Meditation Improves Skills in Students with LD

Mindfulness meditation was shown to increase social skills and reduce anxiety in teens with LD.

Students with learning disabilities—including ADHD, dyslexia, and other disorders that hurt school performance—often experience anxiety, stress, and compromised social skills, but new interventions may prove helpful.

A group of adolescents who were diagnosed with a learning disability recently participated in a five-week mindfulness meditation intervention, a technique in which a person becomes intentionally and non-judgmentally aware of their own thoughts. These teens showed increased social skills and school achievement, as well as reduced anxiety after the program. They also gave positive feedback about the intervention, which may mean they would be more likely to use the strategies they learned on their own.

The effects of mindfulness meditation suggest that it can decrease negative self-assessment and worry, which will then lead to an increase in academic and social performance.