Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, is said to have practiced mindfulness meditation (vipassana) in the 5-4th century BCE. Though I haven't heard him r

Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, is said to have practiced mindfulness meditation (vipassana) in the 5-4th century BCE. Though I haven't heard him referred to as the person who invented it. There is lots of research on the meditation's effectiveness [0]. That research includes "47 trials in 3,515 participants suggests that mindfulness meditation programs show moderate evidence of improving anxiety and depression". While I started meditating to reduce my anxiety (and it has), the goal of mindfulness meditation isn't reducing anxiety - it's awareness. Some people who start meditating, including myself, might start becoming more aware of their pre-existing anxiety. The good news is, once you become aware of the source of your anxiety, you can do something about it. [0] https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/meditation-in-depth https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/meditation-in-depth