What's APP'ening

In this weeks episode I discuss the use of smartphone apps and whether they are worth using, do they work and is there any evidence that backs up the claims of their effectiveness. Also, why the past week of mediation has been both frustrating and revealing. See bellow the links to the papers I refer to in the episode. Google Scholar search result here Paper on 10 day trail here Paper on 45 day trail here 

In this episode I ask, What Does the Science Say and of course share my thoughts and experiences of building a daily meditative practice. When I originally started looking into buddhism I was a skeptic and cynic of any kind of belief or practice that resembled a religion which didn't allow for an open mind into exploring Buddhism, but what changed? Well, it came from taking part in a course from Princetown University on the emerging mass learning platforms tittle Buddhism and Modern Psychology. From this I learned that Buddhism and meditation doesn't fit the traditional mode of a religion and in fact was not only compatible with a secular worldview but was also backed by genuine scientific research coming out of some of America's leading Universities. Also, I have introduced a meditation journal to my practice and this week experimented with a focus meditation and share my thoughts of meditating in the morning vs at night.     See bellow for the links mentioned in the podcast Buddhism and Modern Psychology Course Bangor University Masters Degree on Mindfulness Teaching Google Scholar result of research on Default Mode Network Paper: Impact of Mindfulness-Based Teacher Training on MBSR Participant Well-Being Outcomes and Course Satisfaction Paper: Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression: Effectiveness and Limitations Paper: Effects of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy on Specificity of Life Goals If you cannot access the papers they maybe behind a paywal

In this first episode I talk briefly of my experiences of meditation and mindfulness after many years of falling in and out of the practice and some of the things I've along the way. I discuss why it is people maybe finding it hard to keep a practice and what we could do together to build a stronger practice. I also introduce some of the things I have been using over the last few weeks to rebuild my practice, describe what I'm going to be focusing in over the next week or so and touch on the topic of Zen Buddhism. 

The Pitch, a very short introduction to my new podcast Kinda Zen Like. Join me on my journey re-exploring the world of Buddhism from the perspective of an everyday Jo. After around 15 years of continually dipping my toe in and out of this fascinating subject I am attempting to make a real conscious effort to build a strong practice routine and hopefully bring some like minded people along the journey with me. Please always feel free to leave a message as I hope this will be a reciprocal process.