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Meditation can have a dark side, experts say: How some people have difficult experiences with mindfulness
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A recent article by The Atlantic's Olga Khazan highlights the lesser-known side of mindfulness through the work of meditation teacher Willoughby Britton.
You may think of meditation as a quiet escape from a busy mind. You sit down, close your eyes, follow your breath and wait for the noise to settle.
But what if looking inward does not always feel calming?
A recent report by The Atlantic's Olga Khazan highlights the lesser-known side of mindfulness through the work of psychologist and meditation teacher Willoughby Britton. Her research looks at people who say meditation gave them difficult and, in some cases, lasting experiences.
That does not mean meditation is harmful for everyone. In fact, Khazan notes that research has linked meditation with several benefits, including improvements in anxiety and stress. But the story raises a question worth considering if you meditate regularly: Can a practice meant to bring peace sometimes bring up something much harder?
Can meditation make you feel worse?
Meditation has become a popular wellness habit because you can practice it almost anywhere. You do not necessarily need a class, special equipment or a large amount of time.
Britton herself turned to meditation after experiencing symptoms of PTSD. But during an intensive period of practice while completing her clinical residency at Brown University, she had an unsettling experience. After meditating for about an hour on her balcony one night, she returned indoors and felt as if her home belonged to someone else.
Khazan writes to the Atlantic that Britton was experiencing dissociation, a state in which a person can feel disconnected from their surroundings, emotions or sense of self.
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What is the “dark side” of mindfulness?
Britton's experience made her question the idea that every unusual meditation experience should automatically be treated as spiritual progress.
According to Khazan's report, when Britton told meditation teachers about what was happening, some told her that she had reached a new stage of enlightenment and encouraged her to continue. She says that continuing to meditate made the dissociation worse.
This raises a deeper spiritual question. When you experience something uncomfortable during meditation, should you always push through it? The answer may not be as simple as treating every difficult experience as a sign that you are becoming more spiritually advanced.
Why can meditation feel unsettling?
Meditation asks you to turn your attention inward. You may notice thoughts, emotions and sensations that you normally keep buried under work, conversations, entertainment or daily routines.
For some people, that quiet can feel unfamiliar. Khazan says that Britton later found other people who described difficult experiences linked to intensive meditation, including anxiety, depression and episodes of acute psychosis.
However, these reports do not prove that meditation causes these problems in everyone. They do, however, challenge the idea that every meditation experience will feel peaceful.
Should people stop meditating?
The Atlantic also makes clear that meditation has a growing body of research behind its possible benefits. The point is not that mindfulness is “bad.” It is that your experience matters too.
If meditation leaves you feeling increasingly distressed, disconnected or unable to function normally, you do not have to treat that discomfort as a spiritual test. You can pause. You can shorten your practice. You can try a different form of meditation. And if you are experiencing serious or persistent symptoms, speaking with a qualified mental health professional is a sensible step.
Is spiritual growth always supposed to feel peaceful?
Spiritual practice is often presented as a path toward calm, clarity and inner peace. But traditions of meditation have also long involved confronting difficult thoughts and feelings.
You do not have to prove your commitment by sitting longer or forcing yourself through an experience that feels wrong. Mindfulness is supposed to involve awareness. That includes being aware of how the practice itself affects you. Sometimes the wisest thing you can do is not go deeper, but step back and pay attention.
