Increasingly, I meet spiritually minded people who avoid mainstream news altogether — no papers, no TV, only “awake” channels and alternative sources.
More and more, I meet people on a spiritual path who’ve stopped following mainstream news. Not because they’re naïve, but because they long for truth and authenticity. I recognise that longing — and also the risk hidden in it.
A subtle shift
Genuine openness can slide into a worldview organised around distrust: “I see the truth; others are asleep.” Intuition gets placed above facts. In a world with real power imbalances and bureaucratic gridlock, that slide is understandable — but it can become a refuge from contact with ourselves.
Spiritual bypassing
Psychologist John Welwood called it spiritual bypassing: using spiritual language or practices to avoid discomfort, fear, or unresolved trauma. Not a conscious lie — a subtle defence. Instead of staying with confusion or vulnerability, we reach for higher truths: “Everything is energy.” “Everything happens for a reason.” True statements that can also prevent real feeling.
Relationships as the practice field
Nowhere is the bypass clearer than in relationships. Old attachment wounds show up: not being seen, not belonging. Spiritual concepts can — unintentionally — create distance. A conflict becomes “an energy that doesn’t resonate.” A need for closeness gets labelled “your process.” Spirituality turns from ground for connection into a wall to hide behind.
How to stay close when distance grows
If someone in your life has retreated into a world that feels less connected to what is real, start with presence, not answers. Stay loving contact. Listen without judgment. Ask open questions. Bring yourself without trying to convince. Meet their uniqueness. Be the reliable one who doesn’t walk away. Change never lands from the outside; it grows from safety on the inside.
Back to what’s real
My work is helping people return to themselves — not by telling them what’s true, but by making space for what wants to be felt: De berg in jou, Brainspotting, body awareness, embodied inquiry. Grounded, not floaty. Sober and spiritual.
An invitation, not an answer
I don’t claim absolute truth. I do recognise resonance — and detours. This isn’t a plea to change you; it’s an invitation to feel what’s true now, with an open heart, so something real can appear between us.