Can a fracture of the ego be cured without medication?

Answer 1

Mindfulness based cognitive therapy (MBCT) is proving to be an exciting and effective new therapeutical approach that can improve the way a person feels without medication. In this approach the person tries to meditate on their breath and not be distracted from it. They are coached not to judge any feeling or thought they encounter, only to see it as a distraction from the task of focusing on the breath.

Later, when this exercise is mastered, the patient is coached to scan the body, and to observe how each part of the body feels. Maybe the back is experiencing a painful feeling from sitting too long, what does it feel like, is the pain warm, or concentrated in one area, etc. At no time is the pain to be considered as 'I am in pain' and 'my back hurts', or to be judged or regarded as unpleasant or the like. The pain just is, it has no properties of good or bad, it is just to be observed, and the consciousness is to learn to peacefully abide with this sensation. If the pain or sensation ceases, then it is to be observed, but not judged.

In this way what may be regarded as unpleasant physical feelings or mental sensations, thoughts, ways of thinking, may be allowed to pass away with wishing them away or fighting to rid oneself of them. If one is to fight these sensations then it only strengthens the sensations.

Most of life is spent avoiding pain, through distraction, drugs and the like. Calm abiding as practiced in MBCT and Buddhism is aknowleging the existence of the sensation, but not fighting it.