Being Well with Forrest Hanson and Dr. Rick Hanson Transcending the Self with Dr. David Yaden
What does it mean to "transcend the self?" Today Dr. Hanson, Forrest, and Dr. David Yaden explore self-transcendent, or “peak,” experiences, which the famous psychologist Abraham Maslow defined as “moments of highest happiness and fulfillment.”
As a note, David is referred to as a "PhD student" during the episode. Since it was recorded, he's gone on to earn his doctorate!
About our Guest: David is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Johns Hopkins Medicine who studies the varieties of spiritual and self-transcendent experiences from the perspectives of psychology and cognitive neuroscience.
Read David's paper on The Varieties of Self-Transcendent Experience here.
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Key Topics:
3:00: The two key characteristics of self-transcendent experiences.
4:30: “Everyday” versions of peak experiences.
8:00: Self-transcendence and psychopathology.
11:00: David’s account of self-transcendence.
13:50: The lasting impact of peak experiences.
17:00: Is there a “place” where self-transcendence occurs in the brain?
20:45: Making use of peak experiences.
28:00: Should we seek peak experiences out?
36:00: Relaxing the sense of self.
41:30: A message to your younger self.
43:30: Recap
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