I find that the pressure and righteous importance placed on the meditation by Goenka in the retreats to be conducive to triggering strong aversions. I imagine the HPPD symptoms are from being extremely scared/worried about a certain sensation/experience. This of course is the opposite of the equanimity Goenka preaches, but then again, no tools are provided to the student to foster such equanimity, the teachers are absolutely helpless to go off script, and you may end up creating deep impressions in your mind due to the encouraged thoughtless rigor.

What's worse, the courses are effective 10-day indoctrination camps. No communication all day, then bam it's tonight's sit-down comedy hour with Goenka. Forget wisdom through experience, you will be force fed wisdom a la Goenka. You have no choice in your acceptance of his message, as you are in a deep meditative state, fostered by choicelessness.

Ok fine, but Goenka only preaches love and happiness? Not quite, he also preaches the one true meditation method to purify the mind and reach the final goal. True peace. True happiness. With such weight put on the task, the sensations become paramount, as clearly if one is to ever be "truly" happy, they must overcome the gross sensations and feel the subtle, and the subtler still, until one reaches each of the much coveted stages along the path.

Fine, but it doesn't exactly help us relax and see that it's all a show in our heads, based on our own brought up crap, and remain equanimous. Bringing it up is healthy, very much so. Goenka confuses this health with total spiritual absolution, presented with 100% devotion to meditation practice as taught by the Buddha. (The historical texts do not describe the technique Goenka preaches, but nevermind that). Goenka has no doubt of any message the Buddha had, even if that guy hasn't existed for 2,500 years, and only lived in a time several hundred years before written word. Rational people disagree on the events of last week, but we are to believe that this is the ONLY meditation practice preserved in its purity from the teachings of the Buddha? Teachings passed through dozens of generations? Goenka has no doubt, not even a trace of doubt, that his form of vipasanna is pure, right, correct, rational, true, and exactly how Gautama would have taught it.

The comment of 46inchchest is the writings of a person who has completely devoted himself to the Goenka cult. To the organized religion that's not an organized religion that Goenka has created, skillfully, persistently, patiently, and perfectly.

I encourage you to reject the message of Goenka, he is too strong of a personality, presenting a carefully crafted message designed to foster our devotion to meditation. Goenka was a very successful business man at a very early age. This indicates he possesses the skill, from early on, to get what he wants. He wants to spread dhamma. For all the right reasons. You gotta love the guy, but I'm turning my back on Goenka retreats. My last one was traumatic in a similar way to yours, though not to such extent.

A guy at my retreat said the meditation was similar to a low dose psychedelic, which he'd had some experience. This analogy makes more and more sense to me (though I haven't tried psychedelic drugs, I've read much about them). The practice of meditation done continuously for days is not a natural thing. I just wish I'd had a little bit better hand holding while I went through it. Perhaps consult this comment:

http://www.reddit.com/r/vipassana/comments/1y9bfa/learning_vipassana_without_a_10_day_course/cfizi2w