How it works:

• AWARENESS OF NEUROPLASTICITY: Up to not many years ago it was thought that after a certain age the brain could only change in the direction of loss of functions and that once acquired certain modalities it was no longer possible to change them. It was discovered that the brain maintains neuroplasticity, that is the ability to change and to learn even at an advanced age.

• CHANGES IN GRIGIA MATERIAL: The amygdala is the brain's fight-or-flight centre and triggers the stress response. The prefrontal cortex supports higher functions such as awareness, concentration and decision-making. MRI scans show that after just eight weeks of regular mindfulness meditation practice, the cortex becomes thicker and activity in the amygdala decreases. This can give us greater control over our thoughts and emotions, support nervous-system regulation and change the way we interact with the world.

• NEW NEURAL SCHEDULES: When stress, anxiety, the brooding of negative thoughts become a habitual pattern, the nervous system learns to react in unhealthy automatic ways to the events of life. By practicing MM these patterns are defused and new patterns, healthier, begin to form, allowing positive mental states.

• BODY AND MIND LESS STRESSED: When we are under stress, not only is the mind affected but also the body. By acquiring the ability to listen deeply to the body, we can defuse negative processes before they take over.

• INTEROCEPTION DEVELOPMENT: the sense that allows us to know how the body feels from within, based on direct experience rather than thought. It is an inner, embodied sense. How are you? Well. How do you know? Interoception. Studies have found a link between the ability to sense the body from within and wellbeing: by noticing early signs of discomfort, we can draw on our resources before it becomes too intense and harder to rebalance.