Becoming conscious: the science of mindfulness.

Many of us go through our daily lives on autopilot, not fully aware of our conscious experiences. In a discussion moderated by Steve Paulson, executive producer and host of To the Best of Our Knowledge, neuroscientists Richard Davidson and Amishi Jha and clinical mindfulness expert Jon Kabat-Zinn explore the role of consciousness in mental and physical health, how we can train our minds to be more flexible and adaptable, and cutting-edge neuroscience findings about the transformation of consciousness through mindfulness and contemplative practice. The following is an edited transcript of the discussion that occurred February 6, 2013, 7:00-8:15 PM, at the New York Academy of Sciences in New York City.

The power of the human heart: a story of trauma and recovery and its implications for rehabilitation and healing.

Ms Trisha Meili revealed her identity as the Central Park Jogger in a presentation at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Boston in May 2003. Her co-presenter was Dr Jon Kabat-Zinn, whose teachings on mindfulness and meditation had been important in Ms Meili's rehabilitation process. This transcript of that conversation describes the various phases she underwent in her recovery, and documents the role of her self-discovered practice of mindfulness in restoring her emotional and physical functioning. Dr Kabat-Zinn reflects on the deeper meaning of the term "rehabilitation," and demonstrates its natural connections to the practice of meditation. A final question and answer section with audience members (clinicians, brain injury survivors and their families) documents the role of emotional support and inspiration in recovery from devastating injury.

Alterations in brain and immune function produced by mindfulness meditation.

OBJECTIVE: The underlying changes in biological processes that are associated with reported changes in mental and physical health in response to meditation have not been systematically explored. We performed a randomized, controlled study on the effects on brain and immune function of a well-known and widely used 8-week clinical training program in mindfulness meditation applied in a work environment with healthy employees. METHODS: We measured brain electrical activity before and immediately after, and then 4 months after an 8-week training program in mindfulness meditation. Twenty-five subjects were tested in the meditation group. A wait-list control group (N = 16) was tested at the same points in time as the meditators. At the end of the 8-week period, subjects in both groups were vaccinated with influenza vaccine. RESULTS: We report for the first time significant increases in left-sided anterior activation, a pattern previously associated with positive affect, in the meditators compared with the nonmeditators. We also found significant increases in antibody titers to influenza vaccine among subjects in the meditation compared with those in the wait-list control group. Finally, the magnitude of increase in left-sided activation predicted the magnitude of antibody titer rise to the vaccine. CONCLUSIONS: These findings demonstrate that a short program in mindfulness meditation produces demonstrable effects on brain and immune function. These findings suggest that meditation may change brain and immune function in positive ways and underscore the need for additional research.