Adverse Effects of Meditation — Social Impairment — Integration After Meditation Retreat — Cheetah House (original) (raw)

The social domain includes any changes in interpersonal activities or functioning, including level of engagement, quality of relationships, or periods of conflict, isolation or withdrawal. The social domain tends to involve either experiences that catalyzed meditation difficulties or, conversely, were the consequence of meditation difficulties. Social factors were described as catalysts for difficulties in integration following retreat or intensive practice where transitioning from a practice context (whether in daily life or on retreat) to a non-practice (and often social) context were experienced as destabilizing. For example, perceptual, affective, and cognitive changes that were not problems in the practice context became difficulties that were reported as negatively valenced or impairing of functioning at work or with family.

Social impairment includes both these instances as well as instances where practice-related difficulties continued into daily life. This domain also includes changes in occupational functioning, which often requires social interactions. A generally positive but less commonly reported change was an increased sociality, defined as an increased extraversion or valuing of social connections.

Changes in relationship to meditation community (including both teachers and other practitioners) included feelings of support and encouragement as well as feelings of estrangement or rejection, often co-occurring with changes in worldview and changes in doubt or faith, especially when challenging meditation experiences resulted in significant distress or functional impairment. Other aspects of social relationships described as contributing to the onset or resolution of challenging meditation experiences were coded as Influencing Factors under the Relationship domain (see Influencing factors: Domains and categories).