Rooted in Stillness Part 1: The Science of Stillness

By Daniel Febbroriello | April 23, 2025

In our hyperconnected world of constant notifications, endless scrolling, and perpetual busyness, we rarely give our minds the opportunity to truly rest. This chronic state of mental activity takes a significant toll—contributing to stress, anxiety, poor sleep, and diminished cognitive function. But what if dedicating just 10-30 minutes daily to stillness practice could fundamentally transform your brain and overall wellbeing?

Recent neuroscience research has revealed something remarkable: consistent mindfulness practices like meditation don't just help you feel calmer temporarily—they actually rewire your brain's physical structure and function. This phenomenon, known as neuroplasticity, means that through regular stillness practice, you can cultivate lasting positive changes in how your brain processes stress, emotions, and even pain.

In this first article of our three-part series, we'll explore the science behind how brief daily stillness practices can create profound changes in your brain and life.

The Overstimulated Modern Mind

The human brain wasn't designed for the constant stimulation of modern life. Research suggests that the average person now consumes about five times more information daily than they did in 1986, checks their phone 96 times per day (that's once every 10 minutes), and spends nearly 7 hours daily on digital media.

This perpetual input creates a state that neuroscientists call "cognitive overload," where the brain's attention systems become fragmented and depleted. The prefrontal cortex—the brain region responsible for executive functions like decision-making, emotional regulation, and impulse control—becomes particularly overtaxed.

The result? A mind that's chronically scattered, reactive, and struggling to focus or find peace. This state not only compromises our mental performance but creates a neurophysiological environment conducive to anxiety, decreased resilience, and sleep disturbances.

Stillness practices offer a powerful antidote to this cultural epidemic of overstimulation—creating space for the brain to process, integrate, and quite literally rebuild itself.

Neuroplasticity: Your Brain's Remarkable Ability to Change

For most of the 20th century, scientists believed that after childhood, the brain became relatively fixed. We now know this couldn't be further from the truth. The brain remains remarkably adaptable throughout life, capable of forming new neural connections and even growing new neurons in response to experiences and environmental inputs.

This property—called neuroplasticity—is the mechanism through which stillness practices create lasting change. When you repeatedly engage in meditation or other mindfulness practices, you're not just having a temporary experience; you're actually sculpting your brain in specific, measurable ways.

Neuroimaging studies show that even 8 weeks of regular meditation practice leads to:

• Increased gray matter density in brain regions associated with self-awareness, compassion, and introspection
• Reduced volume in the amygdala, the brain's alarm system associated with stress and fear responses
• Strengthened connections in the prefrontal cortex, enhancing attention and emotional regulation
• Changes in the default mode network, the brain system active when your mind wanders [1]

These structural changes translate into profound functional differences in how your brain processes experiences—particularly challenging ones like stress, emotional pain, and uncertainty.

Research-Backed Benefits of Daily Stillness

The scientific evidence for stillness practices has exploded in recent years, with thousands of studies documenting specific benefits across multiple domains of wellbeing:

Enhanced Stress Resilience

Perhaps the most well-documented benefit of regular stillness practice is increased resilience to stress. A landmark study published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology found that after just eight weeks of meditation practice, participants showed significantly lower inflammatory responses to stress compared to control groups [2].

This wasn't just subjective—researchers measured stress hormones and inflammatory markers in the blood, finding concrete biological evidence that meditation changes how the body responds to stressors. Regular practitioners developed the ability to experience challenging situations without triggering the full cascade of stress chemistry that typically follows.

Improved Attention and Focus

In a world where attention is increasingly fragmented, stillness practices offer powerful training for the mind's focusing capabilities. A study published in Psychological Science demonstrated that just 10 minutes of meditation practice daily for two weeks significantly improved participants' focus and working memory capacity [3].

Even more impressive, research from the University of California found that intensive meditation practice increased attention stability and reduced the effort needed to remain focused on tasks. This suggests that through regular practice, focus becomes less effortful and more sustainable [4].

Enhanced Emotional Regulation

One of the most valuable benefits of stillness practices is improved emotional regulation—the ability to navigate difficult emotions without becoming overwhelmed or reactive. Neuroimaging research from Michigan State University found that even brief mindfulness training altered brain activity in ways that help people disengage from emotionally reactive thinking patterns [5].

This improved emotional regulation translates into practical benefits like decreased reactivity in conflicts, reduced rumination, and greater resilience during challenging life periods.

Better Sleep Quality

Given the epidemic of sleep difficulties in modern society, it's noteworthy that stillness practices consistently improve multiple dimensions of sleep. Research published in JAMA Internal Medicine found that daily mindfulness practice improved sleep quality more effectively than standard sleep education programs [6].

Even more impressively, these sleep benefits often appear before other effects, with many practitioners reporting improved sleep within the first week of establishing a consistent practice.

Reduced Anxiety and Depression Symptoms

A growing body of research indicates that regular stillness practice creates measurable reductions in anxiety and depression symptoms. A meta-analysis published in JAMA Internal Medicine examining 47 randomized controlled trials with over 3,500 participants found that mindfulness meditation programs showed moderate evidence of improved anxiety and depression at eight weeks and moderate evidence of reduced pain [7].

For those experiencing clinical anxiety, research suggests that regular meditation practice can be as effective as antidepressant medications for symptom reduction, without the potential side effects [8].

The Science Behind Meditative States

What exactly happens in your brain during meditation? Advanced neuroimaging techniques have allowed scientists to peer into the meditating brain, revealing fascinating insights:

Brainwave Changes

EEG studies show that meditation increases alpha wave activity—brain waves associated with relaxed alertness. As practice deepens, theta waves increase, which are linked to learning, memory, and intuition. Long-term practitioners sometimes show increased gamma wave activity, the fastest brainwave type associated with peak cognitive processing and states of unity [9].

Default Mode Network Quieting

The default mode network (DMN) is a set of brain regions active when your mind wanders to thoughts about yourself, others, the past, or future. Hyperactivity in this network is associated with depression, anxiety, and rumination. Meditation has been shown to decrease DMN activity, corresponding with decreased mind-wandering and self-referential thought [10].

Attention Network Enhancement

Regular meditation strengthens the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulate cortex—key regions involved in attention control, decision-making, and self-regulation. These structural changes explain why long-term meditators show superior performance on tasks requiring sustained attention [11].

A New Understanding: Body-Brain Connection

Recent research has revealed how meditation influences the bidirectional communication between brain and body through:

Vagus Nerve Stimulation

Meditation activates the vagus nerve—the main component of the parasympathetic nervous system—which slows heart rate, lowers blood pressure, and reduces inflammation. Higher vagal tone is associated with greater ability to regulate stress responses and emotions [12].

Inflammatory Response Modulation

A 2016 study published in Biological Psychiatry found that three months of meditation training decreased the production of inflammatory proteins called cytokines in response to psychological stressors. This suggests that meditation's stress-buffering effects extend to the cellular level, potentially reducing risk for inflammation-related disorders [13].

Looking Ahead: The Future of Meditation Research

The scientific exploration of meditation continues to evolve in exciting directions:

• Personalized Approaches : Researchers are beginning to identify which meditation styles might work best for specific conditions or personality types
• Minimal Effective Dose : Studies are determining the optimal duration and frequency for various benefits
• Epigenetic Effects : Emerging research suggests meditation may influence gene expression, potentially affecting physical health at the cellular level [14]

In our next article, we'll explore how to start your own stillness practice, including finding the right approach for your unique needs and determining how much practice you need to experience meaningful benefits.

References

1. Tang YY, Hölzel BK, Posner MI. The neuroscience of mindfulness meditation. Nat Rev Neurosci. 2015;16(4):213-225. https://www.nature.com/articles/nrn3916

2. Rosenkranz MA, Davidson RJ, Maccoon DG, Sheridan JF, Kalin NH, Lutz A. A comparison of mindfulness-based stress reduction and an active control in modulation of neurogenic inflammation. Brain Behav Immun. 2013;27(1):174-184. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3518553/

3. Mrazek MD, Franklin MS, Phillips DT, Baird B, Schooler JW. Mindfulness training improves working memory capacity and GRE performance while reducing mind wandering. Psychol Sci. 2013;24(5):776-781. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0956797612459659

4. Lutz A, Slagter HA, Rawlings NB, Francis AD, Greischar LL, Davidson RJ. Mental training enhances attentional stability: neural and behavioral evidence. J Neurosci. 2009;29(42):13418-13427. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2789281/

5. Teper R, Inzlicht M. Meditation, mindfulness and executive control: the importance of emotional acceptance and brain-based performance monitoring. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci. 2013;8(1):85-92. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3541493/

6. Black DS, O'Reilly GA, Olmstead R, Breen EC, Irwin MR. Mindfulness meditation and improvement in sleep quality and daytime impairment among older adults with sleep disturbances: a randomized clinical trial. JAMA Intern Med. 2015;175(4):494-501. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4407465/

7. Goyal M, Singh S, Sibinga EM, et al. Meditation programs for psychological stress and well-being: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA Intern Med. 2014;174(3):357-368. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4142584/

8. Hoge EA, Bui E, Marques L, et al. Randomized controlled trial of mindfulness meditation for generalized anxiety disorder: effects on anxiety and stress reactivity. J Clin Psychiatry. 2013;74(8):786-792. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3772979/

9. Lazar SW, Kerr CE, Wasserman RH, et al. Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness. Neuroreport. 2005;16(17):1893-1897. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1361002/

10. Brewer JA, Worhunsky PD, Gray JR, Tang YY, Weber J, Kober H. Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2011;108(50):20254-20259. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3250176/

11. Hasenkamp W, Barsalou LW. Effects of meditation experience on functional connectivity of distributed brain networks. Front Hum Neurosci. 2012;6:38. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3290768/

12. Krygier JR, Heathers JA, Shahrestani S, Abbott M, Gross JJ, Kemp AH. Mindfulness meditation, well-being, and heart rate variability: a preliminary investigation into the impact of intensive Vipassana meditation. Int J Psychophysiol. 2013;89(3):305-313. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2013.06.017

13. Creswell JD, Taren AA, Lindsay EK, et al. Alterations in resting-state functional connectivity link mindfulness meditation with reduced interleukin-6: a randomized controlled trial. Biol Psychiatry. 2016;80(1):53-61. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4941786/

14. Kaliman P, Álvarez-López MJ, Cosín-Tomás M, Rosenkranz MA, Lutz A, Davidson RJ. Rapid changes in histone deacetylases and inflammatory gene expression in expert meditators. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2014;40:96-107. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4039194/