Altered states
Consciousness
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What happens to the brain during consciousness-ending meditation?
Psychologists are studying a form of meditation known as ‘nirodha-samāpatti’ that reportedly ceases all mental function
by Shayla Love
Sleep and dreams
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Five ways to take control of your dreams
Lucid dreaming lets you shape your dreamscape, whether your aims are practical or fantastical. These tips can get you started
by Christian Jarrett
Change and self-development
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Personal transformation can start with a whisper, not a bang
To understand personal transformation, we should listen to the incessant whispers in our stream of consciousness
by Jennifer Windt
Transcendent experience
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Your consciousness has been completely transformed. Now what?
Awakening experiences are spiritual states often believed to unlock life’s mysteries – but sacred knowledge comes at a cost
by Kevin Berryman
Psychedelic-assisted therapy
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If you want psychedelic healing, your ego may need to die
What do we know about the role of ‘ego death’ and other transformative experiences in psychedelic therapies?
by Natasha Mason, Athena Demertzi & Johannes G Ramaekers
Psychosis and schizophrenia
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Psychosis can be a personal hell. It can also inspire growth
From a new sense of purpose to improved relationships, there are hopeful signs of post-traumatic growth after psychosis
by Gerald Jordan, Robyn Thomas & Veenu Gupta
Altered states
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Déjà vu is just one of many uncanny kinds of déjà experiences
What can the many types of déjà experiences that most people have tell us about reality, memory and the gaps in between?
by Art Funkhouser
Depression
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Depression is more than low mood – it’s a change of consciousness
Understanding depression as an altered state of consciousness, like a dream or drug trip, could help people awaken from it
by Cecily Whiteley & Jonathan Birch
Altered states
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Here’s to my lovely, incandescent relationship with alcohol
Liquid gold, social pass, window on to the past, filter of life experience: my love affair with alcohol has no downside
by Anandi Mishra
Altered states
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Only by taking leave of our senses can we plunge into reverie
By letting meaning loose, allowing it to graze, we can revel in reverie, free of the tether that commonsense keeps tight
by Rachel Genn
Altered states
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Immersive art opens a window on the mystery of other minds
Immersive art lets us safely explore the altered minds of others, changing how we view ourselves and humanity in general
by Joe Barnby
Altered states
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Altered states can help us face death with serenity and levity
Near-death and out-of-body experiences can help us embrace our impermanence, letting us live and face death with serenity
by Sam Gandy, Samantha Treasure, Jade Shaw & Alexander Beiner