Religious Delusions in Psychosis - Day 19 of "100 Symptoms"
Channel: nednednerB the Schizophrenic
Date: 2019-04-09

The first question for some: "Who's to decide the exact difference between delusion and a deeper religious or spiritual experience?" 

Indeed, the individuals make the same utterance: "God is communicating with me directly." In some sense the only difference is permission by the family and community.

Indeed, in many US States, religious "fervor" laws permit controllable individuals to remain in situations where their experiences have continuity with spiritual practices. In other words, religious communities accept the individual's experiences and provide an interpretive context.

It seems clear to me however, that there is a possibility of the church or religious family losing grip on the other symptoms. Cumulatively, or in time, the behaviour changes and more categorically psychotic symptoms take precedence. In some sense, the controllable becomes wild and frightening. After that transit, it's less feasible to assume the experience is a religious one.

That said, I am not the arbiter of spiritual reality. I also don't believe in absolutely blind materialism as a suitable interpretation of all experiential realities. That also said, when a person loses touch with shared, relevant realities, there is no room to assess situations except for the risk of self harm and unhealthy condition.

The individual dealing with schizophrenia, schizoaffective, or bipolar disorder needs a lot of help coming back to reality. Religious delusions can be particularly tough due to materialism being so unsatisfying. It's easy to succumb to the power of spiritual sensations and perceptions.

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I have schizophrenia every day. Even though I was diagnosed in early 2000s, I experience and manage symptoms daily. So here are "100 Symptoms!"

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