DO WE STILL DISFELLOWSHIP THE MENTALLY ILL ?

[James Thomas Rook Jr.]

DO  WE STILL  DISFELLOWSHIP  THE  MENTALLY  ILL ?

I was a teenager in the 60's,  and I had a good friend that on Scout camping trips I introduced to the Truth, and I was there in NYC at Yankee Stadium when he was baptized as one of Jehovah's Witness. He was a true "straight arrow", and pioneered, always dressed immaculately, and eventually over the years became an Elder.

One night, at an Elder's Meeting, he announced to the other Elders that he was Jesus Christ, and that his mother was the virgin Mary, and of course he was disfellowshipped.

He spent several years in private mental institutions until his insurance money ran out, then in a State institution for several years.

He called me up, and told me the story, and I told him I was the Great Turtleman, and every November, before I hibernated, I rose from the swamp and gave toys to all the good little boys and girls.  I was just pulling his leg, but he was dead serious.

Later, he was in England, while his wife was trying without success to get him to take his medications, and fell over a balcony at Heathrow Airport and got killed.

DO  WE STILL  DISFELLOWSHIP  THE  MENTALLY  ILL ?

 

[JayDubya]

I was just speaking to a brother about this the other day.  He had a sad look on his face and said, ‘Things have changed now.  New light and we have a better understanding.’   ??‍♀️  One ‘prominent’ elder in a Hall was particularly hard on certain people.  Today- his wife is schizophrenic. Doesn’t  make any meetings.  Even attacked his mother- fell down and broke her own leg!  LoL.  Now- why isn’t she publicly reproved  for violence? Or labeled inactive? Or disfellowshipped for her crazy talking?   ‘Back in the day’ She would have been kicked out on her broken leg.  Or perhaps it would have depended on who she was/is related to too.   

Im glad things have changed. It’s been rough for some of our brothers. 

Very thought provoking question here.  

[wii.all.4.raro]

The issue of JWs mental illness is one we are ill equiped to support those with. Here they will say we're not qualified to discuss those issues with you. So you go to the worlds Psychiatrists and Psychologists who essentially narrow it down to a religion that has strong values can be damaging to its own people. So the Psychiatrists give you medication which numbs your mind and reduces your natural inhibitions, or impulse control, because the idea is that we've been taught to repress our thoughts and feelings that are wrong in a religious community. To keep shunning wrong thoughts and feelings is repression, which means repeatedly holding in our thoughts and feelings because of fear that it will offend others or God. So over time you learn to express these but and almost always shut down by the mentally well. They also get very disturbed and uncomfortable if you are not on medication, believing it to be a panacea, when all it really does is numb the patients mind and renders them unable to function. Having come off medication a number of times, I can say that I never feel happy when I am on meds. But now that a cycle of dependency has been cultivated by the system, one might be lucky if they get 18 months of happy times before they relapse. Having visited sites designed by former mental health workers who have seen the difficulty coming off meds, they slow process of coming off can take many years, because the brain has been rendered unable to provide its own balance. Meds were used to stabilise this implied imbalance, but meds also are the reason why people now get sick.

Olanzapine has been linked to a rapid cell destruction in recent years, among other antipsychotics. But not taking them can be harmful too, our people are sick and with few paths if any to choose that don;t involve a continuing cycle of repression, sickness and medication adjustment. In the 90s, the brothers warned me from taking meds as they were "mind altering" they were wrong, but at the time the idea was my mind was already in an altered state, and the meds altered them back to "normal" whatever that is  I've often thought how much would I get if I sold my blood? Street value here for some of my meds is quite good lol! 

Currently the bros want me to be working, maybe I should start a distribution service  With Drive Through!

 

 

[JayDubya]

Yeah... my best advice is to let medical professionals do their job and keep your health care/treatment options private. 

 

Good of mental health to you!   ☺️

[Space Merchant]

@James Thomas Rook Jr. I have seen some JWs with disabilities and or some form of mental illness, some of which are among the children that I had overseen in the past before. Not sure if ones with literal physical deformities to the body, be it young or old, but it has been said even those who bear such are capable of doing the ministry. Plus it is 2018 now, surely things have changed up since then.

Other than that, it depends on the individual in or out of the church, are they equipped and or able to handle such children and or adults or not? Can one tend to those of special needs, be it in a church, work environment and or other? Can one capable of handling conflict, majority negative verbal insults and or hate to someone; someone who is harassing the child/adult who is indeed of special treatment and or care?

You cannot assume that you can build a bird house without tools, but you have the wood, nor can you be confident in building a bird house, if you now have wood, but no tools. Therefore, being ill-equipped.

Being equipped, able and knowledgeable in how to build such a thing, requires both tools and wood. Catch my drift? Not the best analogies, but in a way it has some sense to it.

Things of that nature.

[Jack Ryan]

The tag "mentally diseased" brought me to your post in the similar content section.

So... I guess the answer is YES.

 

[Space Merchant]

21 minutes ago, Jack Ryan said:

The tag "mentally diseased" brought me to your post in the similar content section.

So... I guess the answer is YES.

 

And this post has already been concluded, Ryan. The focus was of someone who is literally in a disabled state.

[Andre Plamondon]

Anyone who can actually think from their own inborn faculties of reasoning could be considered mentally ill when they say something that might contradict the status quo of a dogma. Since there were teachings that were contradictory to the teachings of Christ in the publications, the accuser is the accuses and the apostate is the accuser/devil/Satan.... when someone doesn't consider himself inspired, those are arrogant words to use against your own brothers. knowing that God is very forgiving I hope They just get their story straight. The god that Moses served as represented by the bronze serpent and his staff that turned into a serpent was not as loving as we hope a father would be. Maybe it was a custody issue as inferred by the words of Isaiah 50:1 “Where is the divorce certificate of your mother, whom I sent away? Or to which of my creditors did I sell you? Look! It was because of your own errors you were sold,And because of your own transgressions your mother was sent away" Hey, I might be mentally ill for seeing a sort of logic in this.

 

[Matthew9969]

I remember several years back a couple in our congregation got divorced. The reason for the divorce...the wife said God was talking to her, then had a emotional/mental breakdown. What was shocking was this was used as a excuse for her husband to divorce her.

[James Thomas Rook Jr.]

Perhaps he was just tired of having her incessant screaming, smearing poop on the walls, chasing him arount' the house with a machete, poisoning his food, and microwaving the cat.

[Andre Plamondon]

I wonder how they will react when Elijah shows up before Christ is reveled.

[Srecko Sostar]

Not only about mentally ill (pathogenic) issues, but about all other burdens that making people mentally, psychically burdened.

I think how elders in congregations are very happy with this solution:  if people who have various kind of problems, how they are on medications (drugs). If they swallow enough tablets they sit still, quietly in chairs during program. 

Elders prefer that people drink pills rather than alcohol when dealing with their problems. Because, alcohol have strong smell. Also, taking Pills is almost invisible for others and "socially more acceptable". :))