Why Jiu Jitsu Was the Therapy I Didn’t Know I Needed

This article was written by Marc Barton, who is a 2nd degree Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt under Mauricio Gomes.  Marc is the head instructor at Kingston Jiu Jitsu and is also a qualified medical doctor. 

In my previous life, before I became a full-time Jiu Jitsu instructor, I spent many years working as a doctor in Emergency Medicine and Intensive Care. The pace, pressure, and emotional strain of that environment took a quiet but relentless toll on my mental health. Stress and anxiety became a normal part of my daily life. Sometimes it was manageable, sometimes it wasn’t, and over time it became overwhelming.

Then I found Jiu Jitsu…

At first, it was just a way to stay active and try something different. I had practised striking martial arts since childhood, and I really wanted to learn some grappling. Jiu Jitsu was new to the U.K. 20 years ago, and it was an exciting shift in the martial arts landscape that I wanted to experience first-hand.

What started as a way to get fit and try something new quickly became something far more profound. Jiu Jitsu brought structure to the chaos, clarity to the noise, and a calm I hadn’t felt in a long time. It became a refuge for me. A safe space where I could quieten my mind, anchor myself and unpack some of the weight I’d been carrying. The mats became more than just a training ground; they were my escape, my meditation space, my quiet therapy.

Jiu Jitsu changed everything for me. It helped me to heal – physically, mentally, and emotionally. I now see it as one of the most powerful tools for well-being I’ve ever encountered. That belief deepened even more after a conversation following class last week. I was speaking with a friend and student of mine who had served in the military, and despite the differences in our careers, we found common ground in what the mats had given us. Jiu Jitsu had helped us both work through the invisible weight we’d carried from years spent in high-stress roles.

More Than a Martial Art – It’s a Journey Toward Inner Calm

At first glance, Jiu Jitsu can seem like utter chaos – a room full of people rolling around with entangled limbs, dripping with sweat and breathing heavily. But if you speak to anyone who has been training for a while, they will almost universally tell you that underneath this external appearance, there is something much deeper happening. Beneath the physical chess match is a quiet rhythm, a kind of moving meditation.

Most people think of mindfulness as something still, sitting quietly with crossed legs, eyes closed and controlled breathing. Jiu Jitsu offers a different kind of stillness. One that comes through motion, not despite it. It doesn’t just condition the body; it clears the mind, balances the nervous system, and cultivates a calm focus that mirrors the benefits of traditional meditation.

And this isn’t just based on gut feeling. There’s a growing body of research showing how grappling-based martial arts like Jiu Jitsu can help ease anxiety, lift depression, and even support those dealing with PTSD.

It Anchors You in the Present Moment

Distraction doesn’t stand a chance when you’re rolling. One of the first things I noticed after my first few weeks of training was that my mind stopped wandering during rolls. I stopped worrying about the patient I had seen in the morning, I stopped ruminating about the cardiac arrest that I had run a few days before, and I was no longer thinking about the inevitable upcoming postgraduate exam on the horizon.

If you’re defending against a choke or fighting for position, your attention can’t afford to wander. If you start thinking about life’s problems, you’ll likely be tapping before you’ve processed what went wrong.

This kind of total immersion demands mindfulness. Every grip, every transition, every breath keeps you right here in the moment. And being fully present is at the heart of meditation.

It Clears Mental Clutter

There’s something oddly cleansing about a tough session. Even a few minutes of grappling can melt away hours of mental fog. You might leave class bruised and battered with sore muscles and mat burn on your face, but your mind feels clear, almost reset.

This “reset” effect is not just anecdotal. A 2019 study published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research found that participants engaging in martial arts training experienced significant reductions in rumination and psychological distress, with similar results to those seen in mindfulness-based stress reduction programmes.

It Trains You to Breathe Through the Stress

One of the first things you learn in Jiu Jitsu – often under intense pressure – is how to breathe when things get tough. When someone’s weight is pinning you down, and panic starts creeping in, the first instinct is usually to tense up. But over time, you learn to breathe, relax, and think your way through the position.

This mirrors principles found in somatic therapies and meditative breathwork. That real-time feedback loop in sparring helps rewire the body’s stress response, moving it toward calm instead of chaos and improving stress resilience.

It Builds Emotional Resilience

Jiu Jitsu humbles everyone. You will get submitted. You will feel outclassed. You will fail. Then you will get back up, shake it off, regroup and try again. This is the cycle of learning in Jiu Jitsu – fail, adjust and return. This cycle isn’t just physical; it also teaches emotional regulation in a raw, unfiltered way. A 2020 study in Frontiers in Psychology highlighted how martial arts training can strengthen emotional control and psychological resilience. This is something that can be hard to find in today’s overstimulated world, where instant gratification, digital distractions, and an increasingly overprotective environment often shield people, especially the younger generation, from healthy, character-building discomfort. 

The mats offer something special; you can’t hide, there’s no filter, and no shortcuts. You are forced to face challenges, frustrations and failure head-on. And through that, you grow, becoming stronger, calmer and more grounded.

It Induces a ‘Flow State’

When everything clicks during a roll, it feels like time slows down. Movements blend together, your mind quiets, distractions fade, and you start to move instinctively without conscious effort.

This state is what psychologists refer to as ‘flow’, a deeply focused state where actions feel almost effortless.

Research by the late Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the pioneer of flow theory, suggests that people who frequently experience flow report higher levels of happiness, personal fulfilment, motivation, satisfaction and overall well-being. Jiu Jitsu provides the perfect environment to enter flow, its balance of challenge and skill, offering a fertile ground for entering that state over and over again.

It Connects You to Something Bigger

Jiu Jitsu connects you to a community of like-minded people. The mats bring people together from all walks of life, unified by the shared experience of struggle, learning, and growth. Going to class, for me, is not just going to train and have a physical experience; it is something that is deeply social, where I get to meet new people and spend time, laugh and share an experience with my closest friends.

That sense of connection really matters. A 2021 systematic review in BMC Psychology found that group-based martial arts training significantly enhanced social well-being, providing a sense of belonging and reducing loneliness.  

A Moving Meditation

You don’t need a cushion or a mantra to meditate. Sometimes, all it takes is a Gi, some mats, and someone trying their best to choke you out. Jiu Jitsu may train the body, but it also refines the mind. It soothes the nervous system, builds resilience, and teaches presence in a world that constantly demands our attention.

And in that fleeting, focused moment, there’s peace.

References

1. Woodward, T. W. (2009). A review of the effects of martial arts practice on health. WMJ: Wisconsin Medical Journal, 108(1), 40–43.
2. Moore, B., Dudley, D., & Woodcock, S. (2019). The effects of martial arts participation on mental and psychosocial health outcomes: A randomised controlled trial of a secondary school-based mental health promotion program. BMC Psychology, 7(1), 60.
3. Moore, B., Dudley, D., & Woodcock, S. (2020). The effect of martial arts training on mental health outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, 24(4), 402–412.
   
4. Ciaccioni, S., et al. (2024). Martial arts, combat sports, and mental health in adults: A systematic review. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 70, 102556.
5. Willing, A. E., Girling, S. A., Deichert, R., Wood-Deichert, R., Gonzalez, J., Hernandez, D., Foran, E., Sanberg, P. R., & Kip, K. E. (2019). Brazilian jiu-jitsu training for US service members and veterans with symptoms of PTSD. Military Medicine, 184(11–12), e626–e631.
6. Blomqvist Mickelsson, T. (2021). Brazilian jiu-jitsu as social and psychological therapy: A systematic review. Journal of Physical Education and Sport, 21(3), 1544-1552.
7. Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990). Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience. Harper & Row.

Disclaimer:

This article reflects the personal experiences and opinions of the author and is intended for informational purposes only. It should not be interpreted as medical advice. If you are experiencing mental health challenges, please consult a qualified healthcare professional.