Thomas Stephen Szasz YouTube video

In his YouTube video, Thomas Stephen Szasz (Szasz) makes the case that both psychiatry and religion are committed to restricting people's freedom. Sociologically speaking, religion is a unifying force that, by fostering coherence, has the ability to influence societal beliefs as a whole. Religious organizations cared for the community's mentally ill individuals up until the 19th century; as a result, psychiatry and religion were intertwined. However, according to Charcot and Freud, religion was a contributing factor to neurosis and hysteria; as a result, a distinction was made between the two occurrences (Bielefeld, and Yager 182). Since the separation between these two elements, Psychiatry has been opposed to religious experiences; in most cases, psychiatrists had been attacking and dismissing religion until recently. There have been debates since the 19th century on the relationship between religion and psychiatry; religion plays a significant role by handling and providing comfort to the mentally ill patients. In the same way, this paper will analyze the conflicting theories on the effects religion has on mentally ill patients and how it influences their recovery process.

According to mental health professionals, religion often leads to emotional instability because it is irrational and outdated. Additionally, Canadian psychiatrists argue that the Christian doctrine significantly affects the development of coping behavior in adults (Candida 9). As such, people who base their reasoning and lifestyle on religion are more susceptible to mental illnesses than individuals who have no spiritual affiliations. More often than not, psychosis has been used to describe the most extreme religious experiences; they negatively affect the skills that enable people to deal with anxiety. In the same way, psychiatrists have low regard for the impact of religion in treating their patients. Therefore, they do not incorporate religious experiences or activities in their treatment programs. However, it is critical to understand that a person’s spiritual world is important in determining how they deal with illnesses and adapt to treatments (Yalom 312). For instance, it is common for patients to tell their psychiatrists that their religious beliefs prevent them from committing suicide (Verhagen 358). In such a context, religion plays a significant role in saving the life of the mentally ill patient.

It is of the essence to recognize the fact that there has been a change in attitude towards religion amongst mental health professionals. For instance, in Canada, religious problems were introduced in DSM-IV in 1994 as a new diagnostic category. Research also reveals that when religion is incorporated into mental treatment, the patients are more likely to heal faster than when there is no religious cure (Farr and Curlin 1827). The reason for the better results has been attributed to the fact that if patients use religion to understand and explain their illness, they are likely to adhere to treatment. Spiritual healing is a phenomenon that is gaining recognition around the world. Buddhism is an example of a religion which practices spiritual healing; similarly, modern medicine when incorporated with religion forms an important element for treatment therapy. In essence, it is evident that religion and spirituality shape the aspirations, and the cultural values of patients and psychiatrists alike. Additionally, observations indicated that religion had frequently been used by patients with psychiatric to cope with their distress (Hart and Div 541). Although all religious beliefs and variables are not related to better mental health, further studies should be conducted to identify effective measures of religion to dealing with psychiatry.

Works Cited

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Farr, A, and en M. D. Curlin. "Religion, Spirituality, and Medicine: Psychiatrists' and Other

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Hart, CW, and M Div. "Present at the Creation: the Clinical Pastoral Movement and the Origins

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Szasz, Thomas. “Psychiatry and Religion.” YouTube Libertarianism.org, 24 April 2012,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvpkLvxsspg

Verhagen, Peter J. "Controversy or Consensus? Recommendations for Psychiatrists on

Psychiatry, Religion and Spirituality." Asian Journal of Psychiatry. 5.4 (2012): 355-357.

Yalom, I. "Religion and Psychiatry." American Journal of Psychotherapy. 56.3 (2002): 301-16.