Posts by Brandon Lopez6

I bet they’ve got some excuse for acting like total snakes, and honestly, maybe this whole mess with the Swiss guy is just one of those lessons God intended for you to learn. 🧐

Look, I hate to say it, but this whole thing isn't even worth quoting. 🙂

Personally, I don't have an issue with religious people, at least not until they turn into fanatics and start shoving their beliefs down everyone's throats.
The same goes for pretty much anything else in life. Don't push it, because all you're doing is driving people away.

I don't know, feels like a pretty damn convincing argument to me.
Short, punchy, and mathematically spot on 🤷.

Just kidding, wouldn't want anyone actually taking me seriously 😁.

briskwalker10 said:Within those fields, you can have all sorts of different theories developing... belief in them is secondary at best—since you form your own perspective just by studying them, and there often isn't one strictly "correct" answer—whereas belief in exact sciences is primary. Without that foundation, you're basically inviting superstition, religion, and (non-diagnostic) delusions into the mix...🙂 😳 😁

Math is supposed to be an exact science, right? Or at least that’s what they tell you in school.
So how do you even debunk that mathematical proof for God's existence? You know, the whole "0 + God = God" thing. I mean, you can't exactly argue with math, right? Dammit. 🤔.

Amy Bennett said:Now I'm even more confused. If that’s one of your core questions, how could this not be a conversation about Bog?

Alright, let's talk about God.
Preach. 🙂.

Jerry Robinson56 said:Don't let it get to you ... they remain invisible until a certain age

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invisible_Pink_Unicorn
The Invisible Pink Unicorn is a deity found in various religious parodies, frequently employed as a way to satirize theistic beliefs.

😁Everything happens when it's meant to, but truly, as briskwalker10 once noted, empirical science serves as an adequate starting point.

How am I just finding out about this now? 🙏 🙏

Thanks, kind soul, you totally made my night🤣🤣🤣

Amy Bennett said:So, if I'm following—this is really a conversation about delusions, and since faith in Bog is considered a delusion, shouldn't we be looking at it through that lens instead? Am I heading in the right direction here, or am I totally off base?

Kind of, but also not

belief in God is a delusion,

I don't know, that's one of the questions I'm chewing on.

so following that logic, why isn't it viewed as a delusion?

Exactly, because there are definitely delusional elements involved.

Am I on the right track now?

You are.
See? Not that hard, right? 🙂.

Amy Bennett said:I also suggested a psychology professor who talks about religion. I honestly don't see what the issue is here.

The issue is, this isn't actually a conversation about God.

Amy Bennett said:So, what's the actual topic then?

Feel free to scroll back and figure it out 🙂.
Quick hint: this thread deals with psychology as a formal science, so based on your last post, I doubt you're gonna enjoy this one much 😛

Jerry Robinson56 said:Just believe in yourself.

Now that's a pink unicorn I haven't seen before😁.

briskwalker10 said:You nailed it, Jerry Robinson56!
The only thing I’d add here is

...And have faith in hard science, too...😁

🤣

And what about the social sciences?🕺😁

Benjamin Taylor90 said:When you run out of actual arguments... you start throwing stones. 😁

Or chains and a brass knuckle to the head? 😬

Man, this is a Psychology PDF, so I’m pretty sure you went into full Religion mode the second you spotted the word "God." You probably just skimmed the intro post, too.
It would actually make sense if we weren't talking about God, considering which file we're even looking at, but hey, whatever 🙂.

I see 🙂.

I’ve tried explaining this at least seven different times—nothing sticks.
Since I'm pretty terrible at drawing anyway, there's really no point in even attempting it, so... we just don't get each other and that's 🙂.

Joseph Bailey41 said:If someone is being prescribed a whole handful of different pills, there really isn't much room left for debate. That said, suicide is a sin, and they were a devout Catholic family and all that. 🕺

I get it.

So sorry. 🙂

Amy Bennett said:I just wanted to drop a quick suggestion to the author about checking out Jordan Peterson—just in case she hasn't come across him yet. Since we're already diving into the intersection of psychology and God, he seems like a natural fit. Plus, I thought I'd try to stir the pot a little with Joseph Bailey41.

The author doesn't want to talk about God.
Maybe that other thing will work 🙂.

Joseph Bailey41 said:My godmother went through this. We were actually somewhat related, though we didn't see each other much because she lived halfway across the country. A few years ago, she passed away—they told me she died "of a broken heart." She wasn't even that old. She worked as a cashier after having a "nervous breakdown" while she was still in med school. After that, she lived with her parents, who had passed away a couple of years before her. I inherited a small amount of money from her, put it toward some home repairs, and felt pretty terrible for a long while afterward. I'm convinced she took her own life.

I cheat on tests. It's just muscle memory. 😳

Yeah, anything you believe in strongly enough will eventually manifest itself. And that proves... what, exactly? 🤔

People claim you can die from a broken heart, but if you ask me, there's a huge gray area regarding whether someone "helped" the process along 😳.

Joseph Bailey41 - Through psychological testing?

Joseph Bailey41 said:I was just reading this:

Specific periods where individuals with schizophrenia often face increased suicidal tendencies include
1) Times when they are experiencing intense psychosis and are disconnected from reality,
2) During bouts of severe depression,
3) Within the first 6 to 9 months of starting medication, once they begin to think more clearly and process the realization that they have schizophrenia (along with all the heavy stigma attached to it).

Point number three really trips me up. I mean, the idea that clearer thinking actually leads to suicide? It doesn't quite click for me. I can wrap my head around the first two points, but that third one feels strange.

Schizophrenia is just a heavy, miserable disease. It brings nothing but bad news and—I know this sounds harsh—pretty much zero good things.
When someone is spiraling in a psychotic episode, they aren't really aware (or at least not fully aware) of what's actually happening to them. But once the meds kick in and they finally snap back to reality—once the symptoms clear up—they're hit with the brutal realization that they're dealing with one of the worst mental health struggles out there.
Some people just can't wrap their heads around that. Especially since schizophrenia isn't something you "fix," it's genetic, and it pretty much rewrites the rest of your life.
I honestly believe that’s when a certain number of people decide they've had enough.

I'd compare it to finding out you have HIV.
Maybe it’s easier to cope if you're too far gone to process it, but trying to find a silver lining in something that negative is exhausting. Sometimes, giving up just feels like the easier path.
I don't blame them, especially those who don't have a solid support system of family, friends, or doctors behind them.

There actually are a few ways to get that click.
click2

Thomas Nelson25 said:I don't know all the specifics, but I'm curious—so things would just get worse, right?

Look, people who believe in Boise or aliens don't deal with stuff like this—there's your answer.

Guess what? 🤣.
Did I really say those two groups were out of their minds?

Nah, I don't have the answers.
Still at it.

Go ahead and Google it:
So, I was reading up on schizophrenia symptoms the other day. It’s heavy stuff. It isn't just one thing; it's more like this weird, messy spectrum of how the brain processes reality. You've got the "positive" symptoms—which sounds funny because they aren't actually good—like hallucinations where you're seeing or hearing things that just aren't there, or delusions where you're convinced of stuff that makes zero sense to anyone else. Then there's the "negative" side, which is more about things being stripped away—losing interest in life, feeling totally numb, or just struggling to find the energy to even talk. It can be pretty overwhelming to wrap your head around.
So, talking about bipolar symptoms... it’s not just "mood swings." People think it’s like being happy one minute and sad the next, but that’s not really how the madness works. It's more like living on two different planets. On one side, you've got the manic stuff. It’s not just feeling good; it’s feeling invincible. You might stay up until 4 AM tearing apart a DIY project or suddenly decide you're going to start a tech startup in Austin overnight. Your brain feels like it has fifty tabs open and they're all playing different songs at full volume. You spend money you don't have, talk a mile a minute, and feel like you're finally seeing the world in high definition while everyone else is stuck in black and white. Then there's the crash. The depressive side isn't just being "bummed out." It’s heavy. It’s like walking through waist-deep mud every single day. You lose interest in everything—even the stuff you usually love, like watching the game or grabbing a burger with friends. Everything feels gray, exhausting, and totally pointless. It’s a wild ride, and honestly, it's pretty draining when you're stuck in the middle of it.
A psychotic break.
So, what exactly is a delusion?

And we'll talk then. 🙂

Joseph Bailey41 said:A diabetic will die if they stop taking insulin. Someone with schizophrenia won't.

Willy, technically speaking, people dealing with schizophrenia are actually at the highest risk when it comes to suicide attempts. So maybe they won't drop dead from skipping meds, but lacking that chemical balance in the brain could easily lead them to take their own life.

link

Thomas Nelson25 said:I think it's classified as a disorder in the manuals, though.
I get that there's stuff happening with brain chemistry and connections.

There's also schizotypal.

And it's a lifelong thing. You need treatment forever.
Just like diabetes.

So, honestly, why even ask someone who has to be on meds for the rest of their life why they shouldn't just stop taking them? 🍿

Joseph Bailey41 said:If all we have is love and peace, but no God involved... does that mean they'll start shooting too? 🤔

Look, if they're psychotic, yeah, there's a real chance they become a danger to themselves and everyone else.
Since you brought up that whole "love-is-everything" guy, I figured I'd point out where that logic actually leads.

Thomas Nelson25 said:Everyone has their own frequency—it's just that for you, the depression hits so hard it's unbearable, so you have to rely on medication... but what would actually happen if you just quit cold turkey?

I mean, most people out there (even those with questionable mental health) are on something—tobacco, booze, or some kind of recreational drug, more or less...

You realize schizophrenia is an actual disease, right? Not just some "disorder."
Like, would you walk around asking diabetics if they really need that insulin, or why they don't just try living without it for, I don't know, a week? 🐔

Thomas Nelson25 said:What are the symptoms when it involves religious delusions—and why is getting help actually necessary? 😛

Joseph Bailey41 said:I’ve been wondering the exact same thing. I was just watching an interview with Pavun on YouTube, and honestly, the guy seems clearly psychotic, yet nobody thinks he needs help. So why would it be mandatory for Harold Anderson3 or anyone else?

(Just thinking out loud here—I don't want anyone to think I'm actually trying to push this kind of thing on anyone. 😳)

From what I gather, the whole point of treatment is just getting someone back to reality and grounded in the real world.
Obviously, you can't force someone into treatment unless they're a danger to themselves or others. But psychosis doesn't just vanish on its own. Someone who seems perfectly harmless today—preaching nothing but "love, God, and peace"—could decide tomorrow that the best way to spread that message is by storming a local mosque with an axe to show them the one true God.

Every psychosis gets worse if left untreated, which can lead to someone becoming dangerous, even if they aren't right out of the gate.

Harold Anderson3 said:I wouldn't exactly call myself a believer, but whenever I’ve experienced that "something" more—that mystical sensation that defies any kind of verbal description—it has invariably led me straight into a psychotic episode and a stay at the psychiatric ward. I remember reading somewhere that "healthy believers" tend to have slightly higher dopamine levels compared to atheists, and in my case, the hallmark of my illness is an extremely high surge of that specific neurotransmitter. Brandon Lopez6, you know better than anyone what I'm up against. It makes me wonder if my medication, which works by bringing those dopamine levels down, might also be dampening that "healthy" spark of faith in God, or perhaps some other subtle connection we can't quite perceive directly. Since we're discussing this from a psychological perspective, I've come to think that depending on one's brain chemistry, you essentially have atheists, healthy believers, and then the fanatics who actually require psychiatric intervention. I'm also aware of instances where various charismatic leaders have pushed people into trances that ultimately resulted in hospitalizations due to acute psychosis.

That’s exactly what I was aiming for. But honestly? It’s a pretty bittersweet feeling to actually be right about this.

Thomas Nelson25 said:Why is fanaticism even an issue if you're actually happy in that state?
People would just call it a "blessing"—I mean, isn't that how it used to be? Besides, those types of people were the ones writing holy books... you know, all the additions to the Bible and stuff.

So you're asking why anyone would even bother treating psychosis? Honestly, it’s a fair question if you haven't been through the wringer. It’s not just about "fixing" someone because they're acting weird; it's about the fact that when your brain starts playing tricks on you, reality becomes a total minefield. I remember this one buddy of mine back in Chicago—guy was brilliant, but once the episodes hit, he couldn't tell if his neighbor was a government spy or just a guy taking out the trash. It's terrifying. You treat it because nobody should have to live in a world where they can't trust their own eyes. It's about getting some ground under your feet again so you aren't constantly spinning out.
Rly? 😁

Thomas Nelson25 said:Hmm... what if we're talking about a personality disorder? 😁

Wait, what? 🤔