As some of you may know, a few months ago I signed up to be a “guinea pig” for a research study at Massachusetts General Hospital exploring the effects of metta/lovingkindness/compassion meditation on hormones in the blood. Aside from the initial needle stick for the blood draws (they use a peripheral IV line, so only one needle stick, thank goodness!), the procedure is relatively painless, taking place over one 2-hour session. Compensation is $100.
They’re still looking for study subjects, so if you’re interested and meet the following criteria, I strongly encourage your getting in touch with the research team.
Prospective participants must:
- Be at least 18 years of age
- Not currently take psychiatric medications or hormones (e.g., estrogen)
- Be in good general health
- Currently practice metta/lovingkindness meditation almost daily (does not need to be metta exclusively)
- Have an established/long-term metta practice (minimum of 2 years)
- Have been on at least one 3+ day Insight/mindfulness meditation retreat
If interested, please contact Dr. Elizabeth Hoge at MGH: ehoge@partners.org or 617-724-0851
** UPDATE **
“Now that we are in the last semester of the project, we are interested in people with 5 or more years, but especially those with 10+ years of experience with daily practice.”
You can find my brief account of my experience at MGH here:
http://kalyanamittasangha.wordpress.com/newsletters/#comment-248