[Hanuman Dass]

Hi everyone. I saw a blog post about differing views on whether medication was okay for meditation. What I mean is does medication help or hurt the person meditating. Disclaimer: Obviously if you need the med to be safe that's the way to go. The two views were eith for or against meds for the practioner. I personally see meds as stabalizing chemical imbalances that affect the mind/reason/emotions/etc. They only change ones reality or perception in so far as the affect the problem areas of the brain. So we may eat some food that affects serotonin in the brain and we feel less depressed. This would not hinder ones meditative practice obviously! But would taking say prozac? I feel that it wouldn't. My question is to anyone who meditates or practices yoga, what is your position on this matter?

[Hanuman Dass]

I apologize for the typos I'm on the mobile site typing on my Blackberry.

[Nupoet64]

I do not see any issues against using the two together. Native peoples ahve been using mind altering herbs to inhance the meditative state for as long as the storieshave been around.
But, then again, I would ask my pdoc about it if i were concerned. I have never taken prozac. My T uses meditation in her treatment sessions and most of her patients are on some type of meds for mood stabilization.

[Hanuman Dass]

Thanks for the reply. I only used Prozac as an example. I'm personally rx'd Zyprexa and possibly Wellbutrin soon. I agree with your point about native peoples and entheogenic substances. I guess my concern is that by using meds ones reality may be significantly altered to the extent judgment, awareness, and spirituality are impaired. In other words I'm afraid my drugs will make meditation/yoga pointless since in one aspect awareness is the end in sight. I won"t stop my meds I need them, but I don't want to waste time with meditation if need'nt be.

I think I will take my meds meditate and see whaat happens!

Thank you for the reply

[awakeanddreaming]

I would definitely say that the COMBINATION of medication and yoga has made a HUGE difference in my mental health. Just one or the other doesn't work for me, it has to be both. Learning about mindfulness meditation has really helped me as well, and I certainly wouldn't stop taking my medication because of it. Sometimes your meds help you calm down and get motivated enough to even try meditation.

[Hanuman Dass]

Awesome! Thanks I was looking for some first hand accounts. Glad its working for you. I've noticed since I started my med I've actually cooled out enough to sit and meditate. So far as I could tell its helping. I just had this weird anxiety that somehow I was fooling myself. Guess the voices aren't all gone yet. Still learning to trust myself, lol.