Imagine having one of the worst days of your professional life play out in front of 5 million people.
ABC News anchor Dan Harris doesnât have to. In 2004, he had a panic attack on live TV after years of working in war zones and using drugs to cope with the stress. But that mortifying moment led him to take up meditation.
He wrote a book about it, 10% Happier: How I Tamed The Voice In My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, And Found Self-Help That Actually Works â A True Story, in which he mentioned the research that suggests meditation can lower blood pressure, help with depression and increase awareness. The book sold well, but Harris still thought its impact fell short.
âIn that first book I made this naive assumption that â I didnât think anybody would read it â but anybody who did read it would want to meditate and would meditate,â Harris says. âAnd it was pretty quickly after the book was out that I realized that that [was] not true. Itâs just complete underestimation of how hard it is for us to create healthy habits.â
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