Research
There is a huge and ever-expanding body of research which
supports the effectiveness of mindfulness and meditation.
This approach has finally made the leap into mainstream culture.
Jon Kabat-Zinn
Research has shown that our human brain is an organ that is continually changing not only its function but also its structure on the basis of experience, and in particular, repetitive experience over extended periods of time. This discovery of an inherent plasticity in brain architecture and function, known as neuroplasticity implies that what we call the mind actually shapes the brain and drives transformation of our intrinsic capacities, and it does so not just in childhood but across our entire life span.
There is compelling evidence that interventions based on repetitive positive experience may be restorative and therapeutic…Increasing evidence from laboratory studies of meditators has shown that the repetitive practices at the heart of meditative disciplines can drive positive neuroplastic changes that also reflect mental and physical well-being such as greater emotional balance, compassion, and genuine happiness, as well as a potential buffering of stressful and traumatic experience when it does occur.
Lutz, Dunne and Davidson