Hippocampal circuits underlie improvements in self‐reported anxiety following mindfulness training

Summary

Regular mindfulness practice physically changes brain structure and reduces anxiety. Brain scans reveal that mindfulness training enlarges the hippocampus—our memory center—while decreasing its connection to areas processing fearful memories. These changes help people better manage anxiety by improving their ability to remember that previously scary situations are now safe, a process called extinction retrieval.

Abstract

Abstract Introduction Mindfulness meditation has successfully been applied to cultivate skills in self‐regulation of emotion, as it employs the unbiased present moment awareness of experience. This heightened attention to and awareness of sensory experience has been postulated to create an optimal therapeutic exposure condition and thereby improve extinction learning. We recently demonstrated increased connectivity in hippocampal circuits during the contextual retrieval of extinction memory following mindfulness training. Methods Here, we examine the role of structural changes in hippocampal subfields following mindfulness training in a randomized controlled longitudinal study using a two‐day fear‐conditioning and extinction protocol. Results We demonstrate an association between mindfulness training‐related increases in subiculum and decreased hippocampal connectivity to lateral occipital regions during contextual retrieval of extinguished fear. Further, we demonstrate an association between decreased connectivity and decreases in self‐reported anxiety following mindfulness training. Conclusions The results highlight the role of the subiculum in gating interactions with contextual stimuli during memory retrieval and, also, the mechanisms through which mindfulness training may foster resilience.

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