Emily’s twin sister spirals after going on a Goenka retreat, and she’s not the only one. Madison Marriage hears multiple accounts of terror, hallucinations and psychosis. Was meditation just the catalyst that unleashed psychological problems? Or did this network of silent meditation retreats actually cause their suffering?
For support or more information about adverse meditation experiences, take a look at the Cheetah House website (www.cheetahhouse.org).
We also spoke to Miguel Farias and Jonny Say to corroborate claims in the podcast about adverse meditation experiences. You can find out more about Farias’s work here (miguelfarias.co.uk), and Say’s here (jonnysaytherapy.com).
If you are in need of urgent mental health support, please contact your local emergency services or reach out to a mental health helpline, such as the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline (988lifeline.org) in the US or Samaritans (www.samaritans.org) in the UK.
See if you get the FT for free as a student (ft.com/schoolsarefree) or start a £1 trial: subs.ft.com/spa3_trial?segmen....
► Check out our Community tab for more stories.
► Listen to our podcasts: www.ft.com/podcasts
► Follow us on Instagram: / financialtimes'