Meditate

The argument

Meditating during lockdown can offer stress and anxiety relief, which is why this argument places it among the most useful skills to take up while social distancing. Psychology Today have encouraged people to practice meditation while in lockdown to promote both physical and mental health benefits, and the practice suits the circumstances particularly well, since it requires no equipment, no space, and no other people. The benefits described run in two directions. Meditating has been shown to have positive effects on lymphocytes, the white blood cells which produce antibodies to fight off infections. On the mental side, meditation keeps the mind's attention focused on the present moment rather than worrying about the future, which is what makes it well matched to pandemic induced stress and anxiety: much of that distress concerns events that have not happened yet and cannot be settled by thinking harder about them. Neuroscience has shown the emotional benefits of practicing meditation too. It helps regulate emotions, clearing the mind, and making people more aware of the people around them — which matters during a period when contact with others is limited and easily neglected. The uptake suggests a great many people have reached the same conclusion independently. Meditation has become a popular coping mechanism during the pandemic, and The Washington Post reports a surge in downloads of meditation apps as more people look for ways to find a sense of peace and calm. Meditation app 'Ten Percent Happier' has doubled its membership base since March 2020, with their daily meditation attracting thousands of users. A skill that can be learned at home, practised daily, and has drawn that many new adherents under exactly these conditions is a reasonable candidate for the time that social distancing has made available.

Premises

Counter-arguments

Critics note that meditation is not equally effective or accessible for everyone, and that some of the claims are overstated. The immune-cell (lymphocyte) benefits cited are modest and preliminary; meditation is not a reliable defence against infection, and framing it that way risks overselling. For some people — particularly those with trauma or certain anxiety disorders — intensive meditation can increase distress rather than relieve it. As an answer to 'the most useful skill to learn,' meditation also competes with concretely productive options such as a language, digital or writing skills that yield transferable capabilities, whereas meditation's benefits, while real, are chiefly a coping aid. The point is not that meditation lacks value but that its benefits are more limited and less universal than the argument implies.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P1] The immune (lymphocyte) benefits cited are modest and preliminary, so presenting meditation as a physical-health defence against the pandemic overstates the evidence. [Rejecting P2] Meditation is not universally beneficial — for some people with trauma or anxiety disorders it can increase distress — so it is not a reliably useful skill for everyone.