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Meditation isn't for everyone
Meditation is the one practice everyone agrees on. It’s on the NHS,
in schools, in every influencer’s guide to life, and the pitch is always
the same: good for you, good for everyone, can’t hurt. Two of those
three are false. It can hurt, it isn’t for everyone—and once you see
what it actually is underneath the cushion, you realise you’re probably
already doing it.
Further reading
for profit — the article that inspired this lecture.
Scientific Ritual — the first lecture in this arc, on science as a
belief system.
of the Sage — the second, on why we trust doctors the way we trust
gurus.
Intelligence — one of the wellbeing-program takedowns mentioned up
top.
placebo — on why “all in the head” is the point, not the
problem.
brain regions, brain networks — where the harms of mindfulness for
some populations come up again.
calming down — the companion takedown of the calm-down-advice
genre.
Mind — more on the contemplative tradition meditation was lifted
from.
References
Meditation Change You? Publisher
page.
Galante, J. (2025). Incidence and predictors of meditation-related
unusual experiences and adverse effects in a representative sample of
meditators in the United States. Clinical Psychological
Science. Article.
L. (2019). Unpleasant meditation-related experiences in regular
meditators: Prevalence, predictors, and conceptual considerations.
PLOS ONE. Article.
Britton, W. B. (2017). The varieties of contemplative experience: A
mixed-methods study of meditation-related challenges in Western
Buddhists. PLOS ONE. Article.
(2020). Adverse events in meditation practices and meditation-based
therapies: A systematic review. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica.
Article.
for chronic pain patients based on the practice of mindfulness
meditation. General Hospital Psychiatry. Article.
View all episodes
By Dorian MinorsMeditation is the one practice everyone agrees on. It’s on the NHS,
in schools, in every influencer’s guide to life, and the pitch is always
the same: good for you, good for everyone, can’t hurt. Two of those
three are false. It can hurt, it isn’t for everyone—and once you see
what it actually is underneath the cushion, you realise you’re probably
already doing it.
Further reading
for profit — the article that inspired this lecture.
Scientific Ritual — the first lecture in this arc, on science as a
belief system.
of the Sage — the second, on why we trust doctors the way we trust
gurus.
Intelligence — one of the wellbeing-program takedowns mentioned up
top.
placebo — on why “all in the head” is the point, not the
problem.
brain regions, brain networks — where the harms of mindfulness for
some populations come up again.
calming down — the companion takedown of the calm-down-advice
genre.
Mind — more on the contemplative tradition meditation was lifted
from.
References
Meditation Change You? Publisher
page.
Galante, J. (2025). Incidence and predictors of meditation-related
unusual experiences and adverse effects in a representative sample of
meditators in the United States. Clinical Psychological
Science. Article.
L. (2019). Unpleasant meditation-related experiences in regular
meditators: Prevalence, predictors, and conceptual considerations.
PLOS ONE. Article.
Britton, W. B. (2017). The varieties of contemplative experience: A
mixed-methods study of meditation-related challenges in Western
Buddhists. PLOS ONE. Article.
(2020). Adverse events in meditation practices and meditation-based
therapies: A systematic review. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica.
Article.
for chronic pain patients based on the practice of mindfulness
meditation. General Hospital Psychiatry. Article.