SimpleGuy

Dark side of meditation?

11 posts in this topic

When I do the inner feeling in mindfulness meditation I instantly get nervous, whereas before doing this inner feeling, I was completely relaxed and peaceful. 

Why is that? What do you think guys?

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Perhaps the nervousness was already there, it’s just that you were distracted by everyday life and didn’t notice it 🧐

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2 hours ago, Sugarcoat said:

Perhaps the nervousness was already there, it’s just that you were distracted by everyday life and didn’t notice it 🧐

I do it in the morning. How could that be?)

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The nervous system has interpreted something there that is not and it's triggered some response.


What you know leaves what you don't know and what you don't know is all there is. 

 

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The answer to fear is its a lie that you beleive. Some of the lies you beleive are existential.

Edited by Hojo

Sometimes it's the journey itself that teaches/ A lot about the destination not aware of/No matter how far/
How you go/How long it may last/Venture life, burn your dread

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Let the inner feeling be your best friend. She’s a safe space.

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1 hour ago, Princess Arabia said:

The nervous system has interpreted something there that is not and it's triggered some response.

 

1 hour ago, Yimpa said:

Let the inner feeling be your best friend. She’s a safe space.

Are you talking about the self, ego?

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3 hours ago, SimpleGuy said:

I do it in the morning. How could that be?)

Maybe it’s repressed things coming to the surface

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It's essential to meet the darkness. If you don't, you won't know what to do when inherent darkness of the world threatens you. Think of it like a vaccine, a little of darkness enables one to greater serve the light. And yes I stole that from assassin's creed

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I see a couple of possibilities:

1) Simple apprehension/performance anxiety. Do you feel you have any sort of goal with meditation? Aims? If so, potentially not living up to that goal and thinking on it may be causing some nervousness. 'What if I get distracted?' 'What if I cannot concentrate?' What if I get frustrated?' etc.

2) Most people proceed through life totally consumed in distraction - wilfully. Boredom is anathema to most. It is so uncomfortable we cannot sit with it at all. You may not even realise you are seeking distraction 24/7. When this goes - often what we are running from or repressing comes up. You might 'feel' relaxed prior to meditation, but this could be just a level of stimulation you are accustomed too. What is occurring unconsciously then, can arise during meditation - because in that calmer state your mind/body will bring things up as it perceives you are safe and ready to confront whatever it may be.

Anxiety and stress are normally the bodies response to anticipating a threat - I wonder what you might be perceiving that could be acting as some imagined 'threat?'. For myself, mass amounts of extreme trauma buried deep in my unconscious only came to the fore when I was in a calm, stable point in my life. Almost as if my mind was protecting itself. I found this confusing as I was in a stable life balance where all seemed well - there was no reason for me to be feeling all these things! 

It took perhaps 2 years of solid meditation, contemplation and enquiry for me to figure all this out and resolve it. 

It was the best thing I ever did.

Maybe my story might help :) 


Deal with the issue now, on your terms, in your control. Or the issue will deal with you, in ways you won't appreciate, and cannot control.

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