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"meditation is one of several routes by which one can learn to recognize some measure of space between the cognitive unconscious and the story teller, and so to become less driven by not only external factors but internal ones as well, more able to influence one's own behavior."

To hammer in that point...

Our thoughts directly affect how we feel. Hence, if we can control our thoughts, we can in turn control how we feel.

For example, a guy gives you a weird look. If you were to then think that this guy might be angry at you, you could consequently feel upset or worried. However, if you simply think to yourself "that guy gave me a weird look... oh well", then you could aviod the negative feelings.

In that respect, meditation is a great excerisize for controling one's thoughts and bettering one's mental health. By ignoring external and internal distractions, one could in turn learn how to ignore negative thoughts so we "become less driven by not only external factors but internal ones as well, more able to influence [our] own [feelings and] behavior"