Stress as Personal Engagement Barometer
"The same circumstances that give rise to stress, also give rise to these positive experiences and that’s what I call the stress paradox. That even though we experience stress in the moment as distressing and we often think of it as being undesirable in our lives, we might wish for a less stressful life."
~ Kelly McGonigal
The Direct Experience of Emotions, Not the Stories
So after the mindfulness training, there was greater activation in regions of the brain that help control attention, including the insula, a region of the brain that allows you to feel your emotions as they are happening, the direct experience of emotions, not the stories.