Harvard MRI Study Shows That Meditation Literally Rebuilds Your Brain’s Gray Matter In 8 Weeks

Meditation can be roughly defined to mean an exercise that helps you calm down. It is wrong to assume that only soulful music or written forms of communication on a particular subject can qualify as meditation. In the 21st century, we have something called ‘Dance Meditation’, where you are taken to a room full of strangers and you basically dance your soul out.

A team in partnership with Harvard, of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) encountered interesting reactions to the effect of meditation on the mind of humans. Over a period of 56 days, an experiment represented the huge effects that meditative discourses have on the mind. It is no secret that relaxation exercises help you live a better life. There are several apps readily available on Google Playstore that could be used to serve the purpose. ‘Headspace’ is a brilliant app that guides you through meditative practices, bit by bit. They even have different types of relaxation processes to cure varying ailments. For first-timers, the guide is amazing, and will help you figure out the process quite easily.

Sara Lazar, the superior researcher of the paper, is associated with MGH Psychiatric Neuroimaging Research Program. She found that this change is not only emotional.

The participants are subject to re-formatting of the brain cells that lead to ecstasy or calmness of the mind. Imagine giving your mind a complete makeover simply by focusing on a calming discourse. It could be a lecture like Osho’s discourses, or study-music, or even white noise. Any form works. The one things strictly required for this to work, however, is consistency. You cannot meditate once in three years and expect to gain moksh. The Dalai Lama did not gain enlightenment through skipping 20 sessions to binge-watch Netflix. You have to focus.

Sue McGreenvey, another associate, stated that erstwhile researches by Lazar’s team reported changes in the formation of the brains of people who participate in meditative practices. In contrast to those who did not participate, the density of the cerebral cortex seemed different. That is the segment of the brain that deals with distraction and intuition.

However, the previous papers failed to pin point meditation as a viable cause for these changes. The new research however has zeroed in on relaxation exercises as a very important influencer. Clearly, they have all the scientific evidence required to back this fact up.

The experiment in question reported that 27 minutes of meditation everyday caused a massive uplifting of the density of gray matter in the hippocampus. This section deals with empathy, self-analysis, and being aware. This force also dampens the density of gray matter in the amygdala. It happens to be an important tool in controlling strain and panic. It is an extremely useful procedure for absolutely anybody in the 21st century who is trying to get somewhere in life, because it is extremely hard on all of us. On the contrary, the other group did not face any differences. Therefore, one cannot assert that it is merely circumstantial or rule out the effectiveness of meditation.

Britta Holzel, who went to the German college of Glessen, is also an associate of MGH, and reports on this issue. It is said that neurological science is now aware of an increasing plasticity in our brain formation. It is more than any previous studies have revealed.

The great thing is, now we know that we can change the makings of our mind to suit a healthy and better way of living. So, let’s use it? Don’t let this massive discovery go to waste. You can finally take control of the reins of your mind and at least coax it to gallop towards happiness.

References:

Feelguide November 19, 2014. Harvard Unveils MRI Study Proving Meditation Literally Rebuilds the Brain’s Gray Matter in 8 Weeks. Health, Spirituality, the Human Brain. Retrieved from:

McGreevey, S. January 21, 2011. Eight weeks to a better brain; Meditation study shows changes associated with awareness, stress. Harvard gazette.