"Meditation has helped me become less reactive. I was socialized to think that being responsible required being reactive, and my childhood and young adulthood were stressful as a result. I believe I stumbled onto something similar to TM — without the mantra, but still relying on the silence at the center of my being where scrutineers and bullies can’t get in — to manage individual instances when rage and resentment overcame me (and raised my blood pressure). Having learned TM later in life, instead of a stopgap tool that I reach for in crisis, I now have a consistent practice with positive cumulative effects."

Jean BaizarChicago, Illinois