Can you stop meditating?

[Manjushri]

I've been meditating for 3-4 years now daily. What's seen can't be unseen. I raised my consciousness / awareness level. Was trying to enlighten ASAP (I'm 19 now). That blitzkrieg technique - didn't work. Now I'm here, damaged. back to reality with shitty habits. need to work on basic things in order to become functional again.

 

But I'm afraid of it becoming a crutch - what if you can't meditate? Don't wanna become dependent on it. I actually used it as a disguised personal development and self transcendence work while it was (not that it wasn't the former) a coping mechanism.
 

I think I'm worse off now not meditating. but when i do, some time passes and i become a zen devil which ends up a mess (spiritual psychosis with me being dysfunctional after it)

 

Maybe if I do it in a set time, like 3PM every day or something,that way it wouldn't be a crutch but actually 'building'. No fucking idea what to do here. If I meditate, I become the 'all' s good no matter what's going on' guy and just go make some art instead of fixing my problem - 'the problem doesn't exist there's only now and direct experience woowowowo' guy. and then i end up with fucked teeth. we live in a western world and I'm not a yogi so that can't work!!!!!

[TheAvatarState]

Wait, what's the problem?

[Nahm]

Research & try different meditation techniques, and try therapy. 

Correct meditation practice reveals spaciousness around thoughts, and you / awareness will be less attached / convinced / reactional to the perspectives you’ve been repeating. When you see the ‘problem’ differently, proceeding is easier and easier. Carried out full circle, the entirety of perspective will change. 

Make one small change each day with the habits. It’s enough to be aware of what you’re doing as you’re doing it. Don’t beat up on yourself. Change things just for the experience of changing things. 

[Nathan]

Try to stop layering mediation with positive or negative connotations and just let go and be. Give it a rest. And let go of judging yourself if you can't. It's all good. ?

Edited February 2, 2019 by Nathan

[Gabriel Antonio]

Very good topic. You seem to have real self-awareness. 

I used to be dependent on meditation. I thought if I didn't meditate, something bad would happen. It became a self-fulling prophecy. Meditation had become an addiction. 

Then, after I took ayahuasca, I could clearly see how this was nonsense. And one day I decided to let meditation go. I haven't sat to meditate for more than a year, and I feel much better now than I used to.  

I realized that I do better with a more active type of meditation (such as Tai Chi). I suggest you find a group where you can learn from a good teacher. 

@ajasatya Any thoughts you can share with us about this topic? 

[Shin]

When you actually stop to identify to the though process, you can't stop meditating, it becomes what you were always be.

So don't stop and continue until that happens, then you can drop sitted meditation if you want, but at that point you would want to do it just because it feels natural rather than an obligation.

[ajasatya]

@Manjushri you need some deeper and more integral way of practice. you think you are practicing meditation but you're just diving into more mental struggles (i am god etc).

work on your body strength and flexibility (asanas). work on your breathing capacity and efficiency (pranayamas). work on your way of speaking and acting more gently and gracefully (yamas and niyamas). make it a long term commitment (5+ years).

here, see how you can integrate the first 4 steps of yoga in your life.