Mindfulness and meditation - The Mind’s Mirror: What fMRI Reveals About Meditation Artwork

The Dr. Jud Podcast

Welcome to the Dr. Jud podcast. I am an addiction psychiatrist and neuroscientist. My lab first at Yale and now at Brown University has been researching how our brains form negative behavior patterns, bad habits and addictions, and the specific techniques needed to create lasting change. My aim with this podcast, is to use every day issues that we all struggle with from anxiety to emotional eating to self judgment to help us understand how our minds work so that we can put them to work for us. I'll show you how you can use your brain to overcome the habits and “everyday addictions” that are holding you back. And along the way, you'll learn how helping yourself can help create a kinder and more compassionate world. Thank you for your interest in learning how to work with your mind.-Dr. Jud Brewer

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The Dr. Jud Podcast

Mindfulness and meditation - The Mind’s Mirror: What fMRI Reveals About Meditation

May 10, 2025 • Dr. Jud Brewer

Real-Time fMRI Links Subjective Experience with Brain Activity During Focused Attention

In this episode, Dr. Jud Brewer explores groundbreaking research on real-time fMRI neurofeedback, revealing how brain activity and subjective experience interact during focused attention. This study bridges the gap between objective neuroscience and first-person introspection by using experienced meditators who excel at monitoring their mental states. By providing real-time feedback from the posterior cingulate cortex (a key region in self-referential processing and mind-wandering), researchers demonstrated that meditators can voluntarily regulate brain activity linked to attention and awareness. Tune in to discover how these findings advance our understanding of meditation, neuroplasticity, and the mind-body connection.

Full Reference:
Garrison, K. A., Scheinost, D., Worhunsky, P. D., Elwafi, H. M., Thornhill, T. A. IV, Thompson, E., Saron, C., Desbordes, G., Kober, H., Hampson, M., Gray, J. R., Constable, R. T., Papademetris, X., & Brewer, J. A. (2013). Real-time fMRI links subjective experience with brain activity during focused attention. NeuroImage, 81, 110–118. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2013.05.030

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