Altered States of Consciousness, Marc Wittmann
Altered States of Consciousness, Marc Wittmann
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Altered States of Consciousness
Experiences Out of Time and Self

Author: Marc Wittmann, Philippa Hurd

Narrator: Graham Rowat

Unabridged: 4 hr 11 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 02/26/2019


Synopsis

What altered states of consciousness―the dissolution of feelings of time and self―can tell us about the mystery of consciousness.During extraordinary moments of consciousness―shock, meditative states and sudden mystical revelations, out-of-body experiences, or drug intoxication―our senses of time and self are altered; we may even feel time and self dissolving. These experiences have long been ignored by mainstream science, or considered crazy fantasies. Recent research, however, has located the neural underpinnings of these altered states of mind. In this book, neuropsychologist Marc Wittmann shows how experiences that disturb or widen our everyday understanding of the self can help solve the mystery of consciousness. Wittmann explains that the relationship between consciousness of time and consciousness of self is close; in extreme circumstances, the experiences of space and self intensify and weaken together. He considers the emergence of the self in waking life and dreams; how our sense of time is distorted by extreme situations ranging from terror to mystical enlightenment; the experience of the moment; and the loss of time and self in such disorders as depression, schizophrenia, and epilepsy. Dostoyevsky reported godly bliss during epileptic seizures; neurologists are now investigating the phenomenon of the epileptic aura. Wittmann describes new studies of psychedelics that show how the brain builds consciousness of self and time, and discusses pilot programs that use hallucinogens to treat severe depression, anxiety, and addiction.If we want to understand our consciousness, our subjectivity, Wittmann argues, we must not be afraid to break new ground. Studying altered states of consciousness leads us directly to the heart of the matter: time and self, the foundations of consciousness.

About Marc Wittmann

Marc Wittmann is Research Fellow at the Institute for Frontier Areas of Psychology and Mental Health in Freiburg, Germany, and the author of Felt Time: The Science of How We Experience Time (MIT Press).


Reviews

Goodreads review by Eugene on December 03, 2018

Altered states of consciousness, mindfulness meditation, embodiment, and experience of time and timelessness. It is a good introductory book into the topic of extraordinary experiences and the meta-field of consciousness studies.......more

Goodreads review by Lupita on September 18, 2023

Me gustó mucho el libro. Explora la relación entre la conciencia y la percepción del tiempo a través de un recuento sistemático de los hallazgos neuropsicológicos más recientes. En ocasiones el lenguaje es técnico, pero los conceptos se encuentran explicados de forma sencilla y la idea general es cl......more

Goodreads review by Eduard on November 01, 2019

The book puts together the conclusion of scientific papers, some insights from phenomenology (Husserl), and the experience of long-time meditators (Tilmann LB). The book studies the effect of the drugs (mescaline, LSD, psilocybin, caffeine) on the states of the mind (in particular the perception of......more

Goodreads review by Miles Kenyon on January 05, 2024

Wasn’t sure what to expect when I impulsively grabbed it from my local cool-guy bookstore but was pleasantly surprised. Time, self, drugs? Trippy stuff but laid out with scientific rigor and philosophical curiosity.......more

Goodreads review by stefanddddddd on March 21, 2025

interesting book - although the title is slightly misleading. the author looks at the concept of time - what does it really mean when we talk about an interval of time (roughly a third of the book), what does it mean when we say something about a moment in time (roughly another third) and some exper......more