Fluidity of Deepening
If - as many says - we are going into an era where more and more awaken, we may indeed see a difference in how these awakenings unfold.
In the past, the awakenings apparently often unfolded in a sequential and relatively dramatic way. First, there was exclusive identification with the human self, followed by a disidentification and a dark night of the senses. Then, there was an exclusive identification as the absolute, followed by a disidentification and a dark night of the soul. Finally, there was a gradual deepening and integration of the two.
But now, it may be that this whole process softens - with each phase intermingling more with the others. Depending on the circumstances, it may well be that some never goes through an exclusive identification as either a human self or the absolute, but that both are there and clarify and deepen together. There will naturally be phases where one or the other is in the foreground, but rarely to the exclusion of the other. This will be a far more balanced and integrated process, and maybe somewhat less traumatic than the other - more dramatic - process.
Or it may be that the overall process is far more fluid and integrated, and the extremes are dipped into only briefly and within the context of this more integrated and fluid deepening process.