{"id":60691,"date":"2017-08-02T07:15:25","date_gmt":"2017-08-02T11:15:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/?p=60691"},"modified":"2021-05-05T08:44:50","modified_gmt":"2021-05-05T12:44:50","slug":"transcendental-meditation-benefits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/lifestyle\/transcendental-meditation-benefits\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is Transcendental Meditation (and Does It Work)?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"What
Photo: Twenty20<\/a><\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Katie Karlson wanted to start a meditation practice, but couldn\u2019t find the right fit. Mindfulness meditation<\/a> didn\u2019t work for her. Neither did focusing on her breath, which just made her anxiety worse. Guided meditations helped, but Karlson wanted something she could do on her own without relying on a tool or app<\/a>.<\/p>\n

So when her boss, who happens to be spiritual guru Gabrielle Bernstein<\/a>, wrote about her experience learning transcendental meditation (aka TM), the 34-year old from Ann Arbor, MI was sold.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>5 Blissful Meditation Studios to Stop and Feel the Zen<\/a><\/p>\n

While Karlson didn\u2019t expect TM to be a cure-all, she says it\u2019s taught her to quiet the physical symptoms of her anxiety<\/a> and to find a calmer state of mind in her daily life. Plus, now she can literally breathe<\/a>. \u201cSince I\u2019ve practiced TM, I noticed pretty quickly that I could take a full breath in a situation where my anxiety was spiked or heightened. That\u2019s not something I could do before,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s a beautiful ritual to start the day. It\u2019s energizing and I feel more awake.\u201d<\/p>\n

Karlson isn\u2019t the only one to swear by the profound effects of transcendental meditation. Devotees include celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow, Jerry Seinfeld, Cameron Diaz and Oprah, titans of Wall Street, the Beatles and the wellness-obsessed.<\/p>\n

But TM is cloaked in a bit of mystery. What exactly is<\/em> transcendental meditation and how does it differ from other forms of meditation? Here\u2019s what you need to know.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>How Yoga in a Salt Room Helped Me Deal with Anxiety<\/a><\/p>\n

Desperately Seeking Transcendence<\/h3>\n

As you may have noticed, meditation is everywhere. With the constant binging, beeping and noise in our everyday lives, who wouldn\u2019t want a super-easy way to find quiet and peace?<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the promise of TM. Twice a day, you close your eyes, sit comfortably for 20 minutes and silently repeat a mantra<\/a> or meaningless word in your head. The mantra is specially chosen for you by your TM teacher to access an internal state of calm.<\/p>\n

Bob Roth, Executive Director of the David Lynch Foundation<\/a> \u2014 an organization that promotes the practice of TM \u2014 describes it as a way to tap into the deep levels of the mind. He likens it to diving into the depths of the ocean where it is still and quiet, far below the breaking waves and turbulent surface of the water. That\u2019s where TM takes you.<\/p>\n

But the practice isn\u2019t tied to a specific religion or philosophy, and you don\u2019t have to change your diet or lifestyle. In fact, you don\u2019t need to believe in the practice in order for it to work, says Roth.<\/p>\n

\u201cI found more peace, clarity of mind and energy. Stress affected me much less.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

John Allon was skeptical when he first learned about transcendental meditation during his senior year of college. He visited his younger brother who has recently learned the practice and noticed his subtle transformation. \u201cI didn\u2019t know meditation from a hole in the ground but whatever he had, I wanted a taste of it,\u201d he says. After a weekend on a TM retreat, he came back to school and smiled the entire week. \u201cI was in such a state of euphoria the likes of which I had never experienced before,\u201d Allon says, who now lives in Fairfield, Iowa and has been teaching TM for 46 years. \u201cI found more peace, clarity of mind and energy. Stress affected me much less.\u201d<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>3 Moving Meditations to Take Your Workout Higher<\/a><\/p>\n

Transcendental Meditation: The Power of Positive Mantras<\/h3>\n

But doesn\u2019t that sound like the promise of every other type of meditation? Yes and no. Roth says that there are three unique types of meditation, each with its specific purpose.<\/p>\n

With focused attention meditation, like zen meditation, you concentrate on one specific thing \u2014 a sound, a body part, a picture \u2014 in order to train and clear your mind. With open-monitoring techniques like mindfulness meditation, you teach your mind to dispassionately observe your thoughts or body sensations and stay in the present moment. This can also be a helpful coping mechanism. Both of these meditation practices require controlling the mind to a certain extent.<\/p>\n

In contrast, self-transcending practices, like TM, don\u2019t involve concentrating or training of your mind. It\u2019s effortless, says Roth. \u201cThe repetition of the mantra isn\u2019t to focus your attention or blot out other thoughts. It\u2019s a subtle mechanism to turn your attention within,\u201d he says. That inward focus allows you to settle into a natural state of calm alertness. In other words, you have a transcendent experience.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>The Daily Meditation You Can Do in Front of a Mirror<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you access that level during TM, you experience a profound rest that eliminates the build up of deeply rooted stress<\/a> and tension, improves health and wakes up and improves the cognitive function<\/a> of the brain.\u201d Research has found that TM reduced blood pressure<\/a>, cortisol levels<\/a> and even stress and trauma in populations like male inmates<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The other difference? You learn the practice in-person with a certified TM teacher. No YouTube video, online course, book or app necessary. To get started, you attend an introductory workshop, meet privately with an instructor (who gives you your mantra and teaches you to use it properly) and take a four-day course \u2014 all for close to $1,000.<\/p>\n

Some scoff at the high price tag as a money-making scheme. However, the Maharishi Foundation USA<\/a>, a nonprofit organization that teaches TM, claims that proceeds go to support initiatives to teach TM to under-served populations. (Think: at-risk youth, veterans and those involved in the criminal justice system.)<\/p>\n

Is Transcendental Meditation Right for You?<\/h3>\n

Whether you practice TM, mindfulness-based meditation<\/a> or focused attention, there\u2019s no denying that meditation is a good thing with benefits for your physical and mental health<\/a>. If you\u2019re curious about transcendental meditation and have the resources to invest, you could try it for yourself.<\/p>\n

Just remember, finding the right meditation practice for you can be like finding the glass slipper. You may have to try a few different methods before you find the best fit.<\/p>\n

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\n30 Resources for Practicing Mindfulness Every Day<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

During transcendental meditation, practitioners repeat a mantra to unlock a state of calm. Find out if this self-transcending practice is right for you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":41,"featured_media":60704,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,12,15],"tags":[159,173,229,282,341,360],"class_list":["post-60691","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","category-mental-health","category-stress","tag-anxiety","tag-meditation","tag-mindfulness","tag-stress","tag-tax1living-well","tag-tax2stress-management"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60691","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/41"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=60691"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60691\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/60704"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=60691"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=60691"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=60691"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}