Mindfulness is a form of meditation originating in Buddhism, which is now used worldwide to reduce anxiety, stress and depression.

And since 2016, the National Board of Health and Welfare recommends mindfulness-based cognitive therapy to prevent recurrence of depression. 

But there are also negative effects of meditation and mindfulness, shows a new study published in the journal Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica.

For a small proportion, about 8 percent, of those who try meditation, it leads to unwanted effects such as anxiety and depression.

Not linked to previous ill health

The researchers have, in a so-called systematic review, analyzed 83 different studies on meditation and mindfulness, and concluded that negative effects are not uncommon, even in people without previous mental illness.

The most common side effects were anxiety and depression, but there were also cases where people had psychoses, panic attacks and suicidal thoughts after meditating.

"So effective"

Alexander Rozental, who is a licensed psychologist and researcher at the Center for Psychiatric Research at Karolinska Institutet, is not surprised by the results.

He believes that all psychological treatment methods, which are used to treat depressive thoughts and anxiety symptoms, can have negative effects. 

- I usually think that if they are potent enough to have a positive impact, they should be so active that they could lead to a negative impact on certain individuals, he says.

Alexander Rozental is a psychologist and researcher.

"The effects are often transient"

In mindfulness-based therapy, the emphasis is on meditation and exercises in order to increase the ability to pay attention to thoughts, feelings and bodily sensations in a new way.

It can be perceived as difficult, says Alexander Rozental. 

- If you have tried to push away thoughts and feelings, it can initially lead to increased anxiety or that you start to focus on how you feel.

But one should be aware that these effects are often transient.

Alexander Rozental does not think that those who meditate and practice mindfulness should be worried.

- It is a method that is mostly good, but which can have unwanted effects.