Victor Hugo You’ve probably noticed that talk about mindfulness meditation is much more common today than it was just a few years ago. Nowadays, I hear about mindfulness meditation from a variety of different sources: on the news, television talk […]

When was the last time you sat quietly at your desk and did nothing but think? How would you react if you observed a peer, employee, or manager doing so? Encouraging employees to slow down to focus on the present can seem at odds with a corporate culture of speed and goal attainment.

If you’re pregnant, chances are you’re more than a little bit anxious about childbirth. But according to a new study, a simple practice could make both your experience in the delivery room and your early days as a mother more pleasant.

Your heart is a muscle, and just like any other, you have to work it out to keep it strong. (And by that, we don’t mean heart rate-boosting cardio, though that helps too.) Whether you’re “training” your heart for romantic love, self love, or food love, the best way to flex those heart-warming muscles is […]

Although I teach and study mindfulness — we all have our moments. I just gave the biggest speech of my life, for TEDx Athens, and… I procrastinated on writing it. I procrastinated so much I finished a 33-page book proposal instead of writing the talk!

We’ve all done things we’re not proud of. Some of us have even done things we’re downright ashamed of. The feelings of guilt, shame, and remorse can be major obstacles to our spiritual development. The good news is that through the practice of mindfulness meditation, we can learn to forgive ourselves and to let go […]

Mindfulness is the practice of paying attention to our present moment experience, whether it be a sight, a sound, a taste, a smell, a sensation in the body, or mental activity (the latter includes emotions and thoughts). Practice it for a few moments or for a few minutes—lying on your bed, sitting in a doctor’s […]

Are you a complainer? Do you sometimes feel like anything you do can be complained about? Complaining feels good, like how smoking and eating chocolate feel good. It lets us vent our negativity. Although we know it’s not necessarily good for us but we do it anyway as a guilty pleasure. Researchers have found that […]

Cancer can certainly make it be difficult to be present and feel engaged in what is happening. And for patients who have been diagnosed with advanced cancer or facing end-of-life issues, their mind can be so full of worry and stress, they struggle to be present and aware of the time they have right now.

Can meditation positively affect teenagers’ lives? Absolutely it can! Research in neuroscience and attention provides evidence that meditation strengthens the neural systems of the brain that are responsible for concentration and generating empathy. Becoming more mindful helps children and adolescents better regulate how life circumstances impact their mental health.

As you read this, wiggle your toes. Feel the way they push against your shoes, and the weight of your feet on the floor. Really think about what your feet feel like right now – their heaviness. If you’ve never heard of mindfulness meditation, congratulations, you’ve just done a few moments of it.

Mindfulness continues to garner significant attention in business. And it makes sense. When companies like Google, Apple, McKinsey, Intel, and General Mills all focus in a particular direction, others will naturally follow—especially when research paints such a compelling picture of the possible benefits of mindfulness, from stress reduction to improved relationships to better problem solving […]

Meditation looks easy. How could sitting on a cushion and doing nothing be hard? Yet when I first learned to meditate, it reminded me of playing with a Russian nesting doll: open it and there’s another just like it inside, only smaller, and then another, and several more, until the littlest doll is finally revealed.

Vipassana, or insight meditation, is the practice of continued close attention to sensation, through which one ultimately sees the true nature of existence. It is believed to be the form of meditation practice taught by the Buddha himself, and although the specific form of the practice may vary, it is the basis of all traditions […]

It was with great dismay and astonishment to read that some members of the Florida Legislature are considering funding $200 million to charter schools as a way of solving failing public schools.