Mental Illness with Jehovah's Witnesses

by Hope4Others 67 Replies latest watchtower medical

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  Damocles

  This is a subject near and dear to me since its had such a destructive effect on my life and my children's. I've always wondered whether mentally ill people were drawn to the religion or whether the religion was a causative factor in developing such. I don't know, but I suspect its a little bit of both.

  Remember all those experiences where the person was in the midst of suicide preparations and a dub came calling? And then all was well. Sounds like the religion draws in people with some pretty severe problems. On the other hand, I have some experience with delusional dubs and its all about the religion.

  Also, its such a depressing, guilt-ridden place that Mary Poppins might consider wrist slitting. On the other hand, I know some mentally ill people who I think do better in the religion. Adds some structure to their life. And so on. Like I said I can't come to any firm conclusion. I can say unequivically (SP?) that my current circle of friends and acquaintances has nothing like the incidence of depression and other assorted mental illnesses I found in my witness 'friends'.

  Just a pedantic note. Correlation is not causation. It takes more than that. Most of the outrageous claims of the day are based on that particular weakness of the human mind.
• 

  doofdaddy

  I look at it this way. The fire brigade is on continual alert for emergency action. You never know when a catastrophie may happen. That is their job but they work in shifts.

  There are no fire men/women in the world who work 24/7, as the alertness would lead to anxiety and ultimately exhaustion and depression.

  jws have been living in this state of imminent destruction for over 100 yrs. Those who take these "prophecies" seriously must suffer from some form of the above.
• 

  justme7

  Damocles, I hear ya! Cause and effect or effect and cause? I can relate some of my first hand knowledge that may shed a little light on the problem.

  I'm 60 years old, and as any type 1 bipolar sufferer will tell you, over the years we will experience a few hospital stays in the psych unit. Although what I'm about to relate is anecdotal, it is my real experience. First of all, I was suffering from BP 1 long before I became one of JW's. (I'll revisit that in just a moment)

  Almost EVERYONE who ends up in a hospital is in very bad shape. Here in California, either you, or your psychiatrist, or the police may present you to the emergency department on what is called a 5150, which in short says, "you are going to harm yourself or others". So the point is that living with mentally ill people who are suffering from the worst of their illness! I was curious about how "religious" the other patients were. This curiosity came about when I heard 2 patients arguing about their personal choice of religion. I casually asked as many of the patients about their stance on religion, that would answer. Big surprise to me was it was difficult to find anyone who wasn't religious in one sense or another.

  Disclaimer: The following is my take on what I had heard.

  One basic fact one needs to remember is that almost NO mental illness comes in a "pure" form. IE depression could comes with an anxiety disorder or schizophrenia with delusion etc. Almost all of mental illnesses create a certain amount of "Chaos" in our minds. One thing the human brain hates almost universally IS this chaos. (we find patterns where none exist, like cloud formations or the stars) Since this disorder of the mind is in many ways to much to take, we will do just about anything to put more and more structure in our minds and the more rigid the better. Just about all religion, with it's trappings, will give some relief from the chaos and more structure the better. It doesn't surprise me that some mentally ill people will "like" the structure of being one of JWs. But my experiences have also taught me that there are more mentally ill people in ANY highly structured group. Again, this is only my conclusion based on my years of experience while getting to know others with mental illnesses. (sorry for the long post)
• 

  steve2

  I would guess that for every person who declares that the watchtower caused them or family members to become mentally unwell, at least one other person will come forward and declare that the wathctower saved their life. Which proves nothing but that each person seeks out the evidence to support their own experience and point of view.

  One of the things that irritates me about the "professionals" such as Jerry Bergman is their readiness to dress up their anecdotal observations as "proven" demonstrations; namely that the rates of mental illness are significantly higher among JWs than in the general population. There are more holes in this kind of psuedo-science than in a ton of swiss cheese. If an individual's anecdotal experience leads them to a certain conclusion, fair enough, but to promote their views as somehow more valid than anyone else's is pure hubris.
• 

  quietlyleaving

  another thing is how do we quantify and categorise mental illness, it is such a big subject.

  Nowadays according to a charity, lots of people are taking antidepressants because they have lost their jobs because of the impact of the recession. Would they be categorised as mentally ill by Jerry Bergman?

  However one could argue against the Jehovahs witnesses claim that they have a spiritual paradise and that their religion produces greater emotional stability than the "world". People may feel safer in a high control group and they are among people who are always talking about better conditions but I don't think this really produces the emotional stability and non chaotic environment humans may desire. People still have to live with themselves in the 'unbearable present' just like everyone else.
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  Hope4Others

  I agree that family history plays a big part in depression, bipolar, and schizophrenia however many jw's eventually suffer depression

  because of the expectations they can not live up to, let alone raising a family, working, and living up to all the meetings, study and

  field service. People begin to burn out which leads to depression. I can not even count on 2 hands all the women or men in my congregation

  who were on seditives or anti depressants.

  h4o
• 

  quietlyleaving

  I agree that family history plays a big part in depression, bipolar, and schizophrenia however many jw's eventually suffer depression because of the expectations they can not live up to, let alone raising a family, working, and living up to all the meetings, study and field service. People begin to burn out which leads to depression. I can not even count on 2 hands all the women or men in my congregation who were on seditives or anti depressants. h4o

  I agree with you H4O but would argue that there is just as high a percentage of people in general outside of JWs who also sedate themselves in one way or another. I don't think this is peculiar to Jehovahs witnesses but what is different is that JWs are less accepting of medical sedation and tend to talk about it more and in terms of criticising the "world". Outside of JWs people tend not to talk about the sedatives and antidepressants they may be taking - its no big deal for them.
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  wantstoleave

  I havent read the entire thread, but had to chime in after seeing the first page :) It is true that mental illness of any kind is NOT understood or well tolerated by JWs. Its either not spoken about, or the entire family is treated as outcasts. Granted there are a few who DO pretend to sympathise, but it is like anything else in the religion, swept under the carpet and you're left to your own devices. Yes you can go on medication, but does that solve the root of it? No. Hope4others makes good points about the pressures many families face, and then the keeping up meetings and field service. It can all get too much. You never feel good enough, always inferior. Even when you try to improve, its not enough. Go to therapy and you're told you shouldnt do it because you might be taught unscriptural and worldly thinking. Its like being caught between a rock and a hard place. What do you do?

  Some in the congregation still believe that mental illness can be fixed by just witnessing more, studying more, and making sure you're at every meeting. No, it goes deeper than that.

  I do believe however that life in general, environmental factors and life choices can contribute to mental illness, not just being a JW.
• 

  I discovered

  Hope4Others,

  Thanks for this thread.
• 

  troubled mind

  All I know is that in my case I felt leaving the witnesses saved my mental health . I have had bouts of depression all through my life and now that I am out I feel so much better in that regards .