Are you thinking about going to a social function? Maybe you are thinking about going to a party? If the answer is no (and for no good reason), you should really consider meditation first. Meditation can help.
Meditation helps you focus on the moment, not worrying about the million unimportant things that are going on. Researcher, neuroscientist, and pharmacologist Candance Pert, Section Chief at the National Institution of Health, found that meditation can contribute to the release of endorphins, which give you “runner’s high” and just make us feel better about ourselves. When we feel great about ourselves we are more interested in being social.
Meditation has shown to increase activity in the pre-frontal cortex, the part of the brain that contains our happy feelings. Dr. Sara Lazar compared the brains of those who had practiced meditation for several years with those who had never practiced. She found that individuals who had practiced for several years had thicker areas in the brain’s cortex; and were especially thick in the areas known to process emotions. If we are happier we are more willing to be social.
In meditation you learn to recognize the impulse to react with fear or panic before it arises, detaching you from these emotions. You can choose to stop those feelings, or let them pass through you as you observe, maintaining your mental balance. No worries.
Meditation can help us in social situations in a number of ways- through the release of endorphins, increasing the activity in the brain’s happy pre-frontal cortex area, and stopping negative thoughts before they arise. So come on, let’s party.
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