Healing through the Body: The Potential Role of Daoist Meditation in Psychedelic Therapy
PsyArXiv December 4, 2024 Kenneth Shinozuka, Ben Cox, Leor Roseman 1 citation preprint
Psychedelics show potential for treating depression and PTSD. Current psychedelic-assisted therapy typically uses a non-directive approach with minimal therapist guidance. Clinical outcomes could improve by explicitly guiding participants to address specific symptoms. This paper proposes a variant of Daoist meditation—the outer dissolving technique in the water method—as a framework for guiding participants. The technique helps notice and release bodily tensions or blockages linked to repressed emotions. Practicing it during preparatory, integration, and acute phases of therapy may foster deeper insights into somatic manifestations of psychiatric conditions and empower emotional release. Daoist meditation is a promising adjunct to psychedelic-assisted therapy.