[Buddha-l] monks, meditation and trauma

[S.A. Feite]

On Apr 7, 2009, at 8:56 AM, S.A. Feite wrote:

> Nonetheless, there appears to be some success with (mindfulness)
> meditation. Scientists like Siegel provide a reasonable explanation
> for why this is the case. As they say 'change your mind, change your
> brain'.

 From Neurologist and Zen Master James H. Austin's new book _Selfless  
Insight:
Zen and the Meditative Transformations of Consciousness_:


Intriguing clinical studies have been conducted on patients who  
suffer from
posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (chapter 36).8 Structural MRI  
scans have
suggested that among normal subjects, a thicker ventral medial  
prefrontal cortex
is associated with their retaining a greater capacity to extinguish  
fearful behavior.
Other data suggest that genetic deficits in the way the hippocampus  
processes
cues could also predispose PTSD patients to develop their stress  
disorder.9
Clearly, a complex circuitry is involved in enhancing and suppressing  
our
fears. Simpler practical measures, including mindfulness-based stress  
reduction
(MBSR) training, and cognitive retraining have much to recommend them as
parts of a conservative approach to treating less severe forms of  
PTSD. The evidence
that different subtypes exist among patients who suffer from  
obsessivecompulsive
disorder (OCD) suggests that several different modules in the larger
network helps determine which patients are more likely to improve on  
cognitive
behavioral therapy per se10 [ZBR:84].

  References

8. S. Rauch, L. Shin, E. Phelps. Neurocircuitry models of post- 
traumatic stress disorder and extinction:
Human neuroimaging research past, present, and future. Biological  
Psychiatry 2006;
60:376–382.

9. M. Gilbertson, S. Williston, L. Paulus, et al. Configural cue  
performance in identical twins
discordant for posttraumatic stress disorder: Theoretical  
implications for the role of hippocampal
function. Biological Psychiatry 2007; 62:513–520.

10. A. Brody, S. Saxena, J. Schwartz, et al. FDG-PET predictors of  
response to behavioral therapy
and pharmacotherapy in obsessive compulsive disorder. Psychiatry  
Research 1998; 84:1–
6. Zen practice employs mindful introspection and analysis (chapter  
33). With regard to this
top-down capacity to modulate the emotions, it is important to  
appreciate how effective a
tool cognitive retraining is in defusing the urgency of obsessive and  
compulsive behaviors
in some patients, and in reversing their PET scan abnormalities.