We Are What We Think: Downregulating the Chronic Stress Response with Technology-Assisted Mindfulness Meditation

Abstract

For hundreds of thousands of years of human evolution, high alertness was the key to survival in a predatory and dangerous world. Those whose stress responses remained active survived to pass along their genes, thus setting up modern humans with a mechanism primed to respond to threats to survival. This mechanism in the modern world can become maladaptive when prolonged exposure to chronic stressors keeps it on high alert, even in the absence of any threats. This article explores the potential of technology-assisted mindfulness meditation to support a healthy stress response within the demanding context of modern lifestyles.