Yes. How? it calms the nervous system (short answer, read on for longer answer…) Anxiety is essentially the brain trying to help you, it’s a part of the survival reflex of the the human nervous system to produce fear in order or act in times of threat. However, with anxiety this fear is not due to life threatening situations, but perceptions. In other words Anxiety is a mental distress caused by fear of future dangers or uncertainties.
Most of us feel some levels of anxiety which is natural, i.e. before exams or a performance etc. In fact science shows us that a moderate amount of anxiety actually helps us to perform better. But a high level of anxiety leads us to experience panic and fear etc. And if you are experiencing high levels of anxiety on and ongoing basis this is a case of the brain misfiring with an overactive fear network.
So what we need to do is override this over active network and empower our brains to be able to better regulate our emotional state. This is where meditation comes in. As meditation has been studied through neuroimaging with people with anxiety and has shown to give greater control to the command centres of the brain for control over emotion and in turn reduce anxiety.
During meditation our nervous system gets a chance to rest and enter into a more balanced restorative physiological state. Yep, a calm, peaceful state and with Vedic meditation this is easy and effortless, and despite what you may be thinking you can access this state.
And this happens fast, I have taught people suffering anything from mild to crippling anxiety and within days or the very first day report they access a calm stable feeling that they have not experienced in a long long time.
It works, but you just have to do the work.
Note: to cover my butt, results may vary and in some situations meditation may not be the best or only tool required to help.