fMRI-based explanations for how meditation could modulate pain processing.
Frontiers in neuroscience January 1, 2025 Faly Golshan, Marla J S Mickleborough 4 citations
Meditation alters brain activity in response to both acute and chronic pain, as shown by fMRI studies. The review categorizes general models of how meditation changes cortical responses in naïve and expert practitioners. It discusses three major components of pain processing and how meditation affects each stage, identifies key brain regions consistently involved in pain modulation through meditation, and proposes a framework for differentiating meditation techniques based on their distinct effects on pain experiences. These insights have implications for using various meditation techniques in pain management, especially for chronic conditions.