Schizophrenia or Spiritual Awakening?

[Yorick]

Originally posted by chimaera: quote: Originally posted by Nightwing: These different perceptions of what counts for spiritual emergence on one hand and mental illness, and specifically schizophrenia, on the other hand

These different perceptions might result from the difference between psychiatry and psychology. [/QUOTE]Generally, psychiatry involves drugs correcting chemical imbalances. Psychology involves healing the psychological cause of those chemical imbalances.

[Nightwing]

I don't look at Spirituality as faith based. To me it is seperate from any Dogma. The spiritual experience these patients are talking about is more a oneness with the universe.

[Aelia Jusa]

Originally posted by Nightwing: While schizophrenia has been described as a disease by the psychiatric profession and can be a seriously disabling condition for individuals that are experiencing it there are a number of conditions that manifest in individuals that are similar to some of the 'symptoms' of schizophrenia but are considered a desirable attribute to possess. Clairvoyance, where the individual 'sees' things that others do not see, and clairaudience, where the individual 'hears' voices that others do not hear are examples of these attributes and are seen by many individuals as a desirable faculty to possess.

Just a note on this... the majority of people who suffer from schizophrenia experience extremely distressing hallucinatory or delusionary episodes, rather than something that we could define as desirable. They are very frightening, or threatening, and rarely pleasant. It also is important to note that one critical component of any diagnosis of any mental disorder is the element of distress experienced by the person. Someone who experiences very pleasant or non-threatening hearing of voices, for example, would be unlikely to even seek help for their condition.

[Yorick]

Originally posted by Nightwing: I don't look at Spirituality as faith based. To me it is seperate from any Dogma. The spiritual experience these patients are talking about is more a oneness with the universe.

I don't mean faith as a noun, but as a verb. Religious faith is the direction of faith towards a particular line of thinking. But we excercise faith everyday. Where we don't KNOW, we have faith. Or trust. Or hope. Fruit of the same vine. Faith is hoping in things unseen, unproven, unknowable. Love is like faith. Trust is like faith. When you follow a religious path you USE faith. You grow faith. Having faith involves mental muscles, but you don't have to be religious or even believe in a god to be faithful and have faith.

Are you with me? We have, in language conjoined the word "faith" into a spiritual context, but it is actually something we USE in having spirituality, something we excercise. Faith, is in effect, the act of CHOICE given certain circumstances - some of those circumstances being the possibilities of doubt or failure.

[Nightwing]

Well put Aelia and very true. But are the hallucinatory or delusionary episodes distressing because of the stigma society puts on mental illness. This is a gradual process and if there was no stigma people would be more open to explore these images. I'm not saying it's for everyone but I think there are a lot of severe cases that could have been avoided with the right understanding.

[Yorick]

Why is there such a stigma anyhow?

Who has perfect mental health? What is perfect mental health?

Einstein had relational problems. Certain issues with expression in certain areas. Others given in creative expression are retarded when it comes to punctuality or planning.

Aren't we all living in various states of imperfection?

You live, you get damaged in the head. Yes you can get healed.

"The Road Less Travelled" puts forth a wonderment that we are all not mentally sicker than we actually are, given the causes of the mental illness. He finds our relative mental health to be a blessing and truly wonderously gracious apsect of life.

[Nightwing]

The stigma exist unfortunately because people do not edjucate themselves and it is of the mind. Even my own father thinks there is something wrong with me like I'm not a whole person because of it. People are afraid of what they don't know.

[Luvian]

People with that kind of mental illness are not really experiencing surnatural or spiritual phenomenon. They just think they do... I'm not saying those things don't exist, only that those people suffering from mental illness are just crazy (duh). Don't encourage people having delusions, you're not helping them.

I'm talking from personal experience.

[The Hierophant]

Originally posted by Luvian: People with that kind of mental illness are not really experiencing surnatural or spiritual phenomenon. They just think they do... I'm not saying those things don't exist, only that those people suffering from mental illness are just crazy (duh). Don't encourage people having delusions, you're not helping them. I'm talking from personal experience.

And treating people like they are 'crazy(duh)' will help them?

[Luvian]

Originally posted by The Hierophant: quote: Originally posted by Luvian: People with that kind of mental illness are not really experiencing surnatural or spiritual phenomenon. They just think they do... I'm not saying those things don't exist, only that those people suffering from mental illness are just crazy (duh). Don't encourage people having delusions, you're not helping them. I'm talking from personal experience.

And treating people like they are 'crazy(duh)' will help them? [/QUOTE]The first step toward healing is accepting you have a problem.