spiritual healing for the mentally ill...

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 03 Dec 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

lunalafey	03 Dec 2002
I'm a person who has little faith in perscription medicine. Too many side affects and not enough testing. I have a friend who has gone through many different medications. Some help a little, some have ill effects. Has anyone seen or heard of healing/treatment for the mentally ill (NOT psycho)?

MeeWah	03 Dec 2002
Lunalafey: Having family members & friends in the same situation, I can relate. I recall reading material pertaining to your question from the Edgar Cayce readings. One reading referred to a young woman's chemical imbalance in the brain & recommended a treatment. Offhand, I am relying on an understanding of the subject. A therapeutic regimen involves a multi-faceted program to address the body physical, mental & spiritual because balance is intrinsically related to *all levels of being*. A full physical examination would be the first order to determine the organic condition of the body. Conventional medicine has it place, so following a determination/diagnosis, there may be medications needed to stablize the particular condition(s) first before a more wholistic program can be implemented. Any program needs to be conducted under the supervision of a physician. Afterwards, a regimen could include chiropractic adjustments (to assist in clearing blockages of chakra energy), a cleansing diet (to purify the bloodstream & thus the internal organs), exercise (to aid the circulation), music (classical due to its higher vibrancy frequency). Meditation is not recommended. The following link is to a book that may be helpful: http://edgarcayce.com/cgi-bin/edgarcayce/physiciansref.html The Edgar Cayce foundation which preserves his readings (Association for Research & Enlightenment or The A.R.E.) permits its member access to the actual readings. The Circulating Files contain copies of his readings on a myriad of subjects & can be borrowed. Much of the outcome depends on the willingness of the individual to appropriately address the needs, the caretakers & other personel promoting the well-being.

Kiama	03 Dec 2002
When it comes to medicines for the mentally ill, they can only get rid of the symptoms of the person's dis-ease. They cannot heal them. This is a fact accepted by the medical world and psychological world. To heal mentally ill people, psychological methods are usually used, which helps the person who is ill to make the changes themselves in order to get better. There has been no 100% sure evidence to say that mental illness is a biological thing, which is why medicines don't usually work. Sometimes ths treatment consists of just talking, in a cognitive sense. Sometimes it consists of the ill person being given tasks to complete, etc... For instance, when I was anorexic as a child, the nurse would give me tasks to complete which involved eating a certain amount of food a day. Because I was a child continually lookig for opportunities for praise, I gladly did these tasks, and my anorexia was 'cured' before it got to the really bad stages. Kiama

Moongold	03 Dec 2002
Lunalafey, Please have a look at this article. I'm not sure if it will help but it's worth looking at. The man who wrote it is quite special. He has had a type of psychosis for more than 20 years but it is in remission and he functions pretty well in the community. I know Allan really well and admire him deeply. I think his e-mail address is on this article and I know he would not mind if you e-mailed him. http://home.vicnet.net.au/~blackhole/spiritps.htm Moongold

lunalafey	05 Dec 2002
Kiama, I totally agree with you. It's the 'masking' of the symptoms and not treating ANY dis-ease, that irritates me. It's like the amount of children taking medication for ADD. A change of diet is a simple way to fix most of these kids. They are sugar addicts. Moongold, I printed out the info, looks really interesting. I will read it and show it to my friend.

truthsayer	05 Dec 2002
for me medications have helped a lot with my anxiety and depression. i'm not certain i'd still be here w/o them. but my treatment was wholistic. during the worst times, i had psychological and spiritual therapy. art, writing, and quiet(occasionally music) also helped me. i had a lot of physical problems like pain and fatigue that was causing me enormous anger and grief over accepting the changes in my body. i had to give up my career for one which was devastating. medications help keep my pain and fatigue level down so that i can cope with life. if i can cope then i can exercise and do things that have meaning to me like going to graphic design school. but i think my physical illnesses and the severe stress i was under caused a chemical imbalance in my brain. part of it is hormonal. other problems like chronic anemia affected my chemical balance. i do agree our society is becoming overmedicated. children that are difficult handle are medicated instead of worked with to learn self-discipline. seeing anti-depressants like paxil in tv commercials shows how far society has come in accepting mental illness. it worries me, too b/c taking meds seems to have become a fad. everybody wants to self-medicate in some way. some drink alcohol, some smoke, and some do illegal drugd. psychiatric drugs seem to be taking up the slack as being the new solutions for dealing with life's ups and downs. feel depressed a couple weeks? pop a pill! no need to look at your life and figure out what's going wrong. (please note i'm being sarcastic.) i think a lot of the problem is that as a culture we've become too busy. technology has increased our dis-stress instead of improved it. if we looked at what we are doing to our bodies and minds with all that pressure, meds wouldn't be neccessary.

Moongold	05 Dec 2002
I think that for some kinds of severe mental illness such as schiizophrenia, bi-polar mood disorder and profound depression medication can be essential. Other things such as counselling, peer support, meaningful work or recreation, nutrition and exercise can also be really effective. Unfortunately people often don't get these things in a holistic way. Allan, the person who wrote the article I've referred you to, discovered a spirituality which helped him immensely and I've known other people with a severe mental illness who have travelled a similar road. However, it is a very personal journey, directed by life experiences. Allan had a variation of schizophrenia and he has to take medication for the rest of his life but his illness is contained and he is one of the most generous and intelligent men I know. The sharing of love and understanding, a very simple and pure form of spirituality, is available in some way to many of us and can be very healing. Friendship......friendship........something to break the chains of isolation. I was interested in your comments, Truthsayer as you seem to have a severe physical illness which has associations of chronic pain and fatigue as well as devasting social and (perhaps) economic loss - a whole bunch of things that can result in pretty severe depression. I can't see your post as I write this, so forgive me if I'm being presumptive. I don't have much pain but I've had a chronic neurological illness for more than 30 years and have experienced fairly major depression. The illness results in lesions on the central nervous system, including the brain, so there is a physiological basis for the depression and anxiety as well as a psychological one. For some reason, I've resisted medication for depression but I've always taken the other medication I need to contain the physical illness. I'm not sure whether I'm a masochist or a wise person! LOL. The sense of being in control of my own mind has always been quite important but I've had some terrible times. What I've learned here (at Aeclectic) has been quite important, and a kind of spiritual journey for me. Firstly the Tarot has been a way of interaction with the Divine which has been gentle and insightful. Secondly, learning a little about astrology has been helpful and I'm still processing this material. The correlation between one's birth chart and one's life experiences can be revealing. I think this is about understanding and insight which is fairly important if I am going to progress spiritually and manage life generally. A rather rambling post......To return to the original question on how one can recover from devasting mental, emotional, psychological distress.....one of the most essential things is friendship, connection and meaning. For some people though, medication is also essential. Moongold

raeanne	05 Dec 2002
Hi all, Has anyone every heard of using Reiki for people with mental disorders? I have a friend who is bipolar (manic/depressive) and has just been diagnosed with mild schizophrenia. To top it all off, he has cerebral palsy and is confined to a wheel chair. He has a great attitude about everything and laughs about his different disabilities stepping on each other. I am on a waiting list for a possible Reiki class in January so I was just wondering if there is any evidence of Reiki helping with any mental illnesses. My friend is having a very bad time finding the right balance of medication. He has just started looking into some different spiritual and meditation exercises.

Moongold	05 Dec 2002
Yes, I work for acommunity based agency which uses complimentary therapies as well as western medicine for a whole range of difficulties. I'll get you some more information about this next week. Blessings, Moongold

meatbox666	06 Dec 2002
I agree with everyone. Please see a professional. Break throughs in nueropharmacology have concluded that mental illnesses are a result of an imbalanced nervous system, central and periheral. I take into consideration the old way of thinking and that some mental illnesses are a result of an evil spirit possessing ones vessel. It is good to be armed with all sort of defenses. If any man is possessed of a Ruack Roah(evil spirit), write Psalm 66 on a piece of paper and hang it upon the neck then say: Save me, O God, for the waters are come into my soul.

lunalafey	06 Dec 2002
meatbox...part of the problem ARE the professionals. My friend has visited MANY from the time of childhood. Part of the problem is hereditary, the other MAJOR part is a traumatic experience as a child. The first 'professional' my friend saw, said nothing was wrong. That does not make for a very good start in the world of therapy. I read the artical that moongold refered me to. I do see that my friend does walk that 'line' of adapting to the spirituality within(extreamly psychometric,too) and the expectations of society. very interesting readings...

meatbox666	06 Dec 2002
It will be best for your friend to strenghten her spirit. It is said that a broken spirit cannot survive most illnesses. It sounds like your friends faith is wavering, making it seem difficult to go on. Use the seven day candles. Obtain a twenty-third Psalm candle, and dress it with Holy oil. Write your friends name. ( it is white). It is used for special requests. If you have not any occult oil olive oil is fine. Get a King Solomon candle. This is a purple candle. It is use for control. Dress it with King Solomon Oil( olive oil is appropiate also). Write her name. Get a Block Buster candle. ( It is gold and pink or get a seperate pink and gold candle). Dress this with Holy Oil or olive oil. Again write her name. This candle is used to break up any work that someone has put on her to jinx her life. Tell her to read Psalms:129 to gain spiritual power, and Psalm 141 to dispel fear, and Psalm 115 to increase her faith. This set up should be kept on her altar or yours until she feels better and finds someone who can help in a more conventional way.

Moongold	16 Dec 2002
Quote: Originally posted by raeanne Hi all, Has anyone every heard of using Reiki for people with mental disorders? I've been advised by practitioners here that Reiki per se can do no harm in the treatment of people with mental illness. Difficulties have sometimes occurred when the practitioner oversteps the mark and begins to act as counsellor/therapist for which s/he may have no specific training. In your friend's case, a lot would depend on getting a good practitioner. I work in an organization which uses a blend of western medicine, complementary therapies and psychosocial rehabilitation for people who have serious drug/alcohol problems. Many of these people have some kind of mental illness as well. If you like, I could send you a paper about the history and practice of the Reiki clinic here by private email. Just let me know. The principal Reiki therapist here suggested a book called Reiki/Energy Medicine by Maggie Barnett and Libby Chambers (not 100% sure of the authors). These two women are American so you should be able to track down the book there. I think this book is for people who may not understand a lot about Reiki. My best wishes for your friend. He sounds like quite a special guy. Moongold

raeanne	16 Dec 2002
Moongold, I would love to read the paper you have. My e-mail is: raeanne_s@hotmail.com Thanks. (The e-mail address is a bit hard to read. There is an underline character between my first name and my last initial - raeanne_s. Hope that helps.)

Moongold	16 Dec 2002
Raeanne, I emailed two articles on reiki to you today and four articles on spiritual healing. Let me know if they don't arrive. They are in pdf. and you will need Acrobat Reader to open them. Acrobat reader is a free download from www.adobe.com in case you didn't know The reiki articles are beautiful I think but I didn't have time to read the artcles on spiritual healing. I suspect that, even though they are written in terms of substance use problems, they could be very easily related to general health and disability issues. Blessings, Moongold

raeanne	17 Dec 2002
Moongold, Thanks for the papers! They look very interesting. I have the next couple of weeks off work so I will have time to read them. Thanks again!

The spiritual healing for the mentally ill... thread was originally posted on 03 Dec 2002 in the Spirituality board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Spirituality, or read more archived threads.