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girl ADHD
Teachers report that Transcendental Meditation improves organizational skills and academic performance in their students, and also reduces stress, anxiety, and anger.

ADHD and the Transcendental Meditation Programme
by Global Good News staff writer
4 September, 2007

As parents and educators search for options and alternatives for the treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), groundbreaking research is showing the effectiveness of the Transcendental Meditation Technique, a non-drug approach to ADHD. Insights in Health explores the research and experiences using the Transcendental Meditation Technique for ADHD.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): although stimulant medications are an effective first-line treatment for ADHD, 'concern persists regarding the possible side effects and long-term health outcomes associated with stimulant consumption.'

ADHD is the most common psycho-social disorder in children, affecting almost 4.5 million children. It causes impaired executive functions of the brain, creating difficulty in controlling attention and behaviour. The symptoms commonly associated with ADHD are impulsiveness, hyperactivity, and inattention.

Research on children with ADHD shows that practising the Transcendental Meditation Technique for just a few minutes twice a day improves attention, impulse control, and problem solving. It improves organizational skills and academic performance, and also reduces stress, anxiety, and anger.

Children practise the Transcendental Meditation Technique for a few minutes twice each day. In several schools around the country children diagnosed with ADHD meditate together in school. They sit comfortably, close their eyes, and practise Transcendental Meditation along with teachers who also practise the technique.

The teachers report that the children are less stressed and more open to learning than they were before learning Transcendental Meditation. There are also fewer episodes of anger, less fights, and fewer tantrums.

The children themselves say they are able to focus better, and able to work more independently on tasks like doing their homework.

"The potential of every student is infinite. The time of student life should serve to unfold that infinite potential so that every individual becomes a vibrant centre of Total Knowledge."—Maharishi