Intense experiences while practising mindfulness can be similar to psychosis

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2024-04-10 12:30

Australia; International; VIC

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Intense experiences may be frequent for those regularly practising mindfulness, and some of these experiences can be negative or potentially psychosis-like, according to a small study from Australian and international researchers. The team collected fortnightly reports from 13 secular mindfulness teacher trainees over four months, asking them to report any intense or notable experiences they had while meditating. Reports of intense experiences were frequent, and reports of negative experiences were more common, which the team says could be because these experiences were more noticeably different. Some of the experiences reported resembled psychosis, they say, which they believe shows that while mindfulness can have positive impacts on mental health for many, it may also have risks for others. They say that although their sample was small, the participants provided enough data to show the wide spectrum of emotional responses mindfulness can trigger.