Among the techniques to combat stress, meditation has a special place. 4000 years old, coming from Asia, it is no longer only associated with a spiritual approach. We remember the images of the Vietnamese monk Thich Nhat Hanhwho died in 2025 at the age of 95. He invested a lot of effort in bringing together the proponents of spiritual meditation and secular meditation in meditative walks. A way to make known in the West this practice which has taken place in people’s lives, even in their daily lives. A survey carried out by a meditation application reports that more than 80% of French people say they have already tried it and that 20% practice regularly to relieve their stress. 70% of those questioned even believe that practicing meditation on dailyuld be taught in schools, as in Canada, Finland, and the Netherlands. This article takes stock of secular meditation: benefits, scientific evidence, different forms, and opportunities to meditate during the day.
What is secular meditation?
The age-old practice, linked to Buddhism, gave rise to mindfulness meditation. Each form of meditation has a distinct purpose.
- On the one hand, the spiritual meditation of Matthieu Ricard, a French Buddhist monk living in Tibet, aims to achieve enlightenment, transform himself, and transform the world.
- On the other hand, the simplified and secular protocol of Jon Kabat-Zinn, an American biologist, designed in the 1970s: mindfulness meditation to relieve stress and find well-being.
Fabrice Midal, philosopher, practitioner, and meditation teacher, prefers the expression “mindfulness.” Both terms make sense. Indeed, meditation consists of paying attention to the present moment and being aware of the tense thoughts or emotions that colonize us and generate stress. Concentrating on breathing allows us to distance ourselves and calm the agitations of the body and mind. Mindfulness meditation should not be confused with relaxation. Even if meditation leads to relaxation, it requires concentration, which is not relaxation.
What are the benefits of regular meditation practice?
Meditation isn’t the Swiss Army knife miracle cure that the hype might suggest. It’s not suitable for everyone, and that’s perfectly fine. But those who practice it daily report real benefits for their well-being. Far from being an exceptional practice, meditation is now part of their healthy lifestyle.
Reduces anxiety and stress
Meditation helps cope with anxiety-provoking situations and improves the well-being of people prone to anxiety. Activity in the amygdala, the area of ​​the brain involved in emotional response and the body’s physiological response to threats, is more moderate. This slows down the production of the stress hormone cortisol.
Reduces pain
Meditation also allows us to notice our bodily sensations. Detaching ourselves from unpleasant thoughts and feelings, which worsen physical sensations, helps reduce chronic pain. Without the amplification of the mind and emotions, it seems less painful to bear. Meditation also calms the fear of being in pain, which lessens the suffering.
Facilitates sleep
Meditation helps you sleep better. Lying in the dark before bed can easily lead to drowsiness and sleepiness. Meditation helps you let go of worries that prevent sleep (such as the fear of not sleeping and of waking up tired), allowing your brain to drift off to sleep.
Improves memory
Periods of stress interfere with memory. During the day, it clouds attention, and at night, it disrupts sleep and memory. Memory loss is often associated with anxiety. The practice of meditation strengthens the performance of neural circuits for storing data.
Strengthens concentration
Meditation trains the mind to be attentive. It strengthens observation and awareness. Disengaging from one’s thoughts and emotions helps one realize that they are merely fleeting events, unrelated to reality. It also opens one up to new, richer, and broader perspectives. In particular, people who meditate report being more creative and having greater clarity when it comes to finding new ideas and solutions to problems.
Improves quality of life
Observing thoughts and emotions, without analyzing them, running away from them, or reacting, helps us take stock of who we are and improve our emotional intelligence. Indeed, inner stability prevents us from reacting based on conditioning or patterns fueled by the unconscious. We can remain in control of our decisions and actions. Meditation also promotes social well-being, as relationships are nourished by empathy and the joy of living, made possible in calm and serenity.
Another advantage to protect yourself from potential health problems: paying attention to your physical sensations helps you spot changes in your body’s usual state and inform your doctor.
What are the scientific bases of meditation?
The scientific community, long skeptical about the biological evidence for meditation’s spiritual origins, isn’t satisfied with the observed results on well-being. To establish a trusting relationship with science, Matthieu Ricard, who received a doctorate in cellular genetics in 1972, and other practitioners lent their bodies and brains to research programs on the health effects of meditation. The results are very interesting.
- It improves immunity: Research has shown that meditation increases activity in the left side of the brain, which is responsible for the immune system. People who meditate intensely have more antibodies to fight off illnesses.
- It would lower blood pressure: this subject remains debated, but most experts recognize that meditation is an interesting complementary approach to medical treatment and lifestyle, to reduce tension and protect against strokes.
- It soothes anxiety. A 2025 study conducted by the Mind and Life Institute in San Francisco suggests that meditation can reduce anxiety levels by 40%. This postulate is based on medical imaging and the observation of brain areas involved in anxiety control that are activated during meditation. It does not act on acute bouts of depression. Indeed, not only is it difficult and distressing to stay focused with this condition, but meditation could amplify its symptoms. On the other hand, it would be as effective as an antidepressant in preventing recurrences.
It may slow inflammation and cellular aging: research is underway. Intensive meditation helps strengthen the telomeres that protect cells and increase the production of the enzyme that repairs them. The silversante study, conducted by Inserm and the Cyceron center in Caen in several European countries , aims to evaluate whether meditation helps people age well. A pilot study has already shown that it can protect against Alzheimer’s disease.
How can we meditate daily?
Stillness meditation is the classic way to meditate. Sitting on the floor with your legs crossed requires a certain amount of flexibility and can make you feel sleepy. However, once you start learning how to meditate, you’ll find tips for unblocking these problems.
Other movement practices use the same mechanisms as still mindfulness meditation: breath, proper posture or movement, and attention.
- Yoga calms the mind by combining breathing exercises with challenging body postures. While seated meditation is very easy to practice, yoga requires appropriate clothing and an environment that supports movement.
- Qigong is a Taoist meditation based on breathing and controlling energy from head to toe. It relies on very slow, mindful movements. Because it is performed standing, qigong is well-suited to the outdoors, and it is no longer uncommon to see groups practicing in parks.
- Tai chi, a Chinese martial art that engages the body and mind, is one of the most Zen-like of sports. Because the movements require intense concentration, it produces effects similar to those of still meditation.
- There are a thousand ways to meditate while active: while walking, in the shower, or by transforming everyday activities into meditation. This allows people who lack time for their daily sessions to maintain the habit of taking breaks and slowing down.
What do you think about morning and evening meditations?
There are no specific times to meditate, although there are morning and evening meditations to begin and end the day. There are especially stressful situations where negative thoughts and emotions come into play and disrupt well-being. These situations warrant putting into practice the experience of the last mindfulness training session.
- At the doctor’s office: An environment that can easily provoke anxiety. Sometimes for real reasons, such as waiting for an exam or test results, but also for past or imagined reasons. This is the time to focus on your breathing whenever an unpleasant emotion or thought arises.
- Waiting in line or in a traffic jam: these are places where nervousness and aggression surface. During this time, when your thoughts and emotions may become irritable, focus on your breathing. You will maintain your serenity and your smile.
- Before an important event: a moment of great stress. Try giving yourself a short break and focus, with your eyes closed, on the sensations in your hands and feet, for example. Switching between them should help you regain your senses and refocus.
A few minutes of meditation each day can be enough to get comfortable. Lack of availability is often the stated obstacle to meditation. In his book “3 Minutes to Meditate,” psychiatrist Christophe André suggests starting with 3-minute mini-meditations. In my opinion, this is a very good introduction, but Christophe André meditates for longer periods. About thirty minutes a day, possibly split into two, allows you to fully reap the benefits of meditation. Common sense, needs, and pragmatism are still essential so that meditation doesn’t become an additional stressor.
