Can Mindfulness Tackle The Anxiety Epidemic?

With diagnoses of anxiety seemingly permanently rising and the average age of a diagnosis of anxiety or depression at 15 (compared to 29 in the 1960s), it is becoming increasingly vital to ensure that as much as possible is being done to help those who are suffering. Seven thousand teenagers will be taking part in a seven year study, led by psychologists and neuroscientists from Oxford University and University College London, on the effect of mindfulness meditation on mental health.

So, what is mindfulness? Mindfulness is a practice which dates back over 2000 years but, more recently, stems from 1970s Buddhist meditation. Essentially, mindfulness encourages the self-regulation of our emotions. Rather than hiding from intrusive thoughts, or allowing them to take over and cause anxiety, mindfulness thinking is where you make a conscious decision as to whether a particular thought or worry is one that you 'need'. Mindfulness is a focus on the present. Teacher Paula Kearney, who teaches mindfulness to her students, describes mindfulness like so: "You imagine you are at the bus stop and you are watching the buses pass. You label the buses as your thoughts so each bus is a thought. You can chose to get on the bus and get carried away with your thought or you can chose to let it pass."

Mindfulness can be an alternative - or a supplement - to other treatment options for those who suffer with anxiety. Willem Kuyken, the leader of the upcoming study, believes that mindfulness is not only a treatment but can also be used as a preventative measure in young people, to stop anxiety in its tracks. Kuyken believes that whilst mindfulness can be adopted by people of any age, it is particularly interesting to study in teenagers to assess whether the meditation technique can tackle the adolescent difficulty of maintaining attention when faced by intrusive and overwhelming thoughts.

What might have caused the anxiety epidemic? Rachel Dove, writing for The Telegraph, examines what some of the reasons for the rise in "Generation Y" anxiety could be, citing the following suggestions: The rise of technology; we are constantly plugged in. Feelings of inadequacy compared to others on social media can cause anxiety, as can the pressure of making yourself an impressive social media presence. Further, we are detached from "reality" and feel anxious when separated from our phones or laptops. Exam-factory schooling systems, wherein we jump from one test to another. The introduction of baseline testing is pushing assessments on children as young as four, to measure their academic progress. With constant pressure of performing well academically (and constant reminders of the challenging job market, the competition for University places, and the steady rise in grades), anxiety brews. The overwhelming choice that we are confronted with. Few things are simple. Take, for example, a trip to a supermarket. You may have a shopping list with 'eggs, bread, milk, cereal' written on it, but the rows and rows of supermarket shelves stacked high with different choices (low-fat/ 50% extra free/ three for two etc) makes a simple decision have hundreds of different solutions. When the element of overwhelming choice is applied to nearly every aspect of our lives, it is no wonder that anxiety and stress are rising.

There are, of course, many more potential reasons that anxiety is on the rise and all cases of anxiety can be vastly different. Anxiety, as with all mental health issues, exists on a spectrum.

Why mindfulness learning? There are concerns that mindfulness is a fad, and that the enthusiasm for mindfulness as a meditation technique may in fact override its health value. Christina Patterson, writing for the Guardian, is of the belief that that the recent popularity of mindfulness is down to savvy marketing and money rather than its usefulness. Certainly, in this sense it is wise to be wary; mental health is a sensitive and difficult issue. However, in terms of targeting young people, particularly those at the "high risk" age where mental health issues start to develop, mindfulness could be incredibly useful. Unlike other anxiety treatment options such as medication or one-on-one counselling sessions, mindfulness allows for teachers trained in the meditation to work with large groups at one time. Mindfulness is not just treatment for anxiety, but is a calming exercise in general which encourages the self-regulation of our own emotions. Furthermore, for those who may feel uncomfortable about seeking help privately, mindfulness as a general teaching practice may be a helpful technique to learn.