ABC News anchor credits meditation and mindfulness with recovery from drug addiction

[Ajay0]

ABC News anchor Dan Harris credits meditation and mindfulness with recovery from drug addiction and drug-induced panic attacks...

 

https://nextbigideaclub.com/magazine/conversation-how-meditation-helped-this-news-anchor-recover-from-addiction/17678/

 

Quote

 

“Our mind is a feverish swamp of urges, desires, and judgements. It’s fixated on the past and the future to the detriment of the here and now.”

 

 I have a tendency toward impatience, to think about the past or future to the detriment of whatever’s happening right now, and I have the soul of a junkie. Even though I no longer use drugs, I still want them, and I have all sorts of new destructive addictions—I struggle a lot around food. The junkie has not been exorcised, although he often needs to be.

 

You can have healthy compulsions, and you can have negative ones. In the years after abandoning drugs, a lot of my life has been about finding healthier ways to redirect my search for dopamine. I have developed this deep meditation habit, and I think it’s largely healthy.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited July 15, 2023 by Ajay0

[-ꦥꦏ꧀ ꦱꦠꦿꦶꦪꦺꦴ-]

At what point does this get considered spam? Surely we can just have one thread about drugs and meditation instead of a new one daily

[C T]

Not to mention not even addressing the crux of the problem. Which isn't drugs per se. 

[Ajay0]

10 minutes ago, Pak_Satrio said:

At what point does this get considered spam? Surely we can just have one thread about drugs and meditation instead of a new one daily

 

 I am sorry if these threads cause mental agitation in you due to aversion to anti-drug themes.

 

Both cravings and aversions, as strong desires, cause mental agitation. By cultivating awareness and mental equanimity,  one can transcend such desires and be immune to their influence.

 

Also drug addiction, trafficking and consequent heavy violence is a complex problem the world is facing at the moment, so it is important to pay enough attention to the issue that is due to it, so as to effect a solution to the matter.  Trivialising it would be synonymous with fuelling the issue, imho. 

 

 As Winston Churchill stated,  “Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfills the same function as pain in the human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things.” 

 

[Ajay0]

42 minutes ago, C T said:

Not to mention not even addressing the crux of the problem. Which isn't drugs per se. 

 

 I think this issue is addressed in my thread on Sadhguru's talk on drugs...

 

 

Unfortunately, instead of Sadhgurus content, people were more interested in his wealth and fame, and hence the thread got derailed with posts not connected with the theme.

 

This happened with other threads on the subject, and so the reason I came up with new threads to make a fresh start.

 

Hopefully, posters will talk on the content, and not derail them with unconnected topics. They can create separate threads on the unconnected topics which they wish to highlight. 

 

[C T]

@Ajay0 As noted, the subject has, like you, a similar disposition in that he doesn't yet understand drugs isn't his real demon, hence he remains struggling. Food as a masking substitute presently, and probably something else in future.

 

The Buddha said many take to the notion that being bound by chains of gold is either more superior to chains of iron, or are so deluded that they regard the former as emancipation.

[Taoist Texts]

2 hours ago, Pak_Satrio said:

At what point does this get considered spam? Surely we can just have one thread about drugs and meditation instead of a new one daily

unfortunately it was spam from the get go. because the topic-starter does not contribute anything except copy paste. surely we can google such  trite mass-media plastic info-noise ourselves if we need to.

[-ꦥꦏ꧀ ꦱꦠꦿꦶꦪꦺꦴ-]

4 hours ago, C T said:

Not to mention not even addressing the crux of the problem. Which isn't drugs per se. 

Exactly. Replacing an addiction of drugs (or whatever else) with an addiction of meditation (or whatever else) does not solve the problem of addiction. 
 

Now if you shared something that showed HOW meditation can help overcome drug addiction rather than cutting and pasting articles that basically say “drugs bad medication good” without going into details of HOW and WHY it can help then that would create further discussion.

 

3 hours ago, Ajay0 said:

 

 I think this issue is addressed in my thread on Sadhguru's talk on drugs...

 

 

Hopefully, posters will talk on the content, and not derail them with unconnected topics. They can create separate threads on the unconnected topics which they wish to highlight. 

 

I only commented on Sadhguru’s content and words in that thread, nothing about him as a person.

[Shadow_self]

4 hours ago, Ajay0 said:

 

 I am sorry if these threads cause mental agitation in you due to aversion to anti-drug themes.

 

Both cravings and aversions, as strong desires, cause mental agitation. By cultivating awareness and mental equanimity,  one can transcend such desires and be immune to their influence.

 

Also drug addiction, trafficking and consequent heavy violence is a complex problem the world is facing at the moment, so it is important to pay enough attention to the issue that is due to it, so as to effect a solution to the matter.  Trivialising it would be synonymous with fuelling the issue, imho. 

 

 As Winston Churchill stated,  “Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfills the same function as pain in the human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things.” 

 

 

Why not just create 1 thread called Ajay's drug addiction, trafficking and violence thread and keep it all there? 

 

Seems a far more organized and logical way to discuss the topic than a bunch of disjointed threads that are all more or less about the same thing

[liminal_luke]

16 minutes ago, Pak_Satrio said:

 

Now if you shared something that showed HOW meditation can help overcome drug addiction 

 

Addiction is running from the dragon.  Meditation is facing the dragon, or ought to be anyways.  I've read that some people have found a way to use meditation as a way to run though that hasn't been my experience.  A story: years ago I set myself a goal to meditate for just 10 minutes a day.  I kept putting it off and putting it off and I couldn't figure out why; was I really so lazy that I couldn't even manage 10 minutes?  Finally, I sat myself down to do it and immediately broke into tears.  Oh, so that's why I didn't want to meditate.

[-ꦥꦏ꧀ ꦱꦠꦿꦶꦪꦺꦴ-]

3 minutes ago, liminal_luke said:

 

Addiction is running from the dragon.  Meditation is facing the dragon, or ought to be anyways.  I've read that some people have found a way to use meditation as a way to run though that hasn't been my experience.  A story: years ago I set myself a goal to meditate for just 10 minutes a day.  I kept putting it off and putting it off and I couldn't figure out why; was I really so lazy that I couldn't even manage 10 minutes?  Finally, I sat myself down to do it and immediately broke into tears.  Oh, so that's why I didn't want to meditate.

An example from the article in the original post:

 

Quote

In the years after abandoning drugs, a lot of my life has been about finding healthier ways to redirect my search for dopamine. I have developed this deep meditation habit, and I think it’s largely healthy.

A search for dopamine? It’s exactly like the Sadhguru one saying meditation is like getting high and drunk. All you are doing with this advice is getting junkies addicted to another sensation, which is not the point of meditation at all. How many great masters and even the Buddha himself said we shouldn’t cling to sensations? Yet Sadhguru and all these articles explicitly promote sensations as the selling point of meditation. 

[Shadow_self]

13 minutes ago, Pak_Satrio said:

A search for dopamine?

 

Is this not the plight of the modern world?

 

Also you are correct...there is far bigger problem with people doing anything to get their dopamine fix, as opposed to just taking drugs

 

The latter is one of many symptoms of the former

 

[-ꦥꦏ꧀ ꦱꦠꦿꦶꦪꦺꦴ-]

6 minutes ago, Shadow_self said:

 

Is this not the plight of the modern world?

 

Also you are correct...there is far bigger problem with people doing anything to get their dopamine fix, as opposed to just taking drugs

 

The latter is one of many symptoms of the former

 

 

Replace drugs with social media, or video games. Same problem, just different negative effects on the body and mind. 

[liminal_luke]

1 hour ago, Pak_Satrio said:

A search for dopamine? 

 

I agree with @Shadow_self above that the search for dopamine is "the plight of the modern world"...so it's more than a little ironic that I find myself here.

[Shadow_self]

3 hours ago, Pak_Satrio said:

 

Replace drugs with social media, or video games. Same problem, just different negative effects on the body and mind. 

 

I agree. There seems to be a mechanism here where they are missing some sense of purpose or achievement in the real world, and so sink into the digital one instead 

 

Another example, you see people who  things like, bad food etc, can be alchohol, whatever it might be

 

The thing is, though that might be supposedly good "physically speaking" it can  potentially be catastrophic  in terms of what it does to your mind psychologicaly

 

Its almost like a kind of twisted clinging where you detach from something completely,  assosicate it with disgust or fear or something, and instead cling tightly to a mental position. Of course if the body affects the mind, vice versa applies and so, much of the "good" is cancelled out

 

This goes from being a concious thing to an unconcious thing, and then starts to birth karmic entanglements...and pretty bad ones at that

 

It seems to me that one should strike balance where they can do something, enjoy it in the moment, and not feel compelled to crave it or chase it.

 

Moreover mindfulness is paramount here. There is a reason monastery life is so regimental, nothing is done unconciosuly  and so all is done with the ability to spot negative attributes and not let them past the barrier of the concious mind

[Neirong]

6 hours ago, Pak_Satrio said:

A search for dopamine? It’s exactly like the Sadhguru one saying meditation is like getting high and drunk. All you are doing with this advice is getting junkies addicted to another sensation, which is not the point of meditation at all. How many great masters and even the Buddha himself said we shouldn’t cling to sensations? Yet Sadhguru and all these articles explicitly promote sensations as the selling point of meditation. 

Unfortunately, many "Teachers" are essentially fueling desires; they are akin to drug dealers or opium sellers. Their appeal for it is understandable. Consider any power structure: if you assist people with their desires or even promise salvation or to fulfill them by a specific date (X), you are creating a dependency link. Wealth, money, attention, and power flow in. The more cult followers and recognition exists, the higher the status and individual power. At some point they become untouchable by law and reason. While naive followers may believe their teacher is an ascended, supreme spiritual being, and even if he commits a vile act, it is for the sake of all humanity (surely), in reality, that being enjoys the rather physical attributes of their position.
 

Selling happiness is certainly one of the biggest dopamine-selling businesses out there.

Happiness is not what you need or what you would truly want. Something that clouds your mind like an addiction and does not allow to see a bigger picture. Emotions in itself are a massive trap and pitfall on the cultivation path.
 

Spoiler

 

Edited July 15, 2023 by Neirong

[Nungali]

13 hours ago, Pak_Satrio said:

At what point does this get considered spam? Surely we can just have one thread about drugs and meditation instead of a new one daily

 

Until us decadent westerners  realize that  spirituality and meditation are better than drugs .    

 

or until 'someone'  here feels satisfied about their outrage that someone else  here dared to criticize  a pop guru from  India . 

[Nungali]

13 hours ago, Ajay0 said:

 

 I am sorry if these threads cause mental agitation in you due to aversion to anti-drug themes.

 

Both cravings and aversions, as strong desires, cause mental agitation. By cultivating awareness and mental equanimity,  one can transcend such desires and be immune to their influence.

 

Also drug addiction, trafficking and consequent heavy violence is a complex problem the world is facing at the moment, so it is important to pay enough attention to the issue that is due to it, so as to effect a solution to the matter.  Trivialising it would be synonymous with fuelling the issue, imho. 

 

 As Winston Churchill stated,  “Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfills the same function as pain in the human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things.” 

 

 

Well, thank you .

 

because we where all sitting around thinking that drugs where the answer to everything .

 

Now, this 'meditation' thing you mention ..... tell me more

 

 

[Nungali]

12 hours ago, Ajay0 said:

 

 I think this issue is addressed in my thread on Sadhguru's talk on drugs...

 

 

Unfortunately, instead of Sadhgurus content, people were more interested in his wealth and fame, and hence the thread got derailed with posts not connected with the theme.

 

 

Ha!   That was NOT the criticism  I gave at all .   Now you are  flopping a red herring about

 

12 hours ago, Ajay0 said:

This happened with other threads on the subject, and so the reason I came up with new threads to make a fresh start.

 

Hopefully, posters will talk on the content, and not derail them with unconnected topics. They can create separate threads on the unconnected topics which they wish to highlight. 

 

 

We are a bit more insightful than that !  ( to peoples motives ) .

[Nungali]

9 hours ago, Shadow_self said:

 

Why not just create 1 thread called Ajay's drug addiction, trafficking and violence thread and keep it all there? 

 

 

 

 and in 'PP'.

 

Seems a far more organized and logical way to discuss the topic than a bunch of disjointed threads that are all more or less about the same thing

 

Instead of one huge bomb he prefers to let off a lot of small arms fire all over the place  

 

or 'spamming' as said previously .

[Nungali]

8 hours ago, Pak_Satrio said:

An example from the article in the original post:

 

A search for dopamine? It’s exactly like the Sadhguru one saying meditation is like getting high and drunk. All you are doing with this advice is getting junkies addicted to another sensation, which is not the point of meditation at all. How many great masters and even the Buddha himself said we shouldn’t cling to sensations? Yet Sadhguru and all these articles explicitly promote sensations as the selling point of meditation. 

 

 

Note the bold  ..... that be because he is a pop guru ... a youtube guru

[Nungali]

7 hours ago, liminal_luke said:

 

I agree with @Shadow_self above that the search for dopamine is "the plight of the modern world"...so it's more than a little ironic that I find myself here.

 

I gave you a like .... to give you a little dopamine  charge     

 

• 1

 

• 1

 

• 1

 

• 1

 

• 1

 

• 1

 

• 1

 

• 1

 

 

 

[Nungali]

4 hours ago, Shadow_self said:

 

I agree. There seems to be a mechanism here where they are missing some sense of purpose or achievement in the real world, and so sink into the digital one instead 

 

Another example, you see people who  things like, bad food etc, can be alchohol, whatever it might be

 

The thing is, though that might be supposedly good "physically speaking" it can  potentially be catastrophic  in terms of what it does to your mind psychologicaly

 

Its almost like a kind of twisted clinging where you detach from something completely,  assosicate it with disgust or fear or something, and instead cling tightly to a mental position. Of course if the body affects the mind, vice versa applies and so, much of the "good" is cancelled out

 

This goes from being a concious thing to an unconcious thing, and then starts to birth karmic entanglements...and pretty bad ones at that

 

It seems to me that one should strike balance where they can do something, enjoy it in the moment, and not feel compelled to crave it or chase it.

 

Moreover mindfulness is paramount here. There is a reason monastery life is so regimental, nothing is done unconciosuly  and so all is done with the ability to spot negative attributes and not let them past the barrier of the concious mind

 

Thats the ideal ;  I used to drink too much , so got rid of alcohol and avoided it .  After a while I decided it still had control over me due to my avoidance . It took a bit to iron out , but now I have a nice cocktail bar  ( mostly, because I like the look of it  ) ... its had the same bottles with a similar level in them for over a year .   I was determined to have a margarita  a couple weeks back ... but kept forgetting to or 'not getting around to it ' .    I did manage to remember the other night  ... and bother to do it .

 

It was enjoyable  and totally under control   and   ....

 

...  its excellent for washing down that post hashish and DMT aftertaste

 

 

[Ajay0]

On 7/15/2023 at 6:15 PM, C T said:

@Ajay0 As noted, the subject has, like you, a similar disposition in that he doesn't yet understand drugs isn't his real demon, hence he remains struggling. Food as a masking substitute presently, and probably something else in future.

 

My understanding is that all human beings have an intuitive feeling that bliss and joy is their birthright, due to the innate potential of enlightenment or Buddhahood within them.

 

Not getting it, they are obviously bound to look into external intoxicants to give themselves a high, even if it is temporary and followed by misery(hangover/comedown).

 

 Pleasure seeking through drugs, alcohol, sex, food, all becomes refuges and forms of escapism then.

 

 Western philosophy and psychology has not yet understood the phenomenon of enlightenment due to a short civilizational timeline, so it becomes a bigger problem over there. Philosophies like nihilism, hedonism and scientific materialism gives the thumbs up to get into perverse pleasure seeking modes as well, even if it crosses the boundaries of immorality and vice.

 

As Sadhguru himself says, "When there is no joy in you, you become a pleasure seeker. "

 

 So, all this interest and dependencies on external intoxicants and pleasures means that one has not yet accessed the natural bliss within oneself, free, everlasting, inexpensive, healthy and superior to all known external pleasures.

 

All these dependencies thus become medals of weakness, shallowness and ignorance the dependent reveals to those around him. And the delusional even exhibit them with pride.

Edited July 18, 2023 by Ajay0

[-ꦥꦏ꧀ ꦱꦠꦿꦶꦪꦺꦴ-]

11 hours ago, Ajay0 said:

 

My understanding is that all human beings have an intuitive feeling that bliss and joy is their birthright, due to the innate potential of enlightenment or Buddhahood within them.

 

Not getting it, they are obviously bound to look into external intoxicants to give themselves a high, even if it is temporary and followed by misery(hangover/comedown).

 

 Pleasure seeking through drugs, alcohol, sex, food, all becomes refuges and forms of escapism then.

 

 Western philosophy and psychology has not yet understood the phenomenon of enlightenment due to a short civilizational timeline, so it becomes a bigger problem over there. Philosophies like nihilism, hedonism and scientific materialism gives the thumbs up to get into perverse pleasure seeking modes as well, even if it crosses the boundaries of immorality and vice.

 

As Sadhguru himself says, "When there is no joy in you, you become a pleasure seeker. "

 

 So, all this interest and dependencies on external intoxicants and pleasures means that one has not yet accessed the natural bliss within oneself, free, everlasting, inexpensive, healthy and superior to all known external pleasures.

 

All these dependencies thus become medals of weakness, shallowness and ignorance the dependent reveals to those around him. And the delusional even exhibit them with pride.

Again this is very simplistic. You don’t have to be depressed or lack joy in your life to get addicted to alcohol or different drugs, or even to use them in the first place. PHYSICAL addiction doesn’t care about your mood at all. You could be the happiest person in the world with a perfect family and stable career yet decide to drink or do drugs for fun, to experiment or any other reason besides being unhappy. 

Edited July 18, 2023 by Pak_Satrio