Is Transcendental Meditation Utter Bullshit Or Nah?
by Marissa Pomerance
Navigating the transcendental meditation website (tm.org, in case you’re interested) is a strange experience.
Quotes about the effectiveness of transcendental meditation (let’s just start using “TM” for short, shall we?) from sources like “The Military Times” scroll endlessly across the top of the page. A pop-up declares “we now have income-based pricing nationwide,” taking me to a page that features a photo of Hugh Jackman alongside a quote about TM. Underneath reads “(Not a paid endorsement).” Between the scrolling text and Hugh Jackman’s face is a phone number: 888-LEARN-TM. A chat bubble pops up from the bottom right of the screen, as someone named “Sascha” (dubbed “A Real Live Person”) asks if she can help me with anything.
Everything is a clear advertisement for TM, and not exactly the subtle, ASMR-inducing content I expect from a technique promising “the most silent and peaceful level of…awareness.” The website alone makes me want to dismiss TM as just another woo-woo wellness trend, one that gained popularity in the chaos of the 70’s and 80’s.
But truthfully, I’m a believer in meditation— along with therapy, it’s helped me manage my stress and anxiety. So I decided to look into TM, as the the potential physiological benefits are seemingly endless. After a bit of Googling, I was impressed by the sheer number of legitimate articles and peer-reviewed studies touting the physical benefits of TM. Lowers blood pressure? Counteracts the effects of chronic stress? Sounds too good to be true.
But after doing deep, deep levels of digging, I found out that the benefits of TM might actually be too good to be true.
But first, what even IS transcendental meditation?
Apparently, TM is not mindfulness. Instead of other forms of meditation, which focus on breath, emptying the mind, or concentrating, TM is a supposedly “effortless” form of meditation that must be learned one-on-one by instructors trained and licensed by The Maharishi Foundation. TM claims to be highly personalized and adaptable for anyone.
The TM technique uses a mantra, which is “specific thought which suits us, a suitable sound for us which we receive from a trained teacher of Transcendental Meditation,” and requires 15-20 minutes of practice per day. Because it’s been around for over 50 years, it is also one of the most studied forms of meditation.
It’s not total bullshit.
Like any form of meditation, TM has its benefits. At the most basic level, TM counteracts the effects of chronic stress on the body. I know—this doesn’t seem all that revelatory. Of course people use TM, and meditation in general, to de-stress, just like they might take a hot bath or watch a rom com.
But there’s a difference between the average stress incurred by one, particularly difficult day at work and the chronic stress that can contribute to heart disease, and meditation can be effective at managing both (unlike the aforementioned hot bath, which usually only mitigates lower levels of stress).
When the body experiences stress, it produces stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline that increase heart rate and blood pressure, affect digestion, and create more blood flow to the brain, heart, and muscles so we can react quickly. Usually, after a single experience of stress, these high levels of stress hormones create a signal that tells the brain to stop producing stress hormones, which allows the body to relax and recover.
But chronic stress interrupts the feedback loop that activates this relaxation response, allowing it to continually produce stress hormones, which divert energy away from digestion and the immune system. This chronic stress also increases blood pressure and encourages plaque build-up, potentially leading to clots in arteries and heart disease.
TM, however, has been shown to lower blood levels of epinephrine, norepinephrine, and cortisol. Some studies have demonstrated that TM leads to a lower heart rate, less constriction of blood vessels, and an increase in serotonin levels.
The American Heart Association even recently acknowledged some potential benefits of TM as an alternative approach to lowering blood pressure, though with this caveat: “The overall evidence supports that TM modestly lowers BP,” but “there are few head-to-head studies. As a result of the paucity of data, we are unable to recommend a specific method of practice when TM is used for the treatment of high BP.”
And according to an independent study of TM on blood pressure, “Transcendental Meditation is associated with a significant reduction in systolic and diastolic blood pressure…Sustained blood pressure reductions of this magnitude are likely to significantly reduce risk for cardiovascular disease.”
Clearly, it has plenty of potential benefits.
People swear by TM.
Everyone from The Beatles to Sting to notorious curmudgeon Jerry Fucking Seinfeld have touted the benefits of TM.
Katy Perry believes that TM helps boost her creativity and keeps her anxiety in check, describing it as “some of the most incredible stillness.” Hugh Jackman said, “after I started meditating, I felt I gained a true understanding of myself and was no longer just being reactive to events that came my way. I felt a sense of calm, a sense of purpose, of finer energy in things I did.”
And David Lynch, prominent director, producer, writer, and the creator of Twin Peaks, is a huge TM advocate. He’s been practicing since 1973, and even launched his own TM-centric foundation that’s drawn support and donations from his many famous friends. His foundation helps fund scholarships for those looking to learn TM, and also funds research on the technique (but more on that later).
Of course, you shouldn’t care just because celebrities endorse it. But plenty of “regular” people love it too, and the anecdotal evidence of TM’s benefits is everywhere.
This Vietnam vet called TM “transformational,” and said that it helped him with stress and substance abuse. Cardiologist and women’s heart health advocate Dr. Suzanne Steinbaum has recommended TM to help lessen the kind of stress and inflammation that negatively impact the body. And TM has even made bedfellows of politicians from opposing political parties, united in their love for TM and desire to bring it to the American masses.
But, some of TM’s claims are a bit…exaggerated.
And anecdotal support is great. But in terms of the hard science, things are less clear.
Finding independent studies was incredibly difficult. Not because our research produced studies that suggested TM was useless. In fact, it was the opposite. We read study after study touting the amazing mental AND physical benefits of TM.
From one study that declared TM to be a beneficial component of cardiac rehabilitation after heart attacks, to articles printed in the American Heart Association journal that claimed participants using TM demonstrated a 48% decreased incidence of heart attack, stroke or death.
Which, on first glance, were extremely impressive and convincing. But after a deep, deep, deep dive, I started to notice a few things.
I started to notice that the authors of many of these studies were often the same; their names would be buried deep down the list of authors, without their affiliations listed. And then after extensive Googling, I would discover that at least one of the authors was a consultant for the “Maharishi University of Management Research Institute,” or the “Maharishi Foundation,” or the “Maharishi International University,” which are all founded by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, an Indian guru known for leading the Transcendental Meditation movement.
These familiar names—Maharishi, David Lynch—began popping up deep in the content of virtually every study we read about TM. Even peer-reviewed studies in real scientific journals. Sometimes there was just a vague affiliation that required more digging to prove, other times, the study was clearly demarcated as funded by these TM institutes. Often, there were sections for “disclosures,” giving the authors of the study an opportunity to admit to their affiliations. These sections were usually blank.
Of course, we’re not saying that all of these studies are completely bogus. Just because they’re funded by TM doesn’t mean the data is inherently inaccurate. And TM might have tons of benefits that aren’t scientifically verified yet. But reviews of scientific studies on meditation have determined that most meditation studies are poorly done, produced mixed results, and even demonstrated some potentially negative side-effects of meditation. Either way, knowing there was some bias associated with these studies made me approach all of this information with a grain of salt.
Unfortunately, biased studies are common in health and medicine. Biases relating to gender, race, and weight still plague medical research, much of which is funded by pharmaceutical companies and people/companies/foundations with agendas. But it’s surprising when these agendas permeate even the most alternative methods of treatment, especially those espousing natural, mindful solutions.
So can I still try TM or what?
Obviously, embarking on Transcendental Meditation likely won’t hurt you. At the end of the day, TM is selling a program. One that costs time and money. And if you choose to try TM to lower your blood pressure instead of exercising or eating healthier or taking your blood pressure medication, that can have real, negative consequences for your health (in addition to your wallet).
But, any healthy practice that helps you manage your physical and mental health is a good thing. If TM has done wonders for your stress or anxiety or PTSD or addictions, then you absolutely shouldn’t care who’s funding their studies. And while some studies have demonstrated that TM might just be a placebo effect, placebo effects can actually be pretty powerful. Placebo effects can be as effective as traditional treatments; instead of “curing” a disease though, they work on the perception of symptoms in the mind. A placebo won’t “heal” your headache, but it might affect how you perceive the pain. So, the stress relief and sense of relaxation that might come from chanting a mantra are real if you believe they’re real; if you feel more relaxed, then you’re more relaxed.
So find your guru. Spend 20 minutes a day on your mantra. De-stress. But don’t expect transcendental meditation to cure any diseases. Not until we have some harder science, at least.
Marissa Pomerance is the Managing Editor of The Candidly. She’s a Los Angeles native and lover of all things food, style, beauty, and wellness. You can find more of her articles here.
