Meditation Mitigates Work Stress

Transcendental Meditation (TM) is a technique for avoiding distracting thoughts and promoting a state of relaxed awareness.  Sanford Nidich, from Maharishi University (Iowa, USA), and colleagues enrolled at a group of teachers and support staff working as school for children with behavioral problems, to practice 20 minutes of TM twice a day for four months. Starting stress levels among the participants had averaged 39 on a 40-point scale and fell 5 points by the end of the study period. In comparison, 20 school staffers who did not meditate started with stress levels around 37 on the same scale and those rose 2 points during the same period. Meditating participants also felt less depressed and less emotionally exhausted.  Observing that: “The Transcendental Meditation program was effective in reducing psychological distress in teachers and support staff working in a therapeutic school for students with behavioral problems. The study authors conclude that: “These findings have important implications for employees’ job performance as well as their mental and physical health.”