Is Demonic Possession Merely a Case of Psychological Illness?

Reader’s Question

I am a third year college Mass Communication student in the Phillippines and am doing an Investigative research on exorcism. Part of this is to deeply explore “possession” as its main root. For my questions, is possession merely a case of psychological illness? Is it all about a person’s mental state and there is no such thing as “demon possession”? I hope you can reply on this one for it will be of great help in my research that I am conducting.

Psychologist’s Reply

A similar question was asked when we started the Ask the Psychologist forum. I’ll provide that reply as well as additional comments.

Psychiatric illness has been present for thousands of years. During those years, the symptoms were thought to be related to demonic possession, a disturbance of “humors”, tree spirits, etc. Modern psychiatry and psychology recognize that symptoms and behaviors once felt to be related to demonic possession are related to disturbances in brain chemistry.

How do we know these symptoms and behaviors are related to brain chemistry? First, we can artifically duplicate almost any recognized symptom or behavior by using medications and chemicals that are known to change brain chemistry. We can create paranoia, hallucinations, etc. Almost all paranoid individuals feel they are being “possessed” in some manner — typically that something is trying to influence, monitor, or control their thoughts. Second, we can reduce and sometimes eliminate these same symptoms with the proper medications. Third, when treating folks with severe psychiatric illness, the same symptoms return when they stop their medications — then go away again when the medications are returned.

Lastly, this current model works across cultures. While each culture has specific demons and labels for unusual behavior, the psychiatric process is the same and can be treated with the same, universal medications.

It’s also important to remember that psychiatric illness exaggerates and amplifies the existing cultural, spiritual, and personal beliefs of the individual. In short, people who believe in demonic possession are the only ones who experience it. A non-believer is unlikely to experience demonic possession. It’s also true that in most cases, only folks who have a prior belief in alien life ever report being abducted. Psychiatric symptoms, while similar in their neurochemistry, are influenced by the experience and culture of the individual. In paranoia, the person believes they are being watched by the police in their country. An individual who only speaks English never has a hallucination in a another language — that kind of thing.

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In response to your question, possession of any kind is considered a psychological issue by the majority of mental health professionals. Individuals who believe they are possessed by demons/spirits/aliens/technology are often encountered in psychiatry. In each case, the basic symptoms of the illness and sense of possession are the same. Given the same symptoms of paranoia and feelings of external control, some view it as demon possession, some feel they are controlled by orbiting satellites, and still others feel they are being controlled by microchips placed in their brain during a dental procedure. Each person interprets their symptoms through their own belief system, culture, and level of social sophistication.

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