Altered states of consciousness are related to higher sexual responsiveness

Induction of altered states of consciousness during Floatation-REST is associated with the dissolution of body boundaries and the distortion of subjective time

Floatation-REST (Reduced Environmental Stimulation Therapy) minimizes stimulation of the nervous system by immersing subjects in an environment without sound or light while they effortlessly float in thermoneutral water supersaturated with Epsom salt. Here we investigated the relationship between altered states of consciousness (ASC) and its association with the affective changes induced by Floatation-REST. Using a within-subject crossover design, 50 healthy subjects were randomized to 60 min of Floatation-REST or 60 min of Bed-REST (an active control condition that entailed lying supine on a warm waterbed in a dark and quiet room). Following Floatation-REST, subjects felt significantly more relaxed, less anxious, and less tired than after Bed-REST. Floatation-REST also induced significantly more pronounced ASC characterized by the dissolution of body boundaries and the distortion of subjective time. The loss of body boundaries mediated the loss of anxiety, revealing a novel mechanism by which Floatation-REST exerts its anxiolytic effect.

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) and slow breathing interventions alleviate premature ejaculation (PE) symptoms

Background

Physical exercise may alleviate premature ejaculation symptoms, a prevalent male sexual dysfunction linked to a series of negative outcomes for men and their partners.

Objective

We investigated the effectiveness of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and slow breathing interventions on premature ejaculation symptoms and their relation to autonomic activity and attention regulation.

Method

Chinese adult men (N = 76, M = 21.89, SD = 3.32) with premature ejaculation completed one of the two-week interventions in their homes or as participants in a normal breathing control group; they reported their age, height, weight, physical activity level, premature ejaculation symptoms, and attention regulation. In the HIIT group, 26 participants engaged in a 7-minute HIIT each day. In the slow breathing group, 25 participants performed 7-minute slow breathing exercises per day while the 25 participants in the normal breathing group similarly performed normal breathing exercises. All participants measured their heart rate once before and five times (with one-minute intervals) after the intervention. When participants had penile-vaginal sex with their partners, they measured their heart rate once after ejaculation.

Results

Time × Intervention interaction was significant with lower levels of premature ejaculation symptoms on Days 12, 13, and 14 in the HIIT group (M ± SD = 16.19 ± 3.45, 15.96 ± 3.43, and 15.15 ± 3.62) compared to the normal breathing group (M ± SD = 17.68 ± 3.06, 17.68 ± 3.15, and 17.44 ± 3.25). Higher levels of attention regulation were associated with fewer premature ejaculation symptoms. We also found that a larger increase in heart rate from resting to after sex was associated with fewer premature ejaculation symptoms.

Conclusion

Compared to the control group, the efficacy of two weeks of HIIT exercise in mitigating PE symptoms suggests its potential as a novel treatment for PE.

Self, Me and I in the repertoire of spontaneously occurring altered states of Selfhood: eight neurophenomenological case study reports

This study investigates eight case reports of spontaneously emerging, brief episodes of vivid altered states of Selfhood (ASoSs) that occurred during mental exercise in six long-term meditators by using a neurophenomenological electroencephalography (EEG) approach. In agreement with the neurophenomenological methodology, first-person reports were used to identify such spontaneous ASoSs and to guide the neural analysis, which involved the estimation of three operational modules of the brain self-referential network (measured by EEG operational synchrony). The result of such analysis demonstrated that the documented ASoSs had unique neurophenomenological profiles, where several aspects or components of Selfhood (measured neurophysiologically and phenomenologically) are affected and expressed differently, but still in agreement with the neurophysiological three-dimensional construct model of the complex experiential Selfhood proposed in our earlier work (Fingelkurts et al. in Conscious Cogn 86:103031. 10.1016/j.concog.2020.103031, 2020).

The power of Dionysus-Effects of red wine on consciousness in a naturalistic setting

There is lack of research on effects of red wine on consciousness when drank in wine bars designed to enhance the pleasurableness of the wine drinking experience. Effects of a moderate dose of red wine (≈ 40.98 g of ethanol) on consciousness were examined in a naturalistic study taking place in a wine bar located in one of the most touristic areas of Lisbon, Portugal. One hundred two participants drank in one of three conditions: alone, in dyad, or in groups up to six people. Red wine increased pleasure and arousal, decreased the awareness of time, slowed the subjective passage of time, increased the attentional focus on the present moment, decreased body awareness, slowed thought speed, turned imagination more vivid, and made the environment become more fascinating. Red wine increased insightfulness and originality of thoughts, increased sensations of oneness with the environment, spiritual feelings, all-encompassing love, and profound peace. All changes in consciousness occurred regardless of volunteers drinking alone, in dyad or in group. Men and women did not report different changes in consciousness. Older age correlated with greater increases in pleasure. Younger age correlated with greater increases in fascination with the environment of the wine bar. Drinking wine in a contemporaneous Western environment designed to enhance the pleasurableness of the wine drinking experience may trigger changes in consciousness commonly associated with mystical-type states.

Sexual Satisfaction: Exploring the Role of Flow

Sexual satisfaction plays an important role in relationship, mental, and even physical health. Activities that produce a state of flow create meaning in people's lives. Although people who report high levels of sexual satisfaction describe their sex lives as being very meaningful, there is little research on the relationship between sexual satisfaction and flow. This study sought to address this gap. One hundred participants who were in monogamous relationships completed an online survey consisting of two questionnaires-the New Sexual Satisfaction Scale and the Core Dispositional Flow State Scale. We used partial least square structural equation modeling approach to examine the association between flow and sexual satisfaction. We found that flow was a statistically significant positive predictor of both partner-focused and personal sexual satisfaction. Our results indicate that there are no statistically significant gender differences.

Integrating complementary and alternative therapies into professional psychological practice: An exploration of practitioners' perceptions of benefits and barriers

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Although Complementary and Alternative Therapies (CATs) are currently incorporated into psychotherapy, scepticism remains among professional and practicing psychologists about integration of CATs into professional practice. This research explored perceived benefits and barriers to integrating CATs into psychology practice with individual clients.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We used a qualitative framework informed by Transpersonal Psychology to explore benefits and barriers to integrative psychology practice. We conducted semi-structured interviews with six practitioners trained or training in psychology and CATs and analysed verbatim transcripts using thematic analysis.

RESULTS

Participants reported personal, career-based, and epistemological benefits and barriers to integrative psychology practice. Benefits were improved therapeutic relationships, specialisation options, and a time reflective psychology. Barriers included stigma and bias, regulations, and dominance of the scientist-practitioner model. Superordinate themes were holism, connectedness, and governance.

CONCLUSION

Results activate conversation about the importance of a transpersonally oriented integrative psychological practice for the 21st century.

Interoceptive Awareness, Alexithymia, and Sexual Function

Research in women suggests a relation between sexual difficulties and lower interoceptive awareness, the conscious perception of internal bodily states. Lower interoceptive awareness is theoretically linked to greater alexithymia, which has been related to sexual dysfunctions. Hence, we examined the relations of interoceptive awareness and alexithymia with several dimensions of sexual functioning in a nonclinical sample of both sexes. Methods: Three hundred forty Portuguese (228 women, 112 men) completed the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and the Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness (MAIA). Women additionally completed the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) and the Female Sexual Distress Scale-Revised (FSDS-R). Men additionally completed the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) and one question on difficulties delaying ejaculation. Greater alexithymia correlated with lesser interoceptive awareness. For women, greater alexithymia and lesser interoceptive awareness correlated with lesser arousal, lesser lubrication, more orgasm difficulties, more dissatisfaction, more pain, and more sexual distress. Higher female desire correlated with greater interoceptive awareness, but was unrelated to alexithymia. In men, lesser interoceptive awareness correlated with more difficulties delaying ejaculation, and greater alexithymia correlated with more erectile difficulties. The present investigation corroborates that awareness of emotions and internal bodily states is important for sexual functioning.

Altered states of consciousness among inpatients in a Trauma Program

A set of measures of trauma, dissociation, altered states of consciousness, and spiritual experiences was administered to a convenience sample of 100 inpatients in a hospital Trauma Program. The inpatients had an average Dissociative Experiences Scale score of 42.3 and an average Adverse Childhood Experiences Scale score of 6.6, both of which are very high. Both trauma and dissociation correlated significantly with measures of pathological altered states of consciousness (ASC) but not with adaptive, normal spiritual experiences as measured by the Spiritual Orientation Inventory and the ASC Scale. The authors conclude that future study of the relationships between psychological trauma, dissociation, and ASC should subdivide altered states into at least two major categories: more inherently pathological states versus those that are more adaptive and spiritual in nature.

Women's finger pressure sensitivity at rest and recalled body awareness during partnered sexual activity

Greater vibrotactile sensitivity has been related to better erectile function in men, and vibrotactile and pressure tactile sensitivity have been related to better sexual function in women. Our previous study found that, for both sexes, greater recalled body awareness during last sexual relation correlated with greater recalled desire and arousal. Using the same sample of that study (68 women and 48 men, recruited in the Lisbon area, Portugal), we tested if greater recalled body awareness during last sexual relation correlates with tactile pressure sensitivity, as assessed by von Frey microfilaments. In simple and partial correlations controlling for social desirability and smoking before last sex, the hypothesis was confirmed for women, but not for men. Greater tactile sensitivity might enhance sexual arousal through greater awareness of the body during sex, and/or more frequent and pleasant body sensations during sex might lead to greater tactile sensitivity in nonsexual situations. Pressure sensitivity might be more closely linked to sexual arousal in women than in men.

When the dissolution of perceived body boundaries elicits happiness: The effect of selflessness induced by a body scan meditation

Drawing on the Self-centeredness/Selflessness Happiness Model (SSHM), we hypothesized that a reduction in the salience of perceived body boundaries would lead to increase optimal emotional experience. These constructs were assessed by means of self-report measures. Participants (n=53) were randomly assigned to either the selflessness (induced by a body scan meditation) condition or the control condition. As expected, the reduction in perceived body salience was greater in the body scan meditation condition than in the control condition. The change in perceived body salience was accompanied by a change in happiness and anxiety. Participants in the body-scan meditation condition reported greater happiness and less anxiety than participants in the control condition. Happiness increased when the salience of body boundaries decreased. Mediation analyses reveal that the change in happiness was mediated by the change in perceived body boundaries, which suggests that selflessness elicits happiness via dissolution of perceived body boundaries.