How Meditation Works & Science-Based Effective Meditations

In this episode, I discuss the biological mechanisms of the state
changes that occur during different types of meditation and
describe how to develop the meditation practice optimal for you. I
explain key meditation principles, such as using specific
breathwork patterns and adjusting your perception to specific
locations along the continuum between interoception, exteroception
and dissociation. I discuss how meditation practices lead to
long-term trait changes and neuroplasticity, including changing
your default mood, reducing baseline anxiety/depression, increasing
your ability to focus, enhancing relaxation, improving sleep, and
increasing your overall happiness level. I also explain the
concept behind the “third-eye center,” what mindfulness is from a
biological standpoint, the power of ultra-brief meditations and how
to select the best meditation and time and duration to meditate to
meet your need. I also explain a novel open-eyed perception-based
meditation that may enhance focus, relaxation and task-switching
ability. Whether you are a novice or an experienced meditator or
simply interested in how our brain controls different aspects of
conscious awareness and self-regulation, this episode should
interest you. For the full show notes, visit hubermanlab.com. Thank
you to our sponsors AG1: https://athleticgreens.com/huberman LMNT:
https://drinklmnt.com/hubermanlab Waking Up:
https://wakingup.com/huberman Momentous:
https://livemomentous.com/huberman Timestamps (00:00:00) Meditation
(00:04:48) Sponsor: LMNT (00:08:25) Brief History of Meditation:
Consciousness, Psychedelics, fMRI (00:16:19) How the Brain
Interprets the Body & Surrounding Environment; Mindfulness
(00:26:07) Neuroscience of Meditation; Perceptual Spotlights
(00:31:58) Sponsor: AG1 (00:33:41) Interoception vs. Exteroception
(00:42:20) Default Mode Network, Continuum of Interoception &
Exteroception (00:53:30) Tools: Interoceptive or Exteroceptive
Bias, Meditation Challenge (01:01:48) State & Trait Changes,
Interoceptive & Exteroceptive Meditations, Refocusing
(01:07:35) Tool: Brief Meditations, Waking Up App (01:10:30) “Third
Eye Center” & Wandering Thoughts (01:20:46) Meditation:
Practice Types, Focal Points & Consistency (01:24:10)
Breathwork: Cyclic Hyperventilation, Box Breathing &
Interoception (01:30:41) Tool: Meditation Breathwork, Cyclic vs.
Complex Breathwork (01:39:22) Interoception vs. Dissociation,
Trauma (01:47:43) Model of Interoception & Dissociation
Continuum (01:53:39) Meditation & Dissociation: Mood, Bias
& Corresponding Challenge (02:00:18) Meditation & Sleep:
Yoga Nidra, Non-Sleep Deep Rest (NSDR) (02:11:33) Choosing a
Meditative Practice; Hypnosis (02:14:53) Tool: Space-Time Bridging
(STB) (02:25:00) Zero-Cost Support, YouTube Feedback, Spotify &
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