The preventative effect of mindfulness training for individuals who face extreme stress, such as firemen, soldiers and trauma surgeons, has been examined in a recent study by cognitive neuroscientist Amishi Jha of Penn University and Elizabeth A. Stanley of Georgetown University. They provided mindfulness training to U.S. Marines before deployment to Iraq in a training program called Mindfulness-based Mind Fitness Training (MMFT™), which aimed to cultivate greater psychological resilience or "mental armor" by bolstering mindfulness. The study found that the more time participants spent doing daily mindfulness exercises, the better their mood and working memory - the cognitive term for complex thought, problem solving and cognitive control of emotions.
The study also seems to point towards the fact that sufficient Mindfulness practice may protect against high-stress challenges that require a tremendous amount of cognitive control, self-awareness, situational awareness and emotional regulation.
Our findings suggest that, just as daily physical exercise leads to physical fitness, engaging in mindfulness exercises on a regular basis may improve mind-fitness," Jha said.
"Working memory is an important feature of mind-fitness. Not only does it safeguard against distraction and emotional reactivity, but it also provides a mental workspace to ensure quick-and-considered decisions and action plans. Building mind-fitness with mindfulness training may help anyone who must maintain peak performance in the face of extremely stressful circumstances, from first responders, relief workers and trauma surgeons, to professional and Olympic athletes."
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