New experiments with the military affirm the benefits of mindfulness.
by Vanessa Gregory
Two summers ago at the Marine Corps Base in Quantico, Virginia, a group of reservists prepared for a tour of duty in Iraq. Twelve-hour days were jammed with rifle qualifications, counterinsurgency training, emergency medical courses, and — last but not least — moments spent in total silence. “You’d see men sitting in the lotus position in their field uniforms with rifles across their backs,” recalls Major Jason Spitaletta. The Marines were part of a study, partially funded by the Department of Defense, testing what’s best described to the layperson as meditation’s potential to increase the mind’s performance under the duress of war.
Spitaletta, a psychology graduate student in civilian life, had persuaded his commanding officer to participate after reading a provocative briefing sent to the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. In the paper, an ex–Army officer named Elizabeth Stanley illustrated meditation’s effect on emotions, which could help healthy soldiers stay calm and alert in chaotic situations — like the aftermath of an IED explosion.
Researchers tested the Marines for something called “working memory capacity,” a term that brain scientists use to define a cognitive resource that is much more than simple recall. Working memory capacity powers complex thoughts. It’s what we call upon to figure out restaurant tips, break down spreadsheets, or even settle ethical dilemmas like whether or not to pull a trigger. The level of this resource can be depleted throughout the day. A morning disagreement with a co-worker — or a roadside bomb for that matter — can make it harder to solve a problem that requires math skills a few hours later in the day. In the battlefield low levels of working memory capacity might mean the difference between life and death.
The results of the Marines’ experiences, published in the peer-reviewed scientific journal Emotion, showed that the men who embraced meditation walked out of pre-deployment training with minds that were more agile than those who didn’t. They also reported improved athletic performance, relief from anxiety, better sleep, and stronger memory. “I wasn’t scatterbrained anymore,” says Major Jeff Davis, a 39-year-old infantry officer. “I had no problem concentrating when I was upset.”
Meditation, of course, has made headlines for years for a range of health benefits, from reducing symptoms of depression to lowering blood pressure and speeding healing. One UCLA study found that meditation slows the progression of HIV by reducing stress that hurts immune function. But many of those studies involved experienced practitioners; some of these Marines had never meditated before but still made mental strides, suggesting the practice is more accessible to first-timers and faster-acting than commonly thought.
The Marines engaged in a form of secular meditation called mindfulness, which is characterized by paying attention to the present. A beginner exercise, for example, involved concentrating on an area of contact between the body and whatever it’s touching, like a chair, for about five minutes. Whenever their minds wandered, the Marines were instructed to refocus. “It doesn’t take you to some transcendental state,” Davis says. “It’s not as foofy as that.” Some of the men, accustomed to excelling at everything they did, were surprised at how much focus they had to muster. As the weeks passed, Stanley introduced more complicated exercises. The Marines practiced “shuttling” their attention between contact points and sounds like wind or the hum of electricity. That may seem remedial, but consciously switching between focal points exacerbates the mind’s natural tendency to wander, and focus can easily drift to a dozen thoughts instead of two.
Near the end of training, the Marines attended a mindfulness retreat at the mansion of John Kluge, a former television mogul whose foundation also partially funded the study. The men spent an entire day in silence, trying to be mindful about every move they made. But some men, like Hermes Oliva, a Navy medic assigned to the unit, still weren’t buying it. “We’re barefoot on this guy’s lawn doing yoga, and we’re supposed to be silent,” he says. “We’re like, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me.’ ”
However, once Oliva was stationed in Iraq’s Anbar province as the sole medic for 60 Marines and 200 Iraqi soldiers, he “did a 180.” He remembered Stanley’s lectures about how mindfulness could cultivate an ability to more easily endure racing thoughts and the body’s primal fight-or-flight responses — those physical manifestations of stress that include shaking and a knotted stomach. “In my tent at night all by myself, I started doing those exercises,” he says. “It would help me recognize the symptoms in my body before they got out of control.”
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November 11th, 2010 at 10:46 pm
Yoga and the Military? You bet! Thanks Men’s Health for this important and possibly life-saving article. Marines and other war veterans who want to try yoga for free should visit http://www.yogaforvets.org to find a participating yoga studio near them.
Paul Zipes
Founder/Director
Yoga For Vets
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November 11th, 2010 at 11:30 pm
ooRAH!!! This is outstanding!! There is no difference between the Zen of a Martial Artist & a Yogi!! Integrate both! Semper Fi!!
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November 22nd, 2010 at 3:38 pm
The Samuri used meditation to make themselves super fighters. The Ninja who fought against them used it even more. The old movie “Tribes” Showed a marine boot who taught his fellow marines Kriya Yoga..and everyone excelled as a result, but this Marine was kickd out of the corps for doing this. Looks like the Military, especially the Marines, are comming around to it’s many benefits for warriors under the stress of combat. As a Meditatior and Meditation instructor, and a Vietnam Era Veteran..I whole heartedly support the Marines in this addition to their training.
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December 2nd, 2010 at 1:53 pm
I originally read this article with great interest because my son, who is a U.S. Army infantryman, just returned from a deployment near Mosul in northern Iraq.
I thought it seemed like a good idea, but when I brought it up he was less than impressed with the results. He told me that his unit was trained in this program of meditation in the months leading up to his deployment.
To put it politely, he thought the time spent learning and meditating could have been put to better use learning and practicing what to actually do when put under the stress of actual combat situations. So when the soldiers got into those situations, the actions would have been second nature, not something relatively new.
Though I appreciate what the researchers are doing to try to help our troops, maybe they should research more of what the soldiers who are knee deep in middle east mud are looking for.
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Tony Mott Reply:
May 14th, 2011 at 1:08 pm
Soldiers (and even Marines) don’t always know what they are looking for…I know; I am one who could have benefited – maybe. Today I use these ideas in my work to overcome PTSD. Looking back at it now, I might well have thought it a waste of time if presented with it prior to leaving for Iraq.
Much of this type of stuff only makes sense when we are ready for it. A closed mind is just that – closed. It’s not a judgment, just reality – we all like to thing we have everything under control. Also: Nobody wants to admit they need help – soldiers are first in the “self-sufficient” line. I wonder if warriors can ever hear/understand something like this before they go to war. Sometimes only suffering makes us aware of the things that we need – especially the things that are not readily apparent.
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December 3rd, 2010 at 2:14 am
Reminds me of the recent Ewan MacGregor / George Clooney / Jeff Bridges movie about the US government training “Psychic Soldiers”. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SreufFevUSw
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February 12th, 2011 at 9:30 am
After reading this article I now understand what the TAI-CHI instructor was trying to tell me about how to do the forms; slow and mindful.
Mark R Rivet
USMC 1974-1978
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March 6th, 2011 at 6:27 pm
Its a matter of a better quality of life.. Breathing proper reinforces our natural energy path and unblocks the road. If mastered it will make us the men we are meant to be. Semper Fi
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