Disintegrating and Reintegrating the Self – (In)Flexible Self-Models in Depersonalisation and Psychedelic Experiences

Humans across cultures have intentionally sought to lose or escape their ordinary self, radically changing how they perceive themselves and the world. This paper contrasts the feeling of losing familiarity with one's self and body in depersonalisation experiences with similar changes induced by psychedelics and meditation, using the Active Inference Framework. The authors suggest that controlled alteration of prior expectations can flexibly modulate self- and world models, allowing individuals to leave behind habitual perceptual rigidities and open to new ways of integrating information. In contrast, depersonalisation involves an uncontrolled, rigid disintegration of habitual self-models, leaving a person feeling stuck in their mind and potentially leading to adverse clinical outcomes.

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Abstract

Across times and cultures, humans constantly and intentionally tried to ‘lose’ or to ‘escape’ their familiar, ordinary self, to ‘self-detach’ and to radically change the ways of perceiving oneself and the world. In this paper we explore the contrast between the feeling of ‘losing’ the sense of familiarity with one’s self and body in Depersonalisation experiences (DP) and psychedelics (with some consideration of meditative experiences). We explore these radical changes in self-experiences through the lens of Active Inference Framework (AIF). AIF is a process theory aiming to capture the capacity of biological organisms (e.g. living human bodies) to survive and thrive in volatile and uncertain environments. In line with previous work on depersonalisation and psychedelic mechanisms, we suggest that such experiences can involve a stance with radically altered prior expectations, so providing opportunities for flexibly modulating self- and world models. Specifically, we suggest that controlled acquisition of new self- and world models may enhance the plasticity of one’s perceptual and sensorimotor experiences. This new gained flexibility, we claim, may allow the individual to ‘leave behind’ certain habits, perceptual rigidities that holds him/her ‘stuck’ in certain behavioural patterns. And to open to new ways of perceiving and integrating self- and world-related information. By contrast, depersonalisation experiences point to a uncontrolled phenomenon of non-flexible (rigid) (dis)integration of ordinary/habitual self-models, and a consequent feeling of being ‘stuck’ in one’s mind. While controlled (dis)integration of habitual self-experiences and consequent re-integration may have positive effect, uncontrolled (dis)integration of habitual self-experiences triggered by unpredictable life events may be overwhelming and lead to self-detachment and potentially adverse clinical outcomes. Contrasting these two modes of alteration will allow us to outline the importance of the controlled ability to flexibly integrate, disintegrate and reintegrate multisensory bodily signals, and its impact on the human sense of self and agency.