David Treleaven: Meditation Safety and Jhanas for Working with Emotional Difficulty

Collection of Jhourneys

In this special podcast episode, we sit down with David Treleaven, author of “Trauma-Sensitive Mindfulness,” to explore the intersection of trauma, safety, and meditation. David shares his journey through intensive meditation retreats and the transformative impact of integrating trauma-informed practices. We discuss the role of jhanas in emotional processing, the concept of the window of tolerance, and practical strategies for ensuring safety in meditation retreats. This conversation highlights the importance of balancing deep meditative practices with trauma awareness to create a safe and effective retreat experience.

00:01:04 Introduction to David Treleaven and TSM
00:07:48 Jhanas: Synthesizing depth, safety, and emotional work
00:10:14 Running experiments with awareness and tension
00:13:14 Understanding trauma work and progress
00:17:04 Window of tolerance, "How do I know when to meditate less?"
00:23:23 Memory reconsolidation and virtuous cycles for trait change
00:26:49 What does it mean to be safe?
00:30:09 Downsides of overemphasizing trauma and hurt
00:33:12 Jhourney's POV on safety and responding to persistent challenging experiences
00:38:05 Taking an iterative approach to instruction
00:41:20 Healing by staying mindful while out of the window of tolerance
00:45:40 "Being with" vs. "working with" practices
00:52:00 Designing for a safety-informed retreat experience
00:57:48 "It's all good, we can work with your experience here"