Psychosis - another reason to be anti-theist

[Nope]

Religious people are more likely to suffer longer before they realize they need help. I have religious friends tell me that whenever they get in a dark mood that they know Satan is after them so they reach out to god or rebuke Satan. It sounds stupid but imagine a very sweet, cheery woman desperately pretending that if her faith is just strong enough then she can handle bouts of depression alone. She is going to suffer a long time before she goes for help and evem then she will feel like a failure. That isn't just stupid, it is heartbreakingly sad.

My son is on medication and I am so relieved that it seems to be working. He has been suicidal and has called me a couple times to vent but his outlook on life could get weirdly negative. For example, he called one time to say he was failing all his classes but he was actually doing well in all those classes. I asked him to tell me how he scored on all his last assignments and tests and all his marks were high! Having a son with a mental illness is heartbreaking so I am so thankful for modern medication and psychology. If I was religious maybe we would have tried prayer before we got him help and he would have either suffered a long time or comitted suicide.

[Angrboda]

These patients also are more likely to find that their religion brings them into conflict with psychiatrists and others who are trying to provide mental health support. In fact, one in four of them have come to believe that their religion does not allow them to take antipsychotic medication.

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/epiphenom/2...gious.html

Resistance to medication for psychosis is pretty common, with or without religion.

[watchamadoodle]

Resistance to medication for psychosis is pretty common, with or without religion.

That is true, and apparently going off anti-psychotics abruptly usually triggers another psychotic episode.
All I know is that hearing voices is much less disturbing now that I know about psychosis and have more thoroughly debunked Christianity. I hope that if I ever have another psychotic episode, then I will do better with this additional knowledge. But maybe it won't make any difference.

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Religious people are more likely to suffer longer before they realize they need help. I have religious friends tell me that whenever they get in a dark mood that they know Satan is after them so they reach out to god or rebuke Satan. It sounds stupid but imagine a very sweet, cheery woman desperately pretending that if her faith is just strong enough then she can handle bouts of depression alone. She is going to suffer a long time before she goes for help and evem then she will feel like a failure. That isn't just stupid, it is heartbreakingly sad.

My son is on medication and I am so relieved that it seems to be working. He has been suicidal and has called me a couple times to vent but his outlook on life could get weirdly negative. For example, he called one time to say he was failing all his classes but he was actually doing well in all those classes. I asked him to tell me how he scored on all his last assignments and tests and all his marks were high! Having a son with a mental illness is heartbreaking so I am so thankful for modern medication and psychology. If I was religious maybe we would have tried prayer before we got him help and he would have either suffered a long time or comitted suicide.

I agree that religion often prevents people from getting psychiatric help. I didn't get any psychiatric help at all when I had psychosis, because most of my family was religious and believed that I was having "spiritual" problems. Luckily, I recovered gradually by myself.

It's good your son is getting help. College is hard enough without having that severe depression too.

[psychoslice]

Anyone can be psychotic if they have a mental illness, religious, atheist or whoever, sounds silly to me.

That is true, but IMO if the person understands psychosis and is more skeptical, then his/her case of psychosis might not grow out of control. Also, it surely if the friends and family encourage the person to get psychiatric help instead of prayers, etc.

I know you are right. When I had psychosis, I considered myself to be an atheist. I just feel much better. I think if I have psychosis again, I will not be as delusional, because I am more atheist and know about psychosis. Maybe I'm kidding myself.

Sounds good to me.

[bennyboy]

Historically, I'm not so sure that religion and psycosis are a bad mix. In many cultures, psychotics are considered special and are valued despite their inability to socialize or to take care of themselves-- they are seers or visionaries, and have a role to play.

[watchamadoodle]

Historically, I'm not so sure that religion and psycosis are a bad mix. In many cultures, psychotics are considered special and are valued despite their inability to socialize or to take care of themselves-- they are seers or visionaries, and have a role to play.

That's true - especially in tribal cultures where the religion was more grass roots. It's interesting that tribal cultures were more tolerant of unusual behavior than modern cultures.

[robvalue]

Would that be more to do with the fact that those societies don't understand what's happening?

[ManMachine]

Duck!




MM

[watchamadoodle]

Would that be more to do with the fact that those societies don't understand what's happening?

That is true. People with epilepsy, bipolar, or schizophrenia were assumed to be in the spirit world.

But I think there is another factor. Tribes were small enough that they could not afford to toss people aside for being different. Everybody probably had specialized skills (making spear points, etc.). There was much more incentive to accept odd behavior. Take the third gender for example ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_gender ).

When cities began to form, there would have been many people with each skill, so the weirdos could be burned at the stake when they threatened the social order.

[bennyboy]

Would that be more to do with the fact that those societies don't understand what's happening?

Yes, probably. But I think it's more than that. It's the idea that unique experiences provide unique insights-- a value that is very much in disrepute these days. I'm not a big fan of being asked to accept and act on ideas that are considered "woo" these days. However, much of my life is enriched by the people who hold those ideas: artists, musicians, poets, etc.

I also knew a schizophrenic guy who had (I'm guessing) about a 160 IQ. Talk about challenging assumptions.