Spiritual awakening or mental illness?

[BlueSky]

Originally Posted by charly233

Just watched both videos. Inspirational stuff especially the depression one.

Thanks for posting the links.

Yes, thanks Gem, I just watched the two sides one and I'm speechless. It really inspired me, in particular to the idea of a path ...something I struggle with.
Beautiful!

Sometimes I think that I'm having a mental illness too. This is a very interesting read.

Originally Posted by Checkmate.

First of all, I didn't read every post, so uh I'm just replying to the idea. The gap between spirituality and psychology is still so wide and obvious. The 2 views should be combined to get a full picture, and some people really need their meds. You can't expect a schizophrenia patient to be functional without meds for example. No matter how much energy work or others. It just won't happen.

Even with more ''tame'' disorders, plain old mainstream therapy works wonders if implemented correctly. I'm not even a fan of meds. But only spiritual solutions can cause a person not to be open to the right treatment which can delay their recovery. Yeah OK when you come on a spiritual forum you look for spiritual solutions. Let's not even get into how disorder names are being thrown around with no real knowledge.

So no, having spiritual experiences is not crazy. However disregarding everything else and assuming everything can be solved that way is ignorant. Just as ignorant as people who believe all psychics are nuts.

I find this view balanced and informed. Personally, I chose not to take medication, but I did go through therapy. At the time I had a good understanding of spirituality and maintained the connection I feel spiritually throughout my treatment. But, psychologically I needed support to process some extreme experiences in a safe space, and that is what the therapist supported me to do.

If I lived in a tribe, I might have turned to the elders or to the shaman/healer of the tribe, for that support. But as I don't live in a tribe, I chose to seek help from what is available to me.

Perhaps a point that can be missed in understanding therapeutic treatment, is that a therapist doesn't treat someone and make them better. It is a healing journey that the person with the mental disorder needs to undertake for themselves.

I don't understand why psychology and psychological journeys are not accepted beneath the umbrella of spirituality.

[kkfern]

There's a fine line between genius and insanity. I have erased this line. that is an old quote.

kk

[SaintMatthew]

I have had more than one spiritual awakening that was clearly influenced by mania, inebriation, delusions, and fantasies.

I I have been in what I thought were holy trances but which I later figured out was mental illness.

Being a person who is bipolar and suffers with multiple personality, mental, and emotional disorders, I always need to be very very cautious when these "spiritual awakenings" and extacies happen.

[Lumen]

In my opinion, awakening is not like depersonalization.

I had major depersonalization after an anxiety episode and I also believe to be on the path to true awakening and it is very different to me.

When I had depersonalization it felt like I was disconnected from my body almost watching myself move around and do things. It was really weird.

[Kupava]

I agree with you and it reminds me of this story of the woman with cataracts that through going back into her past lives was healed of it
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/0...n_3380356.html

Originally Posted by athribiristan

I used to get really upset with my dad when I would get sick. He would always pull me aside and ask me why I got sick. I would be like 'its germs dad'. He always insisted that there was a spiritual cause behind it and it infuriated me. I always wanted to scream at him "CAN'T I JUST BE SICK?"

Now I'm 40, and I see what he meant. Whatever physical 'causes' you want to look at as the reason for mental illnesses, chemical imbalances, physical abnormalities, damage to the brain, emotional trauma, etc, there is always a spiritual cause. It may predate birth, it may lie dormant until triggered by an experience, it could simply be that a being is bad at making bodies, perhaps it is one of their first incarnations here. Whatever the reason rest assured there is one. Simply stated, spirit is always the cause, physical reality is always the effect.

My biggest issue is with the way we approach mental illness is the very classification of it as an illness. We relegate someone to the status of invalid simply based on the fact that they have chosen a different experience than most of us. Our immediate classification of different as wrong is the fundametal problem in question here.

A crazy person is so lost in insanity, they have no idea they are crazy. Insanity is their reality.
A person displaying all the symptoms of insanity but is absolutely aware of the insanity of the predicament cannot possibly be diagnosed as insane.


On a/the spiritual quest we are moving from an individual ego/material based consciousness into identifying with the oneness of the void. Many changes will occur in all aspects of existence be it physical, mental or emotional; conscious, subconscious or superconcious. These changes will invariably have symptoms. The symptoms will only last if the state of being prevails.

Thus: "Keep moving forward."

[Kupava]

To answer your question briefly it's only called mental illness in the west,the people who write the dsm(Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) are all atheists who don't believe in spiritual phenomena.

Originally Posted by alexa_summer

Hey everyone.
So ever since my "awakening" I have been researching, learning, and building on my beliefs and it has impacted my everyday life as a result. I always thought that being spiritual & interested in everything that is spiritual was a positive, good thing. When I say spiritual, of course I mean any New Age topic. "Spirit Science" in general...you know. I felt my awakening when it happened, I believe it was something so authentic, I feel like we are all souls inhabiting our bodies & using them as vehicles...etc...I am fully aware of my spirit when I perceive things visually, which is something I can't fully explain, but that is the closest that makes sense. I believe that many messages we put out there are channeled from our higher selves..& I am aware when I am doing that. I feel these sensations through out my body that I can't explain, but again with the word "awareness". Sometimes it does feel like a long, dragged out dream we are all living in..We have so many different terminologies for the "unexplainable" the "paranormal". But they vary so much to the point of confusion, distress over what is real anymore.

To get to the point...I'm taking this class in college called "Abnormal Psychology". & we are learning about many different mental disorders.
There's one in particular that according to by definition, me & many other spiritual believers show symptoms of. It's called "Depersonalization Disorder".
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depersonalization_disorder
I've also noticed described symptoms of "Psychosis" as well...probably very mild versions of, but it is still there.

Are we all just crazies here or what's really going on? How come the first thing medical practitioners jump to in order to explain this phenomena is mental illness? Who is right & who is wrong when it comes down to it? Does ANYONE really know ANYTHING? It all just seems like theories & made up mumbo-jumbo. Nothing is really certain. There's people out there that really do suffer mental illness, but even if doctors and people think they know the reasons or causes or even the exact illness. It doesn't change the fact that no one really knows WHY it even exists to begin with. Consciousness is consciousness. I'm sure all these people who are extreme sufferers have some kind of message to put across. I don't know how to further explain all of this. But if each one of us were carefully examined by a psychiatrist I am sure they would come up with some kind of mental disorder or explanation as to why we experience and perceive things the way we do. Is there a line? A veil that rises to expose truth? Does truth exist? It's all what we perceive it to be...if it looks like a duck & quacks like a duck...it's definitely a duck. Well I think there's more to it.

[ajay00]

Originally Posted by Ivy

I don't understand why psychology and psychological journeys are not accepted beneath the umbrella of spirituality.

Can a psychologist be seen as a spiritualist or a Guru like figure, like Christ or Buddha !

There is an aspect of modern warfare called psychological warfare, which uses knowledge of psychology for purposes of war and even for propaganda purposes by governments among its own population to coerce its views subtly upon them and condition them for its uses.

Carl Jung, the founder of analytical psychology, psychiatrist and psychotherapist, had disdainfully talked of the “corrosive character” of Freud’s “Jewish gospel” , clearly indicating a conditioned mindset emphasizing duality and superficial differences which is the beginning of conflict.

It is high time the differences between psychology and spirituality is outlined before the latter too is corrupted by further misunderstandings of what the true nature of spirituality is about , as has been done by organised religion.