Many of us have seen the harmful effect of stereotypes. In fact, some stereotypes are so pernicious, they can actually hinder performance. When people are worried about being stereotyped – like “girls are bad at math” – they become more anxious, affecting results in school, on the job, or in other situations. This is stereotype […]
Does mindfulness meditation make you more compassionate?
Can mindfulness meditation training make you more compassionate? We’d all like to hope so . . . . . . but we’re biased. Most people probably think of themselves as compassionate, so it’s easy for us to believe that meditation training is working. A group of researchers at the University of California, San Francisco wanted […]
Could Mindfulness Meditation Help People Quit Smoking?
Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States. Despite years of treatment, research, and activism, we still don’t have a really effective program to help people quit smoking. The traditional behavioral treatments haven’t improved much over time. But what if mindfulness meditation could do what traditional programs don’t? Judson Brewer, […]
"I Don’t Have Time to Meditate"
I bet that’s one of the biggest objections practitioners hear when they recommend meditation. Many of us work with pretty busy people. They juggle work, family responsibilities, and other obligations. They don’t want slow improvement over months – they want solutions now. But what if we could show even our most stressed-out clients that the […]
A Better Night’s Sleep with Mindfulness
The problem with anti-depressants is that they often don’t work. Though many try, it’s hard to treat depression with antidepressants alone. Treatment may go on for years, and the side effects, like fatigue, anxiety, loss of libido, and sleep disruption, can be frustrating. Dr. Willoughby Britton at Brown University Medical School and her colleagues at […]