The Efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Restorative Practices in Reducing Work-Related Psychophysiological Stress

Mindfulness-based restorative practices—guided imagery, relaxation, and Yoga Nidra—are explored as integrative approaches to reduce work-related psychophysiological stress. The chapter conceptualizes stress through psychobiological and appraisal frameworks, emphasizing chronic allostatic load across healthcare, corporate, and gig sectors. Models like demand–control–support and effort–reward imbalance explain how digital, performance-driven environments sustain autonomic dysregulation. These practices promote nonjudgmental awareness and parasympathetic activation through breath regulation, imagery, and deep rest. Integrating contemplative traditions with neuroscientific findings on heart rate variability, cortisol, EEG, and emotion regulation, the chapter reviews mechanisms, outcomes, and design models. It concludes with recommendations for standardized, scalable, and sustainable workplace applications.