Religious beliefs of Iron Maiden fans

Plain psychology uses scientific method? I don't know, ask a a psychologist.
 
I thought it did, but it still gets criticized for trying to quantify intangibles like feelings and "personality." That's why modern psychology has moved away from Freud, Jung, Ericson and the like and ventured into brain chemistry and chemical imbalances thinking if they can "fix" that they can fix the individuals problems.

I'm currently seeing a psychiatrist and I have mixed feelings about it. I told him I have suffered from depression all my life and that I was currently depressed due to recent life events and that I have been told I have anger issues. He immediately gave me an antidepressant without even asking me what's been going on and ordered an EEG when I told him about my brain trauma. I didn't even turn in the prescription for the antidepressant, because this is a demon I know well and I knew that in this case it was situational and I just needed to adjust and let time take care of it. I was intrigued to find out what the EEG would show since my last one was when I was 12. As it turns out there is an abnormal brain wave pattern which the neurologist described as "dispersed, non focal.

He got upset that I didn't take the antidepressants and flat out asked me, "why are you here then?" and I said, "to find out what's wrong with me, not to be pumped full of pills." He sat back, thought about it, looked at the EEG results and said, "If you're ok with it I would like to give you something for the abnormal brain waves." Amazing how quickly people change their tune when you defend yourself. I told him in this case yes, it is a tangible problem with a possible tangible solution. I've been on the med since June 23rd and I can say it's working. My temper is not what it used to be and I'm still myself, so I'm happy about that.

So I'm happy that after all these years I finally have a possible answer to my mood swings and short temper, but I am kind of disappointed that I may not get the "talk therapy," I wanted regarding my other issues. I guess that's what friends are for though lol.
 
Onhell said:
I thought it did, but it still gets criticized for trying to quantify intangibles like feelings and "personality." That's why modern psychology has moved away from Freud, Jung, Ericson and the like and ventured into brain chemistry and chemical imbalances thinking if they can "fix" that they can fix the individuals problems.

I'm currently seeing a psychiatrist and I have mixed feelings about it. I told him I have suffered from depression all my life and that I was currently depressed due to recent life events and that I have been told I have anger issues. He immediately gave me an antidepressant without even asking me what's been going on and ordered an EEG when I told him about my brain trauma. I didn't even turn in the prescription for the antidepressant, because this is a demon I know well and I knew that in this case it was situational and I just needed to adjust and let time take care of it. I was intrigued to find out what the EEG would show since my last one was when I was 12. As it turns out there is an abnormal brain wave pattern which the neurologist described as "dispersed, non focal.

He got upset that I didn't take the antidepressants and flat out asked me, "why are you here then?" and I said, "to find out what's wrong with me, not to be pumped full of pills." He sat back, thought about it, looked at the EEG results and said, "If you're ok with it I would like to give you something for the abnormal brain waves." Amazing how quickly people change their tune when you defend yourself. I told him in this case yes, it is a tangible problem with a possible tangible solution. I've been on the med since June 23rd and I can say it's working. My temper is not what it used to be and I'm still myself, so I'm happy about that.

So I'm happy that after all these years I finally have a possible answer to my mood swings and short temper, but I am kind of disappointed that I may not get the "talk therapy," I wanted regarding my other issues. I guess that's what friends are for though lol.
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I guess talking treatment is more expensive. Tbh it's flawed in itself and works best if they can pinpoint an issue very quickly (eg phobia resulting from an accident). Very often patients can't work out where it's come from and therapists too often only look for the obvious stuff.
 
jazz from hell said:
Look at it this way: Did it ever happen to you that you felt a woman was truly in love with you? Did you then try to scientifically prove this 'knowledge', find out that there's no logical value in it, that the neurological stimuli that provoke it might as well come from elsewhere and conclude that love doesn't exist?
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That's a bit different, isn't it? If a woman is truly in love with me, she shows me, she lets me know, and it is of consequence for me. Why do I need to spend my time being concerned with a divine being or force that I don't know exists, that has never done anything to prove to me that it exists, and whose existence or non-existence is ultimately of no consequence for me?

By the way, would you describe yourself as an agnostic?
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I would, under certain premises.
 
Onhell said:
He sat back, thought about it, looked at the EEG results and said, "If you're ok with it I would like to give you something for the abnormal brain waves." Amazing how quickly people change their tune when you defend yourself. I told him in this case yes, it is a tangible problem with a possible tangible solution. I've been on the med since June 23rd and I can say it's working. My temper is not what it used to be and I'm still myself, so I'm happy about that.
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I work with a lot of doctors these days, and a lot of psychiatrists think people only see them for a quick solution - here's some pills, go away - and a lot of them absolutely hate it. It's not what they got into the discipline to do. So if the guy brushed you off originally, it's probably because he hears a lot of the same stuff that ends with, "Can't you just put me on something?" rather than "How can we fix this without reliance on medication?" Of course, in many cases, medication is required in some form, but blanket meds are never a great solution.

Glad to hear you're feeling better, old friend.
 
Perun said:
Why do I need to spend my time being concerned with a divine being or force that I don't know exists, that has never done anything to prove to me that it exists, and whose existence or non-existence is ultimately of no consequence for me?
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You don't need to. You just have to acknowledge the fact that there's knowledge that's not scientific.
 
I believe in dark matter and dark energy, even though no one -- including Hawking -- knows what those things actually are.

And I was raised Methodist and married a Southern Baptist.
 
Oh dear. The religion vs science debate? In 2017?

Well, whatever floats your boat, I guess...

But ye all should go watch Contact, if you haven't already.
 
To me it isn't a debate at all, but I understand both sides of he coin. If I tell LC or Perun I "talk to the universe," and the universe "answers" back, I don't expect them to believe me. It's a personal, mystical experience. On the other hand I understand when LC and Perun complain that said experiences are not quantifiable.

I think Ricky Gervais said it best in an interview with Stephen Colbert when he said, and I'm paraphrasing, "If you destroyed all religious books today, the bible, the torah, the quran, all of them and tried to rewrite them in 100 years they would be completely different, but with science, if you were to destroy all scientific findings, you would be able to replicate them and get the exact same result in 100 years."

That is not to say personal/mystical experiences are invalid, because everyone in this board has had one, it's called listening to an Iron Maiden album and getting your mind blown ;)
 
I love reading Onhell posts. If you like, PM me your current addy, I owe you a letter.

As to religion vs science. I had always thought that religion was created from science. It always seemed to me that religious texts were stories to explain how those people defined the world as they saw it. Then, people started using their science/religion as a means for power. I think I read somewhere that the origin of "don't eat pork" were leaders of the time recognizing that people got sick eating pork and used religion as an excuse to keep people from eating it. If that is true, I find it amusing that they could have used religion to say 'burn it to hell before eating' and they would have been just as safe and we'd have a lot more bacon lovers. :)

I digress.

I do often wonder how a being that would have so much interest in a thing that it would create an entire world/universe for it's creations to live on would have so little interest today.
 
I will PM you, and you are too kind. I kill more threads and than I keep them going lol.

There is an oldish book by Karen Armstrong called the History of God, and she sticks to the "Western" tradition of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Sadly I have not gotten far, but in the little I've read "God" evolved no more different than a comic book superhero.

For example, Back in the 30s Superman could leap higher than the tallest building, was stronger than a locomotive and faster than a speeding bullet, all apexes of human achievement. But by the time the first movie hit theaters in the 70s the dude could fly, had x-ray vision, laser vision, practically an invincible god with no obstacles to overcome.

The Judeo-Christian/Muslim god evolved in a similar way and you don't have to read apocryphal texts to find out. In the Bible itself you see this shift of god being approachable to the point that Jacob literally wrestles with god, and he is one of many. God never says he is the only one, he says he wants the Jews to pray only to him. But with time God became an unapproachable, superior "other." Then he became the creator of everything. My point is, the reason he may not take such a big interest now could be because he never was all that powerful to begin with, just a thought.
 
I buried my father yesterday.

For the first time in my life I feel uncomfortable with my belief that there is nothing beyond. I don't like the idea that it all ends in a box in the ground anymore.
 
Sorry for your loss Ariana. Stay strong.

I never liked it in the first place. I'd be ecstatic if there was an afterlife. But I don't think there is.
 
I'm very sorry to hear that, Ariana. My thoughts are with you and your family. I hope you're alright, or, well, at least functional in some way. I know the process.

Anyway, I don't believe he's lost forever and I'll be praying for him and for you, for whatever good that may do to you.
 
That sucks, Ariana. Sorry for your loss.

I also wish to know what lies beyond and hope that there is more. Not sure if I believe there is, but it would be nice.
 
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