Timothy Fair

Mcgill
English 95
November 12. 2014

Self-awareness a treatment?
What exactly does it mean to have a mental illness? Is it to have improper brain
chemistry , or actual malformations in the physical makeup of the mind? What exactly is
going on inside me? One Wednesday not too long ago, I was evaluated and diagnosed
with an anxiety disorder along a possible mix of illnesses similar to ADHD. The doctors
were unsure if it were ADHD or something else, since many illnesses show its' traits. I am not
alone, it is commonplace for many to be diagnosed with a mental illness. There are many
factors such as chemicals in the water, genetics, or just an improper upbringing, simply by poor
life circumstances. Whichever the case there is an imbalance in life and, as Buddhism teaches,
balance is a key aspect in all aspects. I see that aspect in every single thing- even the universe
had to have an equilibrium in order to become what it is today. With that idea in mind and the
knowledge that meditation may restructure the neurons in the brain.(Happy) So, do forms of
meditation, by refining the very structure of our mind, may treat or cure mental illnesses which
plague many people around the world?

Speculation must be made that even being an alternative treatment to mental illness,
meditation can have a measurable effect on one's mental health. Julie Corliss provides evidence for this
in her Harvard blog as she mentions researchers who have sifted a wide number of case studies.
These case studies show direct evidence of meditation and positive effect on patients. The

evidence can be stipulated by the fact that anxiety disorders are stress-related and meditation is
a medium for powerful stress relief. Take away that stress and, so too does the patient improve. By no
means does this invite a patient to forgo their pharmaceuticals as Corliss explains how meditation is
still only an alternative treatment and not studied well. Mindfulness seems to be a good treatment
option to ride along side the more commonplace drugs we use in treatment, though the issues we are
treating are in fact born of stress. Mindfulness removes this stress, and thus treats the anxiety, and the
PTSD; yet, what about other illnesses such as schizophrenia or ADHD? Are these illnesses- possibly
unrelated to stress, able to be treated with alternative methods?

Stress, again seems to be a key factor within the cacophony of the mind. An author by the name
of Sarina J. Grosswald writes in her book titled Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Children
and Adolescents, that the symptoms of stress and ADHD align like planets and stars. They're so close in
fact that she believes ADHD to be a stress-related disorder. Sarina informs us that TM, or
transcendental meditation has been effective in treating patients for these disorders. Along with the
rhetorical benefits, patients' lives are greatly improved. In my own introspection, enough time and
experience with these exercises could lead a patient to pursue their own healing to a greater degree.
Perhaps it is only my confirmation bias that leads me to desire a treatment without mind altering drugs,
though spirituality and deep thought at this level surely have much more benefit that to treat mental
illness. My research continues with the question as to whether meditative therapy, from what I have
seen so far, is only effective when the problem is stress-related? Or, is there a more viable purpose
beyond what I see? Can it improve our well-being and improve patients' illnesses which are not
connected to stress?

This third article, titled Meditation as a non-invasive treatment by Transrehab has some
information to offer. The short story it tells follows a woman on pharmaceuticals for schizo affective

disorder and explains how she developed complications from prescription medication. She had
developed a tick in her facial muscles indicating damage to her motor nerves. The author likens the
prescriptions we use day to day as a double-edged sword. An effective weapon for taking out our
enemies and yet simultaneously an enemy to our own well-being as well(Meditaton as). Should she
have taken a different medication, or a different treatment with meditation altogether? Either way, the
article only tells us this story to elaborate upon how meditation can be a treatment with no drawback as
opposed to the drugs we already use. The article sits on the fence by stating it does not condone
conventional drugs. It then supports that notion with a positive argument towards pharmaceuticals and
how gene mapping would allow doctors to create drugs with less side effects or none. Unfortunately, no
information is given as to non-stress-related illness and if they could be treated. Even without a direct
answer to the underlying question, there is more evidence to support meditative practice however.
Those who meditate tend to value their own lives and wellness more. Suicide rates drop, patients who
have suffered trauma are more likely to recover, and the fact that meditation does not cost a dime as
opposed to expensive drugs are good points to be made. The pros and cons could be as follows:
conventional medicine takes years to develop, is costly, and could cause diverse side effects within
patients, possibly even death; on the other hand, meditation and yoga are free to be learned by anyone
pursuing their own well-being, it may take weeks or months to practice it to a point where there is
improvement, there is no drawback as far as I can see, it improves the quality of life for the ones
practicing it, and may even improve lifespan above reducing and managing stress as well as the
disorders related to it. If you had a disorder and had these choices to make, which one would you
choose? The answer as to whether stress-related disorders are treatable is unanswered, though the
evidence mounts that self-healing can be effective and has more benefits than drawbacks. The question
must be asked once more: can meditation treat or cure treatments of which the nature is unrelated to
stress or mood?
The research continues as I look into a story titled How I triumphed over schizophrenia by an

author named Jimmy Cheah. Cheah describes in the story how he had schizophrenia and his eventual
success in overcoming it. It had took him years in order to accomplish the feat, yet he was able to do it
through deep meditation and self-awareness. It must be noted however, that he was a monk who had
years of training and experience. As a monk, his whole life may have been devoted to his teachings at
one point in life. Would a patient need to live Cheah's lifestyle as well? If you have schizophrenia
should you devote your self to spirituality and learn to control the disorder? In this modern world that
surely is not plausible for most people. We must work in order to live, that is just the way it is. Though
if a schizophrenia patient had the only choice of living in a mental health institution due to the severity
of their condition would choosing the prior be better overall? If Cheah could overcome his
schizophrenia through spiritual practice, others should be able to do the same. Is a life as a monk the
only way to self-heal from severe illness?
A somewhat simple yogic practice called Kundalini yoga may have the answers to my previous
question. David Shannahoff explores this practice in his article Kundalini yoga meditation for
complex psychiatric disorders.