Abstract Index Conference Index

ABSTRACT

1. Type of Presentation: Paper. Preference for 20-minute oral
presentation.

2. Title of Presentation: 
Nightmares and meditation practice: a heuristic study.

3. Author(s), School(s) and Biographical Description:
-Bette Kaiser, MA., MFT Licensed Intern in
private practice in Soquel, CA ; Ph.D. Candidate in East/West
Psychology , California Institute of Integral Studies

-Daniel Deslauriers, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Director, East/West
Psychology Program, California Institute of Integral Studies

4. Summary of Presentation: (max. 50 words)
This presentation discusses the nightmare experience of two Zen practice in meditation tends to soften sensory shields, or boundaries, a state usually associated with a higher nightmare frequency. The potential for nightmares to serve as a means of psychological and spiritual transformation is highlighted.

5. Learning Objectives:
1. Discuss the connection between nightmares and meditation
2. Explore how meditation practice can be used to sustain inquiry
into nightmares.
3. Discuss the role of nightmares in lifestyle changes

CE evaluation questions:
1. In what way can nightmares be used as a "wake-up" call?
2. How can meditation facilitate inner awareness during a series ofnightmares?
3. What is the psycho-spiritual benefits arising out of the experience of nightmares?

8. Abstract: (250-500 words)
This paper considers a psycho-spiritual approach to dreaming, in particular it looks at the experience of nightmares when engaged in a continuous and regular meditation practice. We postulate that nightmares encompass both spiritual and psychological dimensions and seek to understanding nightmares from an integral perspective. A heuristic method is employed which look closely at the experience of two meditators, one of which is the first author. In their experience, the softening of sensory shields, or boundaries, provides an opportunity for an unexpected explosion of primary psychological issues to abruptly arise into waking consciousness. Moreover, the heuristic research emphasizes the awareness of a shared experience within co-researchers. A fifty-one year old woman was interviewed about her frightening experience of nightmares that occurred each night over a period of seven consecutive days while attending a Zen Buddhist meditation retreat. The capacity to empathetically enter into another woman's episode of nightmares during a meditation retreat is examined. The woman and the first author consider the appearance of their nightmares to be connected to their meditation practice and meditation retreats, which resulted in insightful transformation. Both women feel their nightmares started the process of psycho-spiritual integration leading to significant lifestyle changes over time.

BETTE M. KAISER, M.A.
Email: bettekais@aol.com
Private practice intern: Provide therapy and counseling to families, couples and individuals. Has worked with families, specifically teen-age girls, couples and individuals in Watsonville and Santa Cruz
for Catholic Charities of the Monterey Diocese. Services provided for all ethnic and socio-economic groups.

Daniel Deslauriers, Ph.D., Director of the East-West Psychology program (CIIS), received his Ph.D. (1989) in Psychology from the University of Montreal, (Quebec) and conducted research at the University of Auckland (New Zealand) and the Chronopsychology laboratory, Carleton University (Ontario). He lived in Indonesia and has studied the religion, and sacred arts of Bali as well as trained in Gamelan music and Balinese dance. Author of articles on epistemology and narrative research, cross-cultural approaches to dreams and imagination, altered states of consciousness. He is also a practitioner and teacher of Unity in Motion, a body-mind integrative practice.

Reference List

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