Extreme mental states during meditation, sometimes labeled psychosis or spiritual emergency, are interpreted differently across spiritual traditions. Three meditation teachers from distinct philosophical traditions described these states' phenomenology, explained their nature according to their own traditions, and discussed supportive approaches. Having a spiritual teacher for guidance was considered significant. The findings suggest that acknowledging diverse understandings and cultivating a non-judgmental attitude could improve collaboration between clinicians and meditation teachers to support individuals experiencing such states.
Metacognition—the ability to know, monitor, and adjust one's own beliefs, memories, and behaviors—is often studied as an individual cognitive process. This review argues that metacognition is also fundamentally intersubjective: people know and reflect upon themselves and others through connections with other people. Reviewing research on metacognition in schizophrenia using an integrative model that assesses metacognition within personal narratives, the authors discuss how disturbances in intersubjective experience and metacognitive capacity mutually influence one another. Disruptions in metacognition may be more deeply understood as disruptions in relatedness with others. The paper explores how metacognition and intersubjectivity each affect mental health and discusses implications for treatments targeting metacognition.