ambushed, I’m not a doctor, but to me, you sound like you’re having a manic episode.. When you’ve calmed down a bit, please consider seeing a doctor. If you ARE having a manic episode, it may feel nice, though perhaps a bit out of control, but manic episodes often switch back to a depressed episode, and if you can prevent one of those by acting now, all the better.
Good luck!
Good people, I have suddenly come to my senses. I WAS having some kind of episode, the one and only one like that of my life. I can hardly believe what happened or what I wrote. Please forgive me. How humiliating!
It was clearly an outburst of brief insanity, although I stick with my description of it as a “religious experience” because it matches almost everything I’ve ever read about them (except for the atrocious spelling!). It absolutely was not caused by drugs or alchohol or Ambien or Trazadone to the very best of my ability to determine, and I have years and years of experience with both of them. Although clearly my thoughts were disordered, my nervous system felt quite normal throughout. I assure you I am now in full possession of my faculties and can see that, although it must very much have seemed like it, I was not under the influence of any drug or alchohol. I urge you to respect my self-knowledge in this regard.
The other “religious” experiences I’ve had (two others) were exactly like this in their suddenness and in their “feeling” and emotions and quality, even though they were nothing at all like this severe. I am completely satisfied that the even is over and will not repeat, even though I well realize that just minutes ago I was not at all myself, except perhaps in the degree of honesty I displayed and admire.
The suggestion that I call my doctor is a good one. I’ve called and the nurse told me she would have the doctor call me back right when he gets in. To save time, I will direct him to this site and thread. I have no doubt he will be shocked, but although many of you will disagree, I do not feel that I need any treatment at this time. Perhaps I did a short while ago, but this is not currently the case (but I recognize that I may still be suffering at least the after-effects of this episode).
Thank you all for your concern.
To the moderator(s), please do whatever you feel best with my thread. I have absolutely no objection to your moving it or deleting it. Thank you.
Do a search on VS Ramachandran’s Phantoms In The Brain. He talks at length about the specific area of the brain where your sense of God comes from and how it can be artifically induced under controlled conditions.
I don’t know if all this was the OP’s idea of a joke or if he was having an episode, but the fusion of Dr. Bronner & TimeCube would be more coherent.
He also talks about how that fact proves nothing with respect to your sense of God:
“Which one of these categories does mystical experience fall into? Why is the revealed truth of such transcendent experience in any way ‘inferior’ to the more mundane truth that we scientists dabble in? Indeed, if you are ever tempted to jump to this conclusion, just bear in mind that one could use exactly the same evidence — the involvement of the temporal lobes in religion — to argue for, rather than against, the existence of God.”
— VS Ramachandran, MD, PhD, Phantoms in the Brain, p. 185
(Emphasis mine)
So is there an objective means to distinguish between mania and religious experience?
There is no scientific means to distinguish between mania and religious experience. Science and objectivity are not synonyms.
Fair enough; what other objective yardstick would you use?
Why, God of course. It’s His game; let it be His decision.
You forgot the smilie.
Are we then in agreement that there is no way for a person who has such an experience to determine if it is from God or organic anomaly?
We are indeed. Knowledge is, in fact, irrelevant. That’s why it’s called “faith”.
So if I have faith that there is no God, it is logically unassailable?
Absolutely. Even in the analytical threads, I’ve always maintained that you need only deny the premise that it is possible that God exists. Do that, and your conclusion is perfectly sound.
It is right that moral journeys should be subjective and private. No one else can walk in your shoes. No one else understands your motives or your purpose. Christains are commanded not to judge, and that’s exactly why.
Dear Moderators,
Please – PLEASE – delete the offending post above. I’m sure you know which one I’m talking about. I fear for the safety of myself and my loved ones.
PLEASE DO NOT REFUSE MY URGENT REQUEST!
I second what Maastricht. Manic highs can be just as surreal (and frightening) as their low counterparts. And what you described sounds very similar to many of the ones I’ve had and those I have heard detailed by others in different support groups.
Bog are they scary!
Witnessing belongs in GD. Where would you have posted this?
MPSIMS. That’s the place for joke threads. :dubious:
LiveJournal?
It wasn’t a joke thread, it was an episode of mania, as faithfool and Maastricht noted and the OP admitted. Hopefully a kindly mod will disappear this thread to spare the OP further embarassment.
Well, this is the place for witnessing, but the witnessing phase seems to have passed and I really do not think that this will actually turn into a Great Debate so much as a general psycho-/religio-/politico-pile on.
So this thread is done.
[ /Moderating ]