Becoming Nobody

"I often hear this during ketamine sessions from clients as the ego dissolves, disappears, and reforms, leaving them sometimes frightened of dying or not existing, other times exhilarated at the freedom of being nothing and everything at the same time, no longer constricted within a small sense of self. The clients who come to me hoping for an "ego death" are usually the ones who scream and yell loudest when it actually happens,"

"Impermanence is nature, and we see it in nature from the smallest atom to the cosmos. To stay stuck rather than be fluid is to fight nature. 2) We are so much greater, more expansive, and ultimately more unlimited than we can imagine, so clinging to the idea of who we think we are leaves no room for the beauty and mystery of who we really might be to unfold and emerge."

Psychedelic experiences can dissolve boundaries between self, others, and the world, producing ego dissolution that often increases well-being and belonging. Ketamine sessions can cause the ego to dissolve, re-form, and trigger fear of nonexistence or exhilaration at feeling boundless. Clients seeking "ego death" may react strongly, while those who surrender tend to experience inner peace and freedom. Suffering arises from clinging to a fixed sense of self because people constantly change and nothing remains permanent. Clinging prevents emergence of greater, expansive aspects of the person and blocks the beauty and mystery of potential selfhood.

Read at Psychology Today