Kings and Queens of Chaos: Borderline Disorder

Ashley Wells, Pat Macpherson, Wisdom Quarterly; Elizabeth Svoboda (PsychologyToday.com)

Pathologize me? Call me a which and a bic'h, but FEMEN means no more patriarchy.

I'm not a psycho-b, I'm not, I just have issues! I love you, but I HATE you!!

 .

Yeah not just cancer, baby

Part 3. Borderline personality disorder cuts a wide swath of destruction. Slowly, the condition is yielding to new understanding -- provided patients get the correct diagnosis.

It had been an idyllic day celebrating a cousin's wedding until Steve's wife turned to him during the reception and said she was having a panic attack.

The loud music in the room seemed to be engulfing her, heightening her anxiety. After the main course was served, Steve and his wife got up to go for a drive and get some air. To respect his wife's privacy, Steve did not tell anyone why they were leaving, including his half-sister, Klara, who was seated at their table.
 

I'm wit stoopid. - And I loves him so much!

Minutes after the two left the wedding, as Steve later learned, Klara started approaching family members to claim that Steve and his wife had stormed off over something she did -- and that they'd refused to tell her what she'd done wrong.
 
She marched from table to table sharing the story, adding more drama with each telling. She ended up in the ladies' room a few minutes later, sobbing, and it took Steve's mother, other sister, and several close friends to calm her down so she wouldn't disturb the festivities.

 

While trying to help his wife through her panic attack, Steve had stopped paying attention to his cell phone. When he next looked at the screen, he faced a torrent of messages from Klara, each more indignant than the last:

"I deserve better... What the f*** is wrong with you?... I HATE YOU!... Never call me again; you're dead to me!" Steve still marvels at how quick Klara was to erupt in response to her perception of events. "Despite there being no argument, no unpleasant words exchanged," he says, "our absence was presumed to be a slight directed at her and her alone."

 

I didn't know I was sick. That's part of it.

Klara's spontaneous emotional combustion at the wedding would probably seem totally unremarkable to the 14 million adults in the U.S. who are estimated to have borderline personality disorder (BPD). They make up 2 percent of the general population but 20 percent of psychiatric inpatients. Most are women, and they typically turn the ups and downs of everyday life into a roller-coaster ride of moods. In doing so, they don't just alienate others around them, they subvert their own life trajectory. Explosively reactive, and often struggling to get a grip on themselves, borderlines have difficulty maintaining stable relationships or even holding down a job. More

Why, why, why?

The Epidemic...in the U.S.

The roots of mental disorders and addiction-cravings (for self-soothing) are explained by Dr. Gabor Mate as early childhood trauma, which sets us up for a great deal of suffering and dysfunctional relationships and coping strategies. The answer? Don't add drama to the trauma. The first 20 minutes of "Zeitgeist: Moving Forward" explains it beautifully.

Don't think it's an "epidemic"? Just Diana Russell and Rebecca Bolen, who can answer in the abstract: This book is the long-awaited follow-up to Russell's landmark Sexual Exploitation. It examines the many -- and often conflicting -- findings of studies that have since been conducted on the incidence and prevalence of rape and child sexual abuse in the United States.  The wide variation in prevalence rates obtained by these studies -- for example, rape rates ranging from 2.6% to 44% -- has led many hostile critics to attack the high rates as misleading and alarmist. More

"Flatlining" the brain at will (video)

CC Liu, Dhr. Seven, Ashley Wells, Wisdom Quarterly; self-proclaimed jhana expert Vern Lovic

What are the intricate workings of the mind, and how are they experienced within?

 

(Gavin Johnson/flickr.com)

Vern Lovic: I'm curious. Has anyone run MRIs (magnetic resonance imagings) of meditators that have reached a flatline mind -- no thought... stopped mind?

WQ: a flatline would seem to indicate that someone is dead. But, yes, it's been done. It is causing a wave in new medical research. There is neurotheology, where people have "GOD on the brain." There is scientific mind reading. There is at least one meditator sufficiently skilled as to directly manipulate his EEG readings. (See below). He is not a monk but can flatten his line at will, a skill of great subtlety and practice. Yet, it would seem, he must be thinking to intend it and be aware that he is getting the results he is after.

Monk's fMRI (Zoran Josipovic video still)

In a laboratory tucked away off a noisy NYC street, a soft-spoken neuroscientist (Zoran Josipovic) has been placing Tibetan monks into a car-sized brain scanner to better understand the ancient practice of Buddhist meditation. Could this unusual research unravel the secrets of leading a harmonious life and also shed light on some of the world's more mysterious diseases? Josipovic, a research scientist and adjunct professor at NYU, says he has been peering into the brains of monks. Brains of meditating monks get MRI scans.

VL: The monks are meditating, so they're doing something. There is another state -- the state of, well, "flatline" for lack of a better word. 

WQ: We tracked him down, Vern, so you could see it for yourself. A functional MRI scan would certainly show activity. "Flatlining" is for graphs with lines, which is characteristic of an EEG (electroencephalograph) machine. It is the remarkable speaker Ken Wilber, who videotaped his own flatlining to demonstrate the amazing level of self control he can exhibit. 

His proficiency is such that he can enter states that would seem to be reserved not only to arhats but wondrous masters. We covered him back in 2009. Look: "Family Guy" Meditation Master Ken Wilber!

Flatline

(IntegralNaked) Ken Wilber stops his brain, flatlines, at will.

This is incredible! (psychcentral.com)

Ken Wilber can stop his brainwaves on demand. Actually -- and in a more serious vein -- this is the famous EEG machine recording where Wilber enters various meditative states, one of which is a type of "thoughtless," "image-less," or "formless" state: 

His brainwaves come to an almost complete stop, as clearly recorded on this portable EEG machine. (This video is discussed in One Taste, April 10 entry).

Wilber was asked to do a short 10-minute commentary on these various meditative states and the corresponding brain-wave patterns that are shown on the EEG machine in the video. He enters four meditative states (nirvikalpa samadhi with closed eyes, open eyes, sahaj ["ever present awareness"], and mantra-savikalpa), each of which has a very distinctive brain-wave pattern.

In his commentary, Wilber emphasizes that the patterns shown on this machine may or may not be typical, but they do emphasize that profound states of consciousness can be evoked at will, and these show immediate correlations in brain-wave patterns.

If nothing else, seeing somebody's brainwaves flatline in about four seconds is a sight not easily forgotten! It also explains why it was once heard that Wilber's girlfriend, upon delivering news that she thought might not be happily received, "Now, um, honey, make your brain waves go to zero..."

More seriously, as Wilber often says, "If you want to know God [Brahman], you've got to get your brain out of the way first. It's just one big stupid filter...."

Buddhist nomads of India (photos)

Amber Larson, Wisdom Quarterly; photographer Dietmar Temps (flickr.com)

Nomadic Buddhist children in Himalayan Ladakh, India (DietmarTemps/flickr.com)

Lamayuru monastery under a full moon, Ladakh, Himalayas (dietmartemps.com)

  

Changtang in Ladakh (Buddhist India in the Himalayas) is the home of the Changpa nomads, a semi-nomadic Tibetan ethnic group.

When the nomadic children grow older, they are lucky to get the chance to attend school, usually a year-around boarding school. Their parents would welcome the opportunity of a better life afforded by the education.

Although their elders are proud of their traditions, they realize that the new generation will probably not follow the difficult nomadic life once they have an easier option. Childhood education opens up the possibility of a job in the capital of Leh or other cities in Ladakh, the "rooftop of the world."

• PHOTO GALLERY

On the one hand from the viewpoint of a tourist it is, of course, a bit sad that the traditions of the nomadic people might disappear entirely in the future. But it is completely understandable that nomads might also like to participate in the educational system to get a fair share of a growing economy.

On the other hand, there is almost no industry in Ladakh, other than the tourist industry. Many of the youth work in the sprawling tourism business in their early 20s. But the season in Ladakh, perched high in the Himalayas, is very short. The tourism industry cannot offer all of the people good jobs to earn enough money to raise a family.

When I asked young people about their dreams, I often got the answer of dreams of office jobs in public administration. Only a desperate few would consider going into the military, which has a presence in Ladakh as India attempts to fend off China to the north and Pakistan to the west.

Ladakh, Jammu & Kashmir, northern India

The days when a family's youngest son inevitably started life as a Buddhist novice (samanera) in a local monastery (gompa) are over. These are interesting developments in Ladakh, in general, not only for the nomadic children of Changtang. More

Full Moon Observance/War Crimes

Wisdom Quarterly; LABuddhistVihara.org, 11-17-13

Lunar observance flyer

November 17: The Los Angeles Buddhist Vihara in Pasadena is a Sri Lankan Theravada monastery and temple complex. It observes the traditional lunar observances (uposathas), which include the practice of the Eight Precepts (sila or sill), meditation (bhavana), hearing the Dharma (bhana).

• Next lunar observance: Sunday, Dec. 11, 2013 - Sill Program (Eight Precept observance and meditation)

Sinhalese war crimes against Tamil minority

Krishnadev Calamur (NPR.org, Nov. 15, 2013)

Rajapaksa (Chris Jackson/PA/Landov)

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa defended his country's human rights record amid a barrage of criticism as the [largely Buddhist] Indian Ocean island-nation hosts the Commonwealth summit [with prominent nations boycotting].

 

"Civilians, women, children, and pregnant women were brutally killed by the terrorists continuously for 30 years, and none are being killed now," Rajapaksa said [as if to justify the war crimes he committed and those of previous administrations]. "That is the peace the country has won."

 

Sri Lanka has only recently emerged from a bloody decades-long civil war [the longest in Asia], which pitted the country's Sinhalese [Buddhist] majority with separatist [Hindu] Tamil rebels in the north and east of the island nation. [Tamils have lived on the island, coming from neighboring Tamil Nadu, India, a few miles away by a strait, Palk Bay, that is sometimes traversable by foot.] 

 

Buddhism traveled through Asia from India

Human rights groups allege that tens of thousands of Tamil civilians were killed [in a genocide that followed decades of prejudicial treatment by the majority Buddhist Sinhalese] in the final push against the few rebels of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

 

The issue has dominated the Commonwealth meeting, which begins in [the Sri Lankan capital of] Colombo this week. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Canada's Stephen Harper are among the leaders who have stayed away [boycotting the meeting to demonstrate against human rights abuses by Pres. Rajapaksa and previous administrations]. India has a significant Tamil population of its own.

 

British Prime Minister David Cameron, who is attending the meeting, says he will ask Rajapaksa "tough questions" on human rights and war crimes charges.

Rajapaksa heads the Commonwealth for the next two years. The group comprises countries that were former British colonies. [Sadly, not all Buddhist monks stayed neutral during the civil war, evincing nationalist sympathies against the direct calls of elder Sangha leader pleading for peace and neutrality.]

Sri Lankan war crimes

North was once a Tamil majority area

Wisdom Quarterly (COMMENTARY)

Wisdom Quarterly is a great fan and supporter of Sri Lanka, a beautiful Buddhist island nation and former colony of the British and Portuguese. But one need not be blind to love it. We will not defend, conceal, minimize, or collude with ANY country's government engaging in systematic institutional racism, war crimes, genocide, or abuse of its citizens, not even if that country is our own.

 

Our weapon-dealing, conflict-loving USA is much to blame for the civil strife in Sri Lanka, playing the Gandhi Family's India and Benazir Bhutto's Pakistan against Sri Lanka's majority government. There is perhaps no country in the world that is not touched and ruined by our CIA, which has now become a transnational institution unto itself, an ally of the military-industrial complex rather than the vast majority of American citizens. Americans know more about the secret NSA and its illegal activities than we even begin to suspect about the CIA and its push to destabilize governments worldwide to serve the interests of business and multinational corporations.

While we do not agree with the Tamil separatist movement, it is certainly understandable why it happened: decades, perhaps centuries, of abuse by the majority Sinhalese population. The island's civil war was never a religious conflict, but it certainly got painted as such. Nearly all Tamils are traditional Hindus. And there are sizable Muslim (as in the nearby Maldives), Christian (remnants of British rule), and Catholic (remnants of Portuguese) minorities.

Sri Lanka's government repeatedly colluded to lengthen the war rather than rushing to end it at all costs. A previous president was assassinated for playing both sides (Tamil and Sinhala) to advance his own hold on power. A Gandhi was taken out by a disgruntled Tamil on account of the civil war, India never being able to overtly support the Tamil separatists, though perhaps aiding them covertly. CIA and British involvement is implicated, with America working its own strategy of supporting and pressuring all sides and all countries involved. The US trained Sri Lankan government and police services, so their draconian use of force was not completely unexpected. 

Indian atrocities

The same outrages occur in Kashmir between India and Pakistan and China. It is impossible to fully side with India against Pakistan because of its unconscionable abuse of Kashmiri Muslims. Indian militants -- sent to occupy the Himalayas by the Indian government to maintain its Line of Control (border) with Pakistan, China/Tibet, and Afghanistan -- disappears, imprisons, tortures, recruits, beats, and murders Kashmiris on a regular basis. This behavior against its Muslim-majority neighbor (Pakistan), created by the exiting colonial British with their successful "divide and conquer" strategy, is not limited to a sworn enemy. It is visited upon tiny landlocked Nepal, which is utterly dependent on India economically and politically. 

Nepal is mainly Buddhist, as all Himalayan nations (former kingdoms) traditionally were. But it is now the world's only "Hindu nation." This is brought about by Indian influence and census manipulation. Nepalese cry out every time we point out that the Buddha came from India. The Buddha was not born in India. He came, according to Dr. Ranajit Pal, from what is now Afghanistan and what was then the northwest frontier of greater India (Bharat) in the region of ancient Gandhara. There was no organized or united "India" at that time, only loosely affiliated maha janapadas (great clan territories).

YOGA means...

Maya, Seven, Wisdom Quarterly; David Ibrahim (DivineYogaLA.com); FoxPowerYoga.com

WHAT IS “YOGA”? 

Yoga means stretching our heart, balancing our mind, and breathing into our innermost selves.

 

“What is this precious love and laughter budding in our hearts? It is the glorious sound of the soul awakening up.”

– Sufi mystic poet Hafiz

Lord Shiva embodying the divine feminine

Divine Yoga LA is led by David Ibrahim, a teacher inspired by yoga’s power to deeply heal and transform the hearts and lives of those who practice it. Ibrahim is known for bringing a fresh, modern interpretation which nevertheless holds strong to the ancient teachings. His soothing voice, sincerity, and presence are hard not to notice. His teaches in an old mining town along Route 66 in the foothill community of Monrovia, which sits in one of the San Gabriel Valley, in suburban Los Angeles. Divine Yoga LA focuses on Hatha Yoga (uniting Sun and Moon, masculine and feminine, yang and yin, assertiveness and receptivity), meditation, and focused breathing practiced alongside inspirational words and music. More + video

• NEXT TIME: Yogi David goes to see Thich Nhat Hanh!

Whatever happened to sex and Ami Fox?

Maya, Wisdom Quarterly

Dear Maya: Ask your question, any question, in the comments section (Wisdom Quarterly).

Ami Fox in arm balancing pose (FPY)

Dear Maya, whatever happened to the yogini who wrote so many great pieces on yoga carried by Wisdom Quarterly? And can someone still have sex when she's pregnant, or is that even normal to think about? 

- Madison G.

"What does the Fox say?" Hey, Maddy, have you considered asking Ylvis? Sadly, Ami Fox (FoxPowerYoga.com) moved from metropolitan Los Angeles to rural Oregon, to a little town with a giant multinational corporation, following her Latin husband's new job opportunity.

She now encourages towering redwoods to transform sunlight into energy using chlorophyll while raising lots of energetic kids. She is a great yoga teacher in the Power Yoga (modern ashtanga) tradition. That's much easier to do in a big, bad city than in a small, staid community.

Sex poses or yoga positions? Be careful.

Having been pregnant while teaching us arduous balance poses, Fox was the person to ask about sex. There are yoga poses to avoid while pregnant, like any that put weight on the belly. So I can think of a few sex positions that might put the same sort of pressure there. Sex is fine while pregnant with a few provisos.  

 

Caveat emptor ("buyer beware") of what you're consuming with a "baby onboard." For more details, ask your doula. Don't have a midwife yet? The doctor at your PPO may know something, but I would get a second opinion about anything those kinds of doctors advise, avoiding most if not all of the allopathic "medicines" they prescribe, particularly toxic vaccinations. According to Wisdom Quarterly's favorite sex and addiction specialist, Dr. Drew Pinksy, it should be just fine. Get a checkup.

• NEXT TIME: Maya answers the meaning of life!