A neurobiology of self regulation: Augmenting autonomic function through the use of mindfulness-based practices

Interest in the mind-body connection has increased substantially in recent years. In particular, there has been a focus in the research on the neural correlates that are related to this phenomenon. This research has revealed that one of the important functions of the link between the mind and the body is self regulation (Porges, 1998, Ogden, Minton & Pain, 2006). Self regulation can be defined as one?s capacity to moderate one?s internal physiological, emotional, and psychological experience. It appears that a major factor in regulating one?s internal world has to do with how one perceives, organizes and reacts to one?s environment. At the foundational level, this task is carried out by a complex part of the central and peripheral nervous system called the autonomic nervous system (Porges, 1998). New research suggests that perception and organization of experience may be enhanced through mindfulness practices. This paper explores how people?s organization of experience can be explained through the lens of the body and the extent to which mindful awareness can be understood as an embodied practice that might augment this organization.