Lisa May, author of a 2016 study said recently, “Most people are used to the idea that we can change our experience with chemicals, but sometimes we forget that we can change the chemical activity of our brains depending on how we use our brains. The way we choose to engage our minds—our thoughts, beliefs, attitudes, and practices—shapes our brain chemistry, our habits, and our future experience.”

A simple practice such as The Art of Ascension retrains the brain, teaches non-judgement and acceptance and develops the skills for directing attention, all which assist in changing our relationship to pain.

Over the last 10 years, over many tests, researchers found that when meditators are stimulated with pain, which is compared before vs. during meditation, meditators typically report either a drop in pain intensity (how strong the pain is), pain unpleasantness (how bothersome the pain is), or both.

Dr. May has been on a mission to discover how meditation reduces pain.  She designed a test with experienced meditators involving the administration of naloxone which inhibits opioid pathways. In 2014, Mind and Life funded her study as well as a similar study by Dr. Fadel using novice meditators.

The 2 separate studies of experienced and non-experienced meditators achieved the same result when opioid pathways were blocked. The results were completely unexpected!  

Researchers set up a pain test.  After testing and determining that the meditators received at least 15% reduction in pain through meditation, they gave them a second test and administered naloxone, which blocks opioid pathways.  Researchers expected either less reduction in pain or no change.  However, they were amazed to find naloxone produced significantly greater reductions in pain intensity and unpleasantness than the control groups. Naloxone has been used in pain research for over 30 years and has never been shown to improve pain.  

The results suggests that endogenous opioids are clearly not the chemical the brain uses to reduce pain during meditation. Therefore, the treatment of chronic pain may be more effective with meditation due to a lack of cross-tolerance with opiate-based medications.  This seems to be good news and indicative of more success for patients with PTSD as well as patients with previous opioid addictions in using meditation for pain reduction.

​Different types of meditation have been shown to result in psychological and biological changes that are actually or potentially associated with improved health [1].

Meditation has been found to:

1. Produce a clinically significant reduction in resting as well as ambulatory blood pressure [2, 3] 
2. Reduce heart rate [4] 
3. Result in cardiorespiratory synchronization [5] 
4. Alter levels of melatonin and serotonin [6] 
5. Suppress corticostriatal glutamatergic neurotransmission [7] 
6. Boost the immune response [8] 
7. Decrease the levels of reactive oxygen species as measured by ultra weak photon emission [9] 
8. Reduce stress and promote positive mood states [10] 
9. Reduce anxiety and pain and enhance self-esteem [11] 
10. Have a favorable influence on overall and spiritual quality of life in late-stage disease [12] 
11. Decrease in anxiety and improvement in positive mood, spiritual health [13]
12. Tolerate pain [13]

With so many biological and psychological changes seen as a result of meditation, it seems like the only question that remains for each person is which meditation and how often!  Finding a practice that you will do regularly is very important because regularity is key.  

If you are looking for a practice, check out our free webinar to learn more about The Art of Ascension.
 
 
 
1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2802370/
2. Barnes VA, Davis HC, Murzynowski JB, Treiber FA. Impact of meditation on resting and ambulatory blood pressure and heart rate in youth. Psychosom Med. 2004;66:909–14. [PubMed]
3. Anderson JW, Liu C, Kryscio RJ. Blood pressure response to transcendental meditation: A meta-analysis. Am J Hypertens. 2008;21:310–6. [PubMed]
4. Solberg EE, Ekeberg O, Holen A, Ingjer F, Sandvik L, Standal PA, et al. Hemodynamic changes during long meditation. Appl Psychophysiol Biofeedback. 2004;29:213–21. [PubMed]
5. Cysarz D, BІssing A. Cardiorespiratory synchronization during Zen meditation. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2005;95:88–95. [PubMed]
6. Solberg EE, Holen A, Ekeberg O, Osterud B, Halvorsen R, Sandvik L. The effects of long meditation on plasma melatonin and blood serotonin. Med Sci Monit. 2004;10:CR96–101. [PubMed]
7. Kjaer TW, Bertelsen C, Piccini P, Brooks D, Alving J, Lou HC. Increased dopamine tone during meditation-induced change of consciousness. Brain Res Cogn Brain Res. 2002;13:255–9. [PubMed]
8. Davidson RJ, Kabat-Zinn J, Schumacher J, Rosenkranz M, Muller D, Santorelli SF. Alterations in brain and immune function produced by mindfulness meditation. Psychosom Med. 2003;65:564–70. [PubMed]
9. Van Wijk EP, Ludtke R, Van Wijk R. Differential effects of relaxation techniques on ultraweak photon emission. J Altern Complement Med. 2008;14:241–50. [PubMed]
10. Jain S, Shapiro SL, Swanick S, Roesch SC, Mills PJ, Bell I. A randomized controlled trial of mindfulness meditation versus relaxation training: Effects on distress, positive states of mind, rumination, and distraction. Ann Behav Med. 2007;33:11–21. [PubMed]
11. Bonadonna R. Meditation's impact on chronic illness. Holist Nurs Pract. 2003;17:309–19. [PubMed]
12. Williams AL, Selwyn PA, Liberti L, Molde S, Njike VY, McCorkle R, et al. A randomized controlled trial of meditation and massage effects on quality of life in people with late-stage disease: A pilot study. J Palliat Med. 2005;8:939–52. [PubMed]
13. Wachholtz AB, Pargament KI. Is spirituality a critical ingredient of meditation? Comparing the effects of spiritual meditation, secular meditation, and relaxation on spiritual, psychological, cardiac, and pain outcomes. J Behav Med. 2005;28:369–84. [PubMed]

Studies abound showing the improvements in the immune system for those that meditate.  Here’s an overview of just a few:

1. Meditation shifted gene expression that related to stress, inflammation and wound healing.

A study by a team of researchers from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, University of California at San Francisco studied 20,000 genes in 3 groups of retreatants, non-meditators on a vacation retreat, experienced meditators, and novice meditators.  
 
Everyone experienced improvement in mood up to a month later. Novice meditators experienced significant boost over depression even 10 months later. 
 
All the groups showed shifts in the expression of genes related to stress, inflammation and wound healing.  Experienced meditators showed greatest shift in these as well as telomerase activity.
 
One of the research leaders,Harvard University and Massachusetts General Hospital, said, “Based on our results, the benefit we experience from meditation isn't strictly psychological; there is a clear and quantifiable change in how our bodies function. Meditation is one of the ways to engage in restorative activities that may provide relief for our immune systems.”
 
 
2. Meditation can directly improve immune response
In a study combining meditation, breathing, and cold water therapy, trained students were injected with Escherichia coli, a bacteria that normally induces violent sickness; yet they had no symptoms from the e coli injection 
 
Review of 20 studies showing improvement in immune response through meditation:      

• Reduced markers of inflammation, high levels of which are often correlated with decreased immune functioning and disease.
• Increased number of immune system’s helper cells that are involved in sending signals to other cells telling them to destroy infections.
• Increased telomerase activity; (telomerase deterioration leads to cancer and premature aging).

 
3. Regular meditators show reduced need for medical treatments.
A large study of insurance statistics of 2,000 meditators over a 5-year period indicates meditators had 55% less medical care utilization, both in-patient and out-patient, compared to controls matched for age, gender, and occupation. The group had lower sickness rates in all categories of disease, including 87% less hospitalization for heart disease and 55% less for cancer. The difference between the Meditators and non- Meditators was greatest for individuals over 40 years of age.
 
There are 3 possible ideas floating as to why immune systems are so much better with meditation:
1.   Decreased Stress, Increased Emotional Regulation
2.   Targeted Brain/Immune System Communication
3.   Activation of the Second Brain (the Gut)