How is meditating different from dissociation? Both can involve altered states of consciousness, and both have been associated with stress, pressure, and other challenges. But they’re not the same thing, are they?
What is Meditating?
To understand how meditating is different from dissociation, it can be helpful to review some basic information about each one first. We’ll begin by taking a brief look at meditating.
Meditation is an ancient practice that has been associated with a wide range of physical, psychological and spiritual benefits, including:
- Deeper connection with your true self
- Improved ability to remain present and mindful
- Stronger sense of connection with others
- Reduction in anxiety, depression, and other mental health symptoms
- More effective stress management
- Decreased suicidal ideation
- Enhanced immune system functioning
- Easing of chronic pain
- Lowering of blood pressure
- Better quality of sleep
As we’ll discuss later in this post, there are many types of meditation. Differences among these types include:
- Each type of meditation has a unique history and overarching purpose as well as specific practices.
- Some are silent, while others involve the repetition of mantras, verbal guidance, or other sounds.
- Many forms of meditation involve stillness, but some incorporate a range of movements.
- Some types of meditation are aligned with specific religious or spiritual practices, while others are not.
In general, most types of meditation are designed to help people become fully present in the moment, focus their attention, and resist the urge to react impulsively.
What is Dissociation?
Dissociation is the sense of separation or detachment from yourself and/or your surroundings. This experience can include one or both of the following:
- Depersonalization: This is the sensation of being disconnected from your body, thoughts, and emotions. Depersonalization can make you feel like you are watching yourself from a distance.
- Derealization: This involves the perception that you have somehow become separated from the world around you. This can sometimes feel like your environment has been drained of color, or that you are looking at it through a pane of glass.
Dissociation can result from a variety of factors, including:
- Trauma: Dissociation can be a means of distancing yourself from a traumatic occurrence. People may dissociate both during and after traumatic experiences.
- Stress: If you are exposed to overwhelming stress or pressure, dissociation can sometimes be an involuntary attempt to temporarily escape your psychological distress.
- Mental illness: Dissociation can be a symptom of several mental health disorders, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), panic disorder, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and depersonalization/derealization disorder.
- Substance use: Using certain recreational drugs or prescription medications can trigger the onset of dissociative episodes.
What is the Difference Between Meditating and Dissociation?
Now that you’ve read through the descriptions in the previous two sections, let’s turn our attention to the question at the top of today’s post.
How is meditating different from dissociation? Here are four fundamental differences:
- Meditating is a conscious, intentional activity. With the exception of some substance-related cases, dissociation is usually an involuntary response to either negative stimuli or a mental health disorder.
- Meditating can help people deal with conflict, trauma, and other stressors in a healthy manner. Dissociation in response to trauma or stress can be the brain’s way of temporarily ignoring or hiding from emotional pain.
- Meditating can promote a greater sense of connection with yourself, with other people, and with the world around you. Dissociation often results in a sense of disconnection and isolation.
- After a meditation session, it’s common to feel more relaxed, inspired, and at peace. In the aftermath of a dissociative episode, people frequently feel exhausted and disoriented.
These are, of course, by no means the only possible answers to the question, how is meditating different from dissociation. But they do establish some of the key differentiators between the two experiences.
Are There Negative Side Effects to Meditation?
One of the many benefits of meditating is that the practice hasn’t been associated with many serious side effects. However, that doesn’t mean that it is a completely risk-free endeavor.
An April 2022 article in the journal Global Advances in Health and Medicine explored the potential adverse effects of mindfulness meditation.
The authors of this article reported that both prior research and anecdotal reports have identified several potential negative effects of meditating, including:
- Anxiety
- Emotional discomfort
- Physical pain
- Psychosis
- Mania
However, the authors noted, such accounts of problematic outcomes don’t align with most people’s experiences with meditation.
“These reports … described periods of intensive (many hours per day with few breaks) or long-term (thousands of hours of committed meditation) practice,” they wrote, “not the more benign engagement expected in everyday programs for the public like [mindfulness-based programs].”
Also, the authors reported, one of the purposes of mindful meditation is to help people learn how to experience difficult emotions without reacting negatively or resorting to maladaptive coping behaviors.
From this perspective, uncomfortable emotions aren’t drawbacks or adverse effects. Instead, learning how to feel these types of feelings without a reflexive, self-defeating response is among the many goals and benefits of meditating.
How to Find the Right Way to Meditate?
Though many people think of meditation as a single practice, it can actually take many forms. Examples of the various types of meditation include:
- Mindfulness meditation
- Walking meditation
- Guided meditation
- Transcendental meditation (TM)
- Visualization meditation
- Loving-kindness meditation
- Zen meditation
- Vipassana meditation
- Sound bath meditation
The following can help you determine which type of meditation is right for you:
- Read about the history, practices, and potential benefits of each type.
- View online videos that explain and/or demonstrate different types of meditation.
- Try different types, either on your own or as part of a group. If you can’t find others in your area who practice the type of meditation you’re interested in, search for online or virtual meditation groups or classes.
- Consult with friends or online connections who have participated in the types of meditation that you’re interested in.
Contact Conscious Health About Our Meditation Events in Los Angeles
If you’d like to learn more about meditating in the Los Angeles area, Conscious Health is here to help. We regularly host a variety of free events, including meditation sessions and lectures from experts in various disciplines, at our center on Larchmont Blvd.
To be sure you don’t miss any upcoming opportunities, be sure to bookmark our Events page and check back regularly.
Published on 10/15/2024
