Quote:
Originally Posted by BirdDancer
Yes, I know there is LOTS of written content below. They are bits from articles supporting the highly interesting contribution Wild Coyote made linking religiosity and some Temporal Lobe Epilepsy (TLE) experiences. Most of us know how common it is develop hyperreligiosity in bipolar episodes (esp. mania). This can be added to the original list, for sure. Another interesting symptom is hypergraphia, something common in TLE and bipolar mania. I read that in the past, but forgot about it.
“Epileptic seizures may increase, alter, or decrease religious experience especially in a small group of patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). Literature surveys have revealed that between .4% and 3.1% of partial epilepsy patients had ictal religious experiences; higher frequencies are found in systematic questionnaires versus spontaneous patient reports. Religious premonitory symptoms or auras were reported by 3.9% of epilepsy patients…” From Spirituality and religion in epilepsy. - PubMed - NCBI
“A 40-year-old man with history of temporal lobe epilepsy presented to the emergency department with hyperreligiosity after medication noncompliance. After medications were resumed, he returned to baseline. Many famous prophets are believed to have suffered epilepsy. Waxman and Geschwind described a group of traits in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy consisting of hyperreligiosity, hypergraphia, altered sexual behavior, aggressiveness, preoccupation with details, and circumstantiality. The incidence of religious experiences ranges from 0.3 to 3.1 percent in patients with epilepsy.” From Isolated Hyperreligiosity in a Patient with Temporal Lobe Epilepsy
“Mystics throughout history have claimed to experience visions and trance-like states they say come directly from God. There's now speculation that these visions may have been hallucinations brought on by epilepsy…Mystics throughout history have claimed to experience visions and trance-like states they say come directly from God. There's now speculation that these visions may have been hallucinations brought on by epilepsy.” From Finding God in a seizure: the link between temporal lobe epilepsy and mysticism - Encounter - ABC Radio National (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
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A huge yes to both of these for me. At one point I thought I was an angel. I was obsessed with the light and the dark. I also wrote a ton. Same for my mother. She believed she was talking with God and she wrote like crazy.
I was also aggressive, preoccupied with details and exhibited circumstantial speech. Same for my mother.
I also had a ton of pressure in my brain stem area. The temporal lobe sits right on top of the brain stem.
BirdDancer and WC, thank you so much for this. It is the first explanation that actually fits what I experienced. I want to talk to my psychiatrist and therapist about it.