Exorcisms vs. schizophrenia drugs

NCBI ROFL spotted this 1994 scientific paper extract describing an Indian man in the UK who blamed his crimes on ghostly possession. When exorcisms failed, he was treated for paranoid schizophrenia. That apparently helped. From the abstract in the British Journal of Psychiatry:

Treatment commenced using trifluoperazine and clopenthixol. RESULTS. The patient underwent remission during neuroleptic treatment, despite previous evidence of genuine possession. CONCLUSIONS. Many cultures give rise to apparently genuine cases of ghost possession. Neuroleptics may relieve symptoms of exorcism-resistant possession.

"Exorcism-resistant ghost possession treated with clopenthixol." (Br J Psychiatry)

While searching for the whole paper, I found a great analysis of the case by Vaughan over at Mind Hacks. Vaughan wrote:

So this might be an otherwise unremarkable psychiatric case if it were not for the fact that the prison chaplain, and several of the patient's cellmates, saw the spirit possess the patient as a ghostly mist. The chaplain was convinced this was a genuine case of possession, as had priests from several other faiths who had previously carried out exorcisms on the patient.

This begs the question, if the patient was treated for his belief in spirit possession and his apparent hallucinations as to the reality of the ghost, why were the chaplain and the others not considered to be ill ?

This article highlights the uncomfortable relationship between beliefs in the paranormal and the assumptions of psychiatry. The results of a recent Gallup poll suggested that over 40% of Americans believe in possession by the devil and 15% believe spirits can 'temporarily assume control of a human body'.

Although psychiatrists would argue that the content of a belief is not enough in itself to diagnose a delusion, the criteria for distinguishing between 'healthy' and 'pathological' beliefs are notoriously incoherent.

"Classic case: Psychiatric treatment of ghost possession"

• [Brainspore]

  Well duh. Demons are allergic to clopenthixol.

• [rasz]

  This only confirms that Religion is a mental disorder.

• [Delilah]

  I would really like to know the source of that amazing image. Anyone?

  • [Jacob]

    Seconded. Just mesmerizing.

• [phisrow]

  The rather fuzzy line between religious phenomena and psychiatric symptoms runs all over the place. Possession/psychosis is a big one; but there is more than a touch of obsessive compulsive in a lot of devotional rituals and the belief that every occurrence is imbued with some grandiose meaning often goes downhill fast.

  Also, what is this “culturally sensitive psychiatry” stuff? Is it just about maximizing the likelihood of patient compliance by not being a dick, or is science actually supposed to be grovelling in front of whatever two-bit hokum they happen to believe in the old country or down at the pub?

• [TharkLord]

  “Jewish Zombie” Best Klezmer-Metal band ever.

• [sam gerrits]

  Hi there,

  I have been treated in the past for several psychoses myself.

  Beside a part time looney, I am also a journalist and a geochemist. In 2007 a book was published in Holland, that got quite some resonance with our press, check my URL. I wrote this book together with prize winning Dutch philosopher Wouter Kusters. In it we argue, among other things, that:

  1. Yes, psychosis is a symptom of disease
  2. Yes, what people experience during psychosis can be seen as an encounter with the divine.

  There is a reason for the fact that many cultures induce psychosis, for instance by prolonged starvation, sleep deprivation and self-torture. Native Americans, for one, get themselves into this state to encounter their Totem.

  In medieval times there were similar beliefs in the West.
  But ever since the age of enlightenment, there has been very little supporting culture for the experiences of ‘psychiatric patients’ during psychosis. By the way, this class of people arrived in our lingo at around the same time that psychiatrists started to appear ( I am quoting French philosopher Michel Foucault here).

  Psychiatrists encourage patients today to forget about the content of their experiences ASAP. I believe that this does not help people recover. Acknowledging the fact that they have had a relatively uncommon, life changing experience can help patients on the long, long way to recovery, that can take years. some people never recover.

  So yes, it is also a symptom of disease, and we need to medicate psychotic people, but there is no need to add insult to injury by denying people access to the contenta of their psychosic experiences.

  I can send you an essay on this stuff, if you like.

  Kind regards,

  Sam Gerrits

• [Powell]

  I wonder if they needed a young psychiatrist who is questioning his belief in his field of study and a wizened older psychiatrist who has encountered this before?

• [Oskar]

  This begs the question, if the patient was treated for his belief in spirit possession and his apparent hallucinations as to the reality of the ghost, why were the chaplain and the others not considered to be ill ?

  There’s a difference between being schizophrenic and a believer in supernatural phenomena. They may both be wrong, but the wrongness of the chaplain didn’t have a crippling effect on his life. He didn’t go out and kill people or rob stores (or whatever it is the scizophrenic did) because ghosts told him to. He could live a perfectly functional and healthy life despite his faith in oogly-booglys. Delusion doesn’t become a mental illness until it is seriously affecting your life in a negative way.

  Also, it would be a total pain in the ass locking up every religious person, truther, birther and ouija board manufacturer in the world. That’s just not practical.

• [The Life Of Bryan]

  is science actually supposed to be grovelling in front of whatever two-bit hokum they happen to believe in the old country or down at the pub?

  How well do you think it would work out if psychiatry dropped the charade and diagnosed 85% of the population as paranoid schizophrenic because they believe that a Jewish zombie was observing them 24/7 and constantly interceding on their behalf to prevent his father from roasting them after they die?

  So yeah, it’s a reality that the medical profession has to pay lip service to whatever they believe down at the pub.

  • [mellowknees]

    I want this on a plaque on my wall:

    “How well do you think it would work out if psychiatry dropped the charade and diagnosed 85% of the population as paranoid schizophrenic because they believe that a Jewish zombie was observing them 24/7 and constantly interceding on their behalf to prevent his father from roasting them after they die?”

  • [libelle]

    OK, I think it’s unanimous. You win the Internet for today.

• [gollux]

  Aren’t group hallucinations just great? Sure delayed proper treatment there, didn’t it?

• [iamanumlaut]

  “Neuroleptics may relieve symptoms of exorcism-resistant possession.”

  I’m putting that on a t-shirt.

• [groksocket]

  Found the image! It’s from White Wolf’s World of Darkness. Linked here (under Exorcism, natch).

  • [Jacob]

    Congratulations and thanks!

    You are awarded internet dollars from my personal stock.

    (waves hands)

• [sleepy13]

  ‘Are We Possessed’ by Paul Levy (influenced by C.G. Jung)

  long artice;
  http://www.awakeninthedream.com/artis/AreWePossessed.html

  I recommend it..

• [Shinjithegale]

  @oskar
  He was imprisoned for “theft of a taxi, robbery, and kidnap of the driver”

  From the full article:

  “An aunt jealous of the success of the patient’s family, fed hime and his elder brother cursed sweet rice, rendering them susceptible to spirit possession. His brother was afflicted by years of physical weakness and impotence.”

• [shinjithegale]

  Interestingly they went to a Hindu priest, Muslim peer, and Christian priest before his imprisonment.

  More interestingly is the statement: “Our hospital chaplain concurred on genuine possesion. This is an acceptable belief within the context of pastoral counselling (Isaacs, 1987).” They seriously reference an article about believing in ghosts.

• [dculberson]

  That engraving? Sexiest. Exorcism. Ever.

• [Anonymous]

  I cannot seem to track down the artist that made that beautiful illustration. Tineye, mouseover, original article, file name all yield nothing. any help?

• [EMJ]

  “From the abstract in the British Journal of Psychiatry:

  … The patient underwent remission… despite previous evidence of genuine possession.”

  So the British Journal of Psychiatry believes in “genuine possession”?

• [Nanuq]

  The use of exorcisms for dealing with mental illness has a tragic history across different cultures. Somehow the practice goes on though:

  http://drvitelli.typepad.com/providentia/2008/09/exorcising-anne.html

  http://drvitelli.typepad.com/providentia/2007/02/romanian_exorci.html

  http://drvitelli.typepad.com/providentia/2007/02/mentally_ill_ma.html

  http://drvitelli.typepad.com/providentia/2008/12/ghana-news-spiritual-leader-kills-boy-7-for-witchcraft-breaking-news-news-in-ghana-news.html

• [johnphantom]

  I am diagnosed as bi-polar with schizoaffective disorder. The doctors at the county medical center told my mother, “He is the worst case we have seen. We don’t know if he is going to make it back.”

  I have done many drugs, including LSD and mushrooms – heh, I spent three weeks in Amsterdam. Nothing compares to the experience I had when I had my major break. I literally thought I was God. The hallucinations were fantastic. I saw peoples faces contort, like agent Smith at the end of the Matrix. I saw the sky change from light to dark, as my mood changed. I experienced physical hallucinations too, like some invisible hand poking me as I tried to sleep. I stayed awake for ten days strait.

  It was beutiful, but scary.

• [Catherine Shaffer]

  I’m the child of a schizophrenic who has religious delusions. There is a very definite difference between schizophrenic psychosis and religious belief, but it can be very hard to tell the difference from the outside. The truth is that it is not the outlandishness of the belief that defines the psychosis, but subtleties of brain function and chemistry that have taken me decades to begin to grasp.

  Even psychiatrists may be confused, because sometimes psychotic delusions can take very mundane form. Likewise, non-psychotic religious experiences can be intense. Further confusing is that people who are not psychotic or delusional can describe their experiences in very literal terms. And they think they are being literal: “God told me to do this.” But psychosis takes literal to the next level. The disconnect between literal and LITERAL causes a great deal of confusion and grief, and also causes non psychotic bystanders to get “sucked in” to psychotic delusions. In fact, a psychotic is the world’s best method actor, and it’s very hard to stand in the presence of someone with a “demonic possession” delusion and not lose your grip on reality for even one second. A misty ghostlike presence is vague enough that it’s pretty clear to me that the witnesses were just having the experience of being drawn into the delusions, as many of us are when we are dealing with schizophrenics.

  I do not discount the possibility of real supernatural encounters, but schizophrenia is powerful enough to mimic *any* reality, supernatural or natural.

  It is not at all useful to accuse people of having a mental illness if they are religious. Chosen belief is not the same thing as a mental illness, and it is actually insulting and denigrating to the mentally ill because it implies that they have chosen or control their delusions when in fact it is in fact an illness like any other illness.