Have you ever had a moment like this:
Late in the night, i couldn't sleep, i had a disaster film in my head, and i'd rehearsed all the bad things that hadn't happened
Or open your eyes early in the morning, feeling like you've been put in cement, you don't even have the strength to get up and pour a glass of water, and you can't feel anything。
The first is anxiety, the second is depression。
They are like twin shadows, often accompanied by anxiety that drains you to exhaustion and then pushes the deep pit of depression, which makes you incapable of coping with life and gives rise to more anxiety。
Not today, not chicken soup。
Let's be clear in brain science: what does anxiety and depression do in the body? I wonder why you could do an exact repair to your brain
Anxiety and depression, essentially two "system failures" of the brain
If you compare your brain to a car..
Anxieties, the gas gate is dead, the brakes fail。
It's depression. It's the tank. The engine's out。
Take a look at this:
The emotional reaction to anxiety: constant tension, anxiety, irritation, feeling that bad things are about to happen, and being overwhelmed by delusions, fearing out of control, fearing death, fearing loss。
The physical response to anxiety: heart attack, short chest stress, sweating or cold hands and feet, shaking hands, muscle stress, headaches, stomach cramps, insomnia (sleeping difficulties, failure to stop the brain), chronic inflammation and pain。
Repressive emotional reactions: persistent depression, emptiness, hopelessness, loss of interest in everything, feeling worthless, self-criticizing, and, in serious cases, “want to live”。
The physical response to depression: severe fatigue, body like lead, slow reaction, sudden changes in appetite (absorption or total lack of appetite), early awakening or unconsciousness, increased chronic pain。
This is not something that can be solved if you want to open up. Because the root causes of the problem are in three critical areas of the brain。
There's been a problem with these three brain regions
1 almond nuclei - a smoke alarm for the brain
It detects threats. The almond core in the brain of an anxiety-depressed patient is like an over-sensitive alarm, and a little fire is ringing the alarm. You know it's okay rationally, but it's already directing the body into a “fight or escape” mode。
2 front frontal cortex - "rational commander" of the brain
It is responsible for rational judgement, emotional control, impulse control. Long-term pressure weakens the function of the frontal lobe, leaving it unmanageable to the almonds' nuclei. It was like the commander was armed and the alarm went off。
3 default mode network - backstage train system of the brain
When you don't do the job, you lose it, you play it backstage. This network of anxiety-depressed people is extremely active, reproducing negative memories, self-critical and catastrophic images -- that's why you lie in bed and don't stop thinking。
How does meditation fix the brain
Meditation isn't about emptying your head, it's about training these three points。
Point one, anxiety: turn back the alarm sensitivity. Go on
When you do respiratory meditation or body scans, you proactively anchor your attention on "the body feeling at the moment." this action sends a clear signal to the almond core: here, without real threats, you can downgrade your response。
After eight weeks of active meditation training, mri scans show that almond cores are actually smaller and their response thresholds for stress stimulation have increased significantly. At the same time, deep breathing directly activates the sub-vertical nervous system, allowing for an overall reduction in heart rate, blood pressure, muscle stress - cutting the vicious circle of anxiety from the physical level。
Second, on depression: the joy of reconnecting the brain and the way back to action
At the heart of the depression is the lack of help from “doing nothing”. Rehearsal training is being conducted “in the present without judgement”, and it is being practiced repeatedly to draw attention from the default model network of “reflecting the past, worrying about the future” and to pull back into the body's feeling, breathing up and down。
This process, which continues to be practiced, will result in a marked increase in the frontal cortex and greater emotional control; and areas such as the voltanuclear, which is responsible for power and pleasure, have been reactivated. You're starting to relive the urge to do something, even if it's just going down the stairs。
Number three, learn to decouple
People with anxiety and depression tend to think of “the mind” as “the real thing”. Meditating has taught you to be an observer: the thought has come, as if a cloud had passed. You are the sky, not the cloud. Once this is established, negative thinking will decrease dramatically。
04 science hammer: evidence from top laboratories
• harvard university: active stress reduction courses can increase the grey density of sea horses and reverse brain atrophy associated with chronic stress。
• oxford university: the positive cognitive therapy reduced the risk of relapse into depression by 43 per cent, with the same effect as antidepressants。
• yale university: meditating to lower the level of activity of the default mode network so that the brain no longer “empty” consumes energy。
The leading global scientific journal has published a series of papers with a high degree of convergence: meditation training can reduce the levels of inflammatory factors and improve immune functions. Meditation is not a belief, but a measurable training of brain functions。
Two first-aid meditations when you're anxious or depressed
First aid against anxiety: 4-7-8 respiratory
Inhalation is four seconds to hold a seven-second breath, eight seconds to breathe slowly. Repeat four rounds. This rhythm compels the activation of the co-morbid nerve, which can be restored in two minutes。
Emergency antidepressants: five fingers of gratitude
Reach out to the left hand and hold every finger in the right hand. The thumb -- think of something that makes you feel comfortable today; the index finger -- think of a person you thank; the middle finger -- think of a little thing you did (even if you just dumped the garbage); the noun -- think of a taste you like; the little finger -- think of a place you went to calm you down. This exercise activates the reward circuit for the brain。
Mediment is not magic. It doesn't make anxiety disappear overnight. But it is a scientifically proven training method that activates the self-rehabilitation capability of the brain on its own。
Would you like to meditate for 10 minutes today
Start with a full deep breath。
Your brain will remember this kindness。
