Mental health and people saying they are possessed

I have a question

With all of the talk about a new movie that’s just come out on Netflix called, Veronica. Which is based on a Spanish story that took place in the 90’s.

Its about a girl who looked after her siblings because her mum worked long hours. One day at school she held a séance and a nun found out and broke the oiji board. After that there was a lot of paranormal events and she died.

Now they say its based on a true story, which a lot of movies claim but they are really far removed from the real events.

The actual story, in short was about a girl who did fall ill have reportedly having a séance at school and it was interrupted ba nun and the nun did break the oiji board and afterwords the girl suffered for months with seizures and hallucinations. She was in hospital in madrid in 1991. But apparently there were no official report of her cause of death.

There is also pocile report by Chief Inspect of the National Police, named Jose Pedro Negri who claim to have witnessed disturbing events in the family home of the girl who said was "possessed" such as to have seen the door of an armoire open suddenly in an unnatural manner, and a figure of Jesus separated from a crucifix. The family themsleves reported after girl death they heard whispers in their home and experienced other unexplained phenomena including electrical anomalies and slamming doors.

My question, Just like many other movies based on true supernatural events and videos uploaded saying this person is possessed and also how the catholic church has a system to see if someone just has a mental illness or is actually possessed, Im wondering is all of it just a mental illness, and/or is it family and culture feeding the superstitious believes that actually make you sick and have psychotic episodes, how does that work or what is the mental illness?

I think is is a mix of all of the above. Church propaganda promoting fear, and actual mental illness. Possession not to likely

What thunder bow said. Depends on the stories your brought up on and how suggestible you are.

I don't believe in possession.

Its just a movie to me, some religions, people believe in the possessed to me we have to be careful because mental illness is very real.

The truth is, we don't know. We really don't. I tend to go with the theories of mental illness being biological, but I am a westerner. If I had been raised in India or Africa my beliefs might be very different. Perhaps some people are affected by spirit entities, perhaps some people have a connection with astral worlds. No one truly knows.

The Exorcism of Emily Rose is about a trial on a priest who exorcised a demon from a teenage girl who purportedly just had some illness.

I think this happens a lot.

It gives people hope-

it is ridiculous

But how can anyone truly not believe in possession or call it "ridiculous" when we truly don't know if there are states, worlds, or planes other than our own...and how cultural environment affects one's beliefs?

That same closed minded thought process is why we have so many problems today. I am of sound mind these days, and I have been on a path to revisit my faith and belief in God. Now on that path, I have hit some MAJOR bumps/crossroads, because while reading scripture, and some religious literature, I find myself scoffing at the words, almost in complete defiance, because the spiritual experiences that I TRULY felt in my life were labeled as "manic" episodes by many doctors.

I believe some of it was indeed mania, but since mental health professionals are so quick to slap people with labels, they completely toss aside that a person could be experiencing something REAL and spiritual.

Laurie is absolutely right. We truly do not know what exists out there in this world or beyond in the universe.

I have asked this question many times, and recently stumped my therapist completely with this revelation which he could not give me an answer for:

"If a preacher in the middle of a sermon screams out wildly and passionately that he FEELS the Almighty and the Holy Spirit flowing through him, he HEARS the VOICE of Jesus, and screams wildly and madly, "Hallelujah, Praise Jesus I can HEAR HIM!! AMEN!!" Everyone stands up and screams with passionate joy and glee with tears in their eyes in agreement."

Why is it that this preacher isn't mentally ill? Isn't hearing the Voice of Jesus hearing voices? Why is it that when I was screaming that I heard the Voice of Jesus, Hallelujah Amen! I was quickly thrown into a mental institution? Where is the line drawn between mental illness and spirituality?

Now having said this, I believe if the Divine is allowed to enter, so is a Demon. And honestly all the naysayers can say what they want about it, but the fact still remains that there is a COMPLETELY double standard going on out there.

Religion is all about indoctrination and control. That is why.

I really wish religion would keep their hands off such things. This is the realm of science not religion.

i remember in high school, a catholic girls one, we used a ougi board and supposedly it pointed toward me. me, not beliving, was not affected as I think the girls were bullying me at the time. my mother got so upset she called the principle and yelled at the head nun and history teacher who let us use one. I didn't believe it anyway.

When you are very sick for a very long time it can seem like possession. I'm not religious so I don't believe in demonic possession, exorcisms, etc.

A lot of haunted houses just have carbon monoxide, and the inhabitants are suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning, which can cause hallucinations and feelings of evil presence and dread.

Just google carbon monoxide and ghost busters.

Ouija boards can be used (sometimes unknowingly) to open a portal between the hereafter and our mortal plane. If said portal is opened, the person who opened the portal runs the risk of opening themselves to the Spirit Realm and thus, a dark, demonic entity can be free to take advantage and enter their body/aura.

That nun, being a close minded religious sort, didn't know or care to know and destroyed the Ouija board thus preventing closing the portal that may have been opened. This allowed the demonic entity free reign over its victim.

This is why you must cast a circle of protection before opening portals to the spirit realm to contain any malevolent entities from entering your home, as well as protective spiritual wards on yourself to prevent anything from entering your body/aura. Always close the circle of protection after properly closing the portal so that any residual spiritual energy can't escape.

Believe if you will, or don't. It's up to you. I'm not here to convince you. Just to offer my two cents.

I have felt the presence of someone who has passed a few times in my life and I have a son who when little insisted something was sitting on his bed but this has been the extent of it. Nothing within me, certainly nothing less than comforting an experience.

True story. In Antwerp Victoria Australia 1993 Mrs Joan Vollmer was presumed to be possessed died in 1993 after allegedly being exorcised to death.

I have an understanding of how traumatic it must have been for this poor lady. I was a member of a number of different pentecostal churches for a few decades. When they saw somatic responses and different voices (Dissociative Identity Disorder) that I was presenting with they presumed that I was possessed. I was exorcised to the point of exhaustion. I dont believe that I am gullible but you may chose to disagree or not. Each time it was a horrible exhausting experience that was repeated many times over too many years because I just wanted to do the right thing and be free.

My exorcisms took place between the early eighties until 2005. Some in the "church" now have a better understanding of mental illness and have backed away from the stance of people being possessed though some would still assume people to be possessed.

I still have somatic responses and "different voices" when stressed or triggered but am now seeing a psychiatrist. There are some who say that I am sinning even now. Go figure.

Family, dna, upbringing and the cultures/social settings and country you live in all play a part in people's perspectives and beliefs.