Do fundies believe in ghosts? Do you?

[mockingbird]

ETA: I also know people who take supplements like St. John's Wort for depression and feel it is effective. What I have heard from medical professionals though is that it can interact with psych drugs or other meds that typically interact with psych drugs, because it is similar to an antidepressant. (I could be wrong, but I think that was the root of some antidepressants - a lot of medications (like aspirin) have their roots in being derived and purified from an original natural remedy.) I asked my doctor once out of curiosity and I believe she thought it could be effective since it has a similar effect, but would recommend an FDA-approved medication because of better control over what ingredients are involved, dosing, etc. I would imagine she would also want to know that a patient was depressed so she could monitor them and watch for signs of suicide or switch meds or refer to a psychiatrist if what they were taking wasn't working. I think for the people I know who use supplements like that, they will openly admit they are taking it for depression, but feel more comfortable with a "natural" remedy because it seems safer (because it is natural) to them. Maybe there is some stigma against taking psych meds or they just "don't like taking drugs" at all.

It won't let me edit this but I just wanted to clarify I am not trying to vilify people who take supplements. I take vitamins which could be considered supplements. The last few sentences are based off of conversations where they specifically said they chose a natural remedy over what their doctor recommended, usually because it was natural/"not a drug".

[bluelady]

The people I know use alternative medication for chronic conditions, mostly chronic pain. I know doctors who recommend acupuncture for chronic pain and stress and people who use chiropractors and massage for back pain. One of my friends does a lot of yoga and meditation for stress, not even sure if that is considered alternative anymore.

ETA: I also know people who take supplements like St. John's Wort for depression and feel it is effective. What I have heard from medical professionals though is that it can interact with psych drugs or other meds that typically interact with psych drugs, because it is similar to an antidepressant. (I could be wrong, but I think that was the root of some antidepressants - a lot of medications (like aspirin) have their roots in being derived and purified from an original natural remedy.) I asked my doctor once out of curiosity and I believe she thought it could be effective since it has a similar effect, but would recommend an FDA-approved medication because of better control over what ingredients are involved, dosing, etc. I would imagine she would also want to know that a patient was depressed so she could monitor them and watch for signs of suicide or switch meds or refer to a psychiatrist if what they were taking wasn't working. I think for the people I know who use supplements like that, they will openly admit they are taking it for depression, but feel more comfortable with a "natural" remedy because it seems safer (because it is natural) to them. Maybe there is some stigma against taking psych meds or they just "don't like taking drugs" at all.

Just an add on. A friend of mine was in a pretty severe car accident a number of years back. She has been on and off medication for some time now. Her doctor finally recommended yoga and it is the only thing that consistently works for her. To the point where her doctor has "prescribed" it so that her insurance company will pay for it.

[Artemis]

"I picked the herbs fresh this morning and blessed them myself"

Herbalism may be an 'alternative' practice, but I don't feel it can really be classed with some of the more abstruse alternative disciplines.

Plants contain active chemical substances (alkaloids, saponins etc) which can alter human physiology, and many existing medicines are plant derivatives, morphine being the obvious case. Classing herbalism with e.g. homoeopathy and reiki is risky and can lead to underestimating the effects herbal supplements can have on people. Obviously not all 'traditional' herbal remedies are efficacious - the Doctrine of Signatures was pretty crap, basically - but 'herbs' are still a valid part of traditional as well as alternative medicine, even if now they do come as extracted elements rather than the whole plant.

[Minerva]

The people I know use alternative medication for chronic conditions, mostly chronic pain. I know doctors who recommend acupuncture for chronic pain and stress and people who use chiropractors and massage for back pain. One of my friends does a lot of yoga and meditation for stress, not even sure if that is considered alternative anymore.

ETA: I also know people who take supplements like St. John's Wort for depression and feel it is effective. What I have heard from medical professionals though is that it can interact with psych drugs or other meds that typically interact with psych drugs, because it is similar to an antidepressant. (I could be wrong, but I think that was the root of some antidepressants - a lot of medications (like aspirin) have their roots in being derived and purified from an original natural remedy.) I asked my doctor once out of curiosity and I believe she thought it could be effective since it has a similar effect, but would recommend an FDA-approved medication because of better control over what ingredients are involved, dosing, etc. I would imagine she would also want to know that a patient was depressed so she could monitor them and watch for signs of suicide or switch meds or refer to a psychiatrist if what they were taking wasn't working. I think for the people I know who use supplements like that, they will openly admit they are taking it for depression, but feel more comfortable with a "natural" remedy because it seems safer (because it is natural) to them. Maybe there is some stigma against taking psych meds or they just "don't like taking drugs" at all.

I considered taking St. John's Wort at several points in high school because I was afraid to talk to my doctor about my depression. Buying some pills and taking them secretly seemed like a way easier way to treat my depression than facing my fears and going through the emotional hell that would have been telling my parents about this thing I was experiencing. So while St. John's Wort can be a good tool in battling depression, including among people who never find a drug that works properly for them, it should always be emphasized that it should be used under medical supervision, because there are people who will take it so they don't have to see a doctor about it.

But yeah, St. John's Wort is an excellent example of alt med that's been proven effective.

[rock_girl]

I haven't seen anyone saying that they think everyone should believe in ghosts, unless I missed something. I've only seen people get upset because they were insulted by some of rock_girl's posts. And while I agree that what she initially said is no different than people referring to god as a sky fairy, I would never tell a Christian that they shouldn't be offended if their god is made fun of. If I mock god and insult one of our members, then they have every right to say "Hey, that's rude" and I can react however, that's basically what happened here.

Yup, pretty much. If I'm going to say that selling something that doesn't exist is no different than theft, someone is going to object, if only to defend that funny relative who worships crystals and makes good pie. I can wear that.

[freejoytoo]

I haven't seen anyone saying that they think everyone should believe in ghosts, unless I missed something. I've only seen people get upset because they were insulted by some of rock_girl's posts. And while I agree that what she initially said is no different than people referring to god as a sky fairy, I would never tell a Christian that they shouldn't be offended if their god is made fun of. If I mock god and insult one of our members, then they have every right to say "Hey, that's rude" and I can react however, that's basically what happened here.

Whilst I disagree with the majority of rock_girl's posts and understand why people have been insulted and are angry, I think people would have come down a lot less harder on her for her intial post about comparing it to fairies if it had been about God. People post Jesus memes on here all the time and hardly anyone remarks on it - I would also defend a Christian if he/she was offended but I think it's a rarer thing. I also really don't think you can compare disbelief in the paranormal to disbelief in people being gay. I don't think it was explictly said that people should believe in ghosts but to say that it's like not believing people are gay implies that disbelief is close-minded.

[SpeshulTaterTot]

I took St. John's Wort for a pretty long time, it definitely helped me. My doctor actually recommended it to me because he didn't want to pull out the big guns right away.

As for ghosts, I definitely believe in them and don't think it clashes with being Catholic. I remember talking to my grandfather all the time when I was a child, and way too many "weird" things have happened to me not to believe.

[rock_girl]

To be fair, my closed mindedness wasn't just implied, it was stated with hostility on several occasions :lol:.

The only thing that I had a problem with in this thread was the persecuted spiritualist vs. lgbtq recognition thing, especially as it was prefaced with 'oh, I love teh gayz more than anything, I do loads for them'. Patronising much? I'm not going to rant on about what the lgbtq community should and shouldn't be offended by because it's not my place to make those claims, but the argument felt very, very wrong.