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Meditation – a two edged sword for psychosis: a case report

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 January 2016

P. Sharma ,
S. Singh ,
S. Gnanavel  and
N. Kumar
P. Sharma*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
S. Singh
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
S. Gnanavel
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
N. Kumar
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
*
*Address for correspondence: P. Sharma, Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi 110029, India. (Email: [email protected])
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Abstract

Meditation is believed to have many health benefits apart from enhancing spiritual health. However, there is evidence that meditation may even lead to psychosis or worsen it in some cases. The aim of this paper is to present a case and discuss the role of meditation as a precipitating factor to psychosis. A 27-year-old male presented with psychotic symptoms with a temporal correlation with meditation. He was then successfully treated with antipsychotic medication and is maintaining well. This case report highlights the possibility that intense meditation could precipitate psychosis in vulnerable individuals. However, there are several beneficial effects of meditation in patients with psychosis if practiced with caution.

Keywords

Antipsychoticsmeditationpsychosis
Type
Case Report
Information
Irish Journal of Psychological Medicine , Volume 33 , Issue 4 , December 2016 , pp. 247 - 249
Copyright
© College of Psychiatrists of Ireland 2016 

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