MDLWAY

Open monitoring exercises are relatively simple ways to practice the core skills of insight or mindfulness meditation. This episode describes how to watch the mind and scan the body.

Find episode transcripts and more meditation resources on MDLWAY.com.

If meditation is simple, but not easy, why would it be worthwhile to learn how to meditate and make regular practice a part of your life? 

Discover some internal and external possibilities of meditation and survey 20 recent studies and reviews on meditation in the fields of cognitive science, neuroscience, and psychology. Links to all of the studies mentioned in this episode are available in the transcript on MDLWAY.com.

Walking meditation is a traditional mode of practice that could resonate with some neurodiverse meditators. Individuals who experience symptoms of attention disorders, engage in stimming motions, or simply prefer to meditate in motion might want to try walking practice. Find out how to do formal walking meditation and two alternative approaches.

Access episode transcripts and more meditation resources on MDLWAY.com.

This episode of the Meditation, Doing, and Learning way (MDLWAY) audio feed considers how insight meditation and mindfulness practice can support working the executive functions of memory updating and mental set shifting (or task switching). The preceding episode (12) explores inhibition.

Find episode transcripts and more meditation resources on MDLWAY.com.

Executive functions are cognitive abilities that can be affected by neurodevelopmental conditions such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity or autism spectrum disorders. Find out how mindfulness meditation can support the executive function of inhibition control, which is involved in managing attention, behavior, emotions, and thoughts.

Access episode transcripts and more meditation resources on MDLWAY.com.

Those seeking practical results from meditation can try structured insight and/or tranquility meditation, mix and match techniques from both methods, or experiment with more customized forms of practice. This short episode considers some potential benefits and risks of personalized meditation practice.

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Individuals who experience symptoms of the inattentive (ADHD-I), hyperactive (ADHD-HI), or combined (ADHD-C) subtypes of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder may encounter significant obstacles when learning to meditate. Many recent studies show that meditation can be possible, and likely beneficial, for people of all ages with ADHD.

Find out more about meditating with attention disorders, including the best exercises and techniques for those who encounter concentration challenges.

Access a transcript of this episode and more meditation resources on MDLWAY.com.

The second episode in a three-part series on emotional regulation goes beyond the identification of emotions to consider how individuals can explore emotions through focused meditation practice and more casual mindfulness practice in ordinary life. This episode considers three tranquility meditation techniques -- loving-friendliness, compassion, and sympathetic joy -- as adaptive and prosocial tools to supplement emotional regulation mechanisms.

Find a transcript of this episode and more meditation resources on MDLWAY.com.

This episode introducing loving-friendliness meditation is being released on February 14, which is a holiday known as Valentine’s Day in some parts of the world. The historical observance of a saint’s day has become associated with the celebration of romantic love, often as expressed through consumption, such as giving gifts or going out on dates. 

What better time to introduce the concept of loving-friendliness – which goes beyond romance, and even friendship, to promote an unselfish, unattached love that wishes the best for everyone?

Find episode transcripts and more meditation resources on MDLWAY.com.

Emotional regulation refers to the use of internal mechanisms to adjust one's emotional state. Some people – including a number of neurodivergent individuals – have difficulty recognizing, managing, or expressing emotion. This is the first of three episodes (14, 15, and 16) on identifying, exploring, and comprehending emotions.

Find episode transcripts and more meditation resources on MDLWAY.com.