Hello,
First off--thank you for such a wonderful blog! As an aspiring psychologist, this has been a great forum.
My question is concerning schizophrenia. A close friend of mine has recently been having strange experiences. She's extremely spiritual, but I am concerned that her spirituality is masking a developing problem. For example, she has spent hours playing with what she thinks is energy around her body by moving her hands around. She has strange reactions to things--once she had an orgasm while listening to music because she found it so inspiring (and things like this are happening more frequently). She claims it is a spiritual awakening, and that often she feels too overwhelmed by life because she is so affected by everything that happens around her. When in a group of people she will often go silent because she is too busy experiencing all the different emotions that everybody in the group is feeling. She also is convinced she has had ESP experiences too. Although when she still talks in a coherent manner, she certainly has delusions of grandeur and has very strange theories about the world.
I do not want to label her as schizophrenic or mad because she is extremely intelligent, friendly and thoughtful. But her eccentric behavior, although beautiful in some ways, is growing more and more intense. My question is, is there a line that is crossed which discerns spirituality and schizophrenia? What behavior can be considered 'normal' and what is 'unhealthy'? And how do I approach her about this matter?
Any response will help--thank you for your time!
I understand that you must be feeling very concerned right now. Whilst you’re right that prodromal or untreated schizophrenia can often be accompanied by a heightened interest or preoccupation with religion / spirituality, we must remember that these concerns are of great importance to the person concerned, so we must try not to dismiss them as purely pathological and accomodate an intervention (if needed) that is respectful of their spirituality (this is something that I know some primary care trusts here in England are becoming aware of and trying to work on - a religious / spiritual sensitivity in mental healthcare. It’s a hard line to cross, as healthcare professionals as part of the state must be seen to maintain a neutral / agnostic stance, but shouldn’t be dismissive of the concerns of the service user).
Basically, I’m limited on time here as I’m about to head to work, but you must remember that, whatever your friend may be experiencing(whether a ‘normal’ increased concern in spirituality, mania, or religious or spiritual delusions as a part of schizophrenia), she is still the ‘intelligent, friendly and thoughtful’ person you know. No diagnosis should change your view of her in that respect. There is no finite cut-off point between ‘normal’ and ‘unhealthy’ spirituality.
I am reluctant to suggest an intervention, as I am certainly not experienced in these matters. I’m going to open that up to my followers and perhaps come back to the issue after work…
