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Marc Wittmann
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Altered States of Consciousness: Experiences Out of Time and Self (Mit Press) Hardcover – September 4, 2018

by Marc Wittmann (Author), Philippa Hurd (Translator)

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A groundbreaking study of what altered states of consciousness—the dissolution of feelings of time and self—can tell us about the mystery of consciousness, perfect for readers interested in psychedelics, brain science, and meditation.
 
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.
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  1. Print length
    190 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    The MIT Press
  4. Publication date
    September 4, 2018
  5. Grade level
    12 and up
  6. Reading age
    18 years and up
  7. Dimensions
    8 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
  8. ISBN-10
    0262038315
  9. ISBN-13
    978-0262038317
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“To make a book either about altered states of consciousness or about time accessible to nonexperts is, by itself, a great challenge. In Altered States of Consciousness: Experiences Out of Time and Self, author Marc Wittmann takes one step further and combines these two topics to discuss how they are related . . . his book is likely to be enjoyed both by readers who are novices in these areas and by readers who are already familiar with one of these topics.”
—Perception

About the Author

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 Psychology of How We Perceive Time (MIT Press).

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ The MIT Press
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ September 4, 2018
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ 1st
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 190 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0262038315
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0262038317
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 11 ounces
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 18 years and up
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
  • Grade level ‏ : ‎ 12 and up
  • Best Sellers Rank: #1,302,392 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

About the author

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Marc Wittmann

Marc Wittmann

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Marc Wittmann is a Research Fellow at the Institute for Frontier Areas of Psychology and Mental Health, Freiburg, Germany. He studied Psychology and Philosophy at the Universities of Fribourg, Switzerland, and Munich, Germany (1990-1994). He received his Ph.D. (1997) and his Habilitation (2007) at the Institute of Medical Psychology, University of Munich. From 2000 to 2004 he was head of the Generation Research Program, Bad Tölz, University of Munich. 2004 to 2009 he was Research Fellow in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of California San Diego.

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Top reviews from the United States

  • Realistic Man
    5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting and information rich
    Reviewed in the United States on November 7, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    The book should be called "Altered States of Consciousness and Temporal Distortions". The book mainly explores the impact that various states of consciousness have on perceived time and space. It then explanes the impact the percieved temporal changes have on the subjective individual experience. The factors and neural mechanisms which affect perception are also explored in some detail.

    In doing some research on the author its no surprise Marc Whittmann had such a heavy focus on time. Most of his work is about time and human peception of it. That being said, while time is a crucial part of this book, I think the various states of consciousness take a front seat and the "time perception" acts as a good medium to weave them together into a cohesive work.

    All in all its a short but information rich book which provided me with a number of ideas I had not considered before. And as with any good scientific work, I was wondering and asking questions of my own at the end.
    12 people found this helpful
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  • Kindle Customer
    4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting
    Reviewed in the United States on January 3, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    This is an unusual book that had me enthralled. I was a nurse. I read it slowly to digest it well. I liked it.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Angela George
    5.0 out of 5 stars Altered States of Concisness
    Reviewed in the United States on November 13, 2023
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    The book will be a good gift for my Husband for Christmas.
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  • MLE
    5.0 out of 5 stars Boring and dull with no new information. Could have been written in 1959
    Reviewed in the United States on March 24, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    Totally boring and really low-level. It's clear this guy has never taken any drugs and it shows.

    Don't bother buying it. Very pedestrian, very bad. Reads like something from a Reader's Digest you found in your grandmothers bathroom.
    9 people found this helpful
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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Still thinking
    Reviewed in the United States on October 26, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    This is a thoughtful and pithy book. In our culture obsessed with efficiency and rejecting history this is an important work
    One person found this helpful
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  • MudHen
    3.0 out of 5 stars Pleasant but not important
    Reviewed in the United States on September 29, 2018
    Verified Purchase
    The text is actually only 122 pages. This is a collection of few pleasant but minor examples of how our perceptions of time and self-in-time can be influenced by emotion, setting, drugs, etc. I didn't see anything new here. Time and self are cutting edge topics in physics and neuroscience and this book is just not very well connected to that literature, so it relies on more pedestrian examples (being bored slows down time perception).
    20 people found this helpful
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  • Katie
    5.0 out of 5 stars Well done
    Reviewed in the United States on April 1, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    This book dived deep into the different ways to explore your consciousness. I couldn’t put it down.
    One person found this helpful
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  • William and Carol Holland
    2.0 out of 5 stars Nice cover
    Reviewed in the United States on December 24, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    The book is very imformative bit it's a hard read. A bore. The cover is fantastic. Visually the book seems as though it would be an interesting read, but the book itself is nothing like the artwork makes it seem.
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Ozymandias
    4.0 out of 5 stars A little bit disappointing
    Reviewed in Italy on December 22, 2018
    Verified Purchase
    I feel the material that has been covered was not enough and not as deep as I was expecting given the publisher and the author's fame. I would have preferred more reflection on neuropharmacology and drugs, instead of a sheer discussion about how emotions can module time perception. 4/5, for the nice interpretation of Salience network implication on time perception, and its connection with interoception.
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