Both science and religion espouse the idea that we can receive helpful warnings via our feelings.
From a scientific standpoint proponents of Polyvagal theory examine how our brain and nervous system are constantly evaluating and reacting to threat at a deeper, more primal level than the conscious mind.
Our evolutionary history initiates our fight or flight response when it feels we are in danger even before the rational mind kicks in.
Consider experiences where you have had a startle response to something that wasn’t in fact dangerous (a shadow in the dark, or a friend coming around a corner suddenly). This is your brain’s way of protecting you even before you get a chance to think about it.
Your brain and nervous system are pre-primed to protect and warn you of danger in a host of different ways.
Some call these abilities neuroception; still others call it intuition. It may manifest in a “vibe” you get from someone that you can’t put your finger on or your reaction to a particular unfamiliar sound in your environment.
Members of some religious faiths are taught to recognize “bad feelings” or a feeling of uneasiness as a form of communication from God.
On the other side of the epistemological spectrum many believe that God directs us with impressions, revelation, and inspiration. This includes warnings to avoid physical danger, “the wrong path” or poor decisions. Similar to Shakespeare’s witches in Macbeth we may feel a type of “prickling in our thumbs when something wicked this way comes.”
For example many members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints grew up hearing stories like the following:
“...Wilford Woodruff [a prominent church leader]..was bringing some Saints from New England and Canada to the West. They had scheduled passage on a boat, but the Spirit spoke to Elder Woodruff, “Don’t go aboard that steamer, nor your company.” He obeyed the voice. The boat departed and, some fifty yards downstream, caught fire and sank. (See A Story to Tell, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1945, p. 320.)”
Or,
“Two missionaries related that one night they were walking a familiar countryside road. Suddenly, they both had an impression that they should go no farther in that direction. They retraced their steps and took another way home. The next day, they wondered why they had felt constrained to stop. They went back, this time in daylight, and found that, within a few feet of where they had stopped, a bridge had washed out. These are a few examples of the Spirit constraining people from doing something. (Jay E. Jensen “Have I Received An Answer From the Spirit?” Ensign Apr. 1989)
Stories and teachings used to illustrate this kind of divine communication can be confusing to those of us with anxiety disorders.
As someone that has struggled with an anxiety disorder my whole life I remember growing up in my faith constantly petrified of ignoring a prompting and thus casting myself into certain doom. “Wait. Was that a prompting? I had a feeling to not walk that way? Maybe I’m going to die. Maybe I’m going to make the wrong choice.”
These stories of revelatory warnings spun in my mind and caused a lot of frustration and doubt.
Anxiety or Revelation?
I believe that at the intersection of these religious beliefs and scientific research is an important question for believers:
Is what I am experiencing “revelation”, or “just me”? Am I just nervous or is this revelation?
And, does it matter?
I’d say yes. It matters. I think it matters if we are receiving communication from the Divine or miscommunication from an overactive amaygdala. Personally, I feel this is important because I believe the ability to distinguish what is real and what is not in our life affects our personal power and ability to move forward and meet our goals. Ultimately, I believe discerning what is real and true sets us free while attention to falsehood leads us away from where we want to be.
It is important to understand that while our brain’s ability to warn us is a great gift these parts of the brain can malfunction and send us false messages.
The ability that our brain has to warn us of potential danger is a great blessing to us.
However, it may be helpful to understand that these systems can malfunction and send us false and unhelpful signals. For some of us an overactive amygdala may result in a generalized anxiety disorder. For others perhaps a malfunctioning caudate nucleus may make it very difficult to get over a feeling of uneasiness common to those who suffer from OCD. For still others a traumatic event may leave our bodies and mind hyper-aware of threat in our environment.
These conditions can make it particularly difficult to distinguish a false message from helpful intuition and/or a true message from God.
(In his book Xenocide Orson Scott Card introduces the idea that OCD urges can be confused for spiritual promptings. In fact, he introduces a society where a major religious order evaluates someone’s level of spiritually by the degree of hyper-carefulness associated with OCD symptoms! Imagine how confusing that would be--If someone was making religious decisions based on OCD urges.)
Consider the overlap between certain teachings about revelation and some clinical and mental health problems.
For example, here is the teachings about revelation found in a Mormon publication:
One day, while I was reading the Doctrine and Covenants, one phrase caught my attention: “As that subject seems to occupy my mind, and press itself upon my feelings the strongest.” (D&C 128:1.) I realized that this is another way in which the Holy Ghost works with us. A subject or thought will stay with us, and we may mull over it or reflect upon it again and again until we understand it more thoroughly. (Jay E. Jensen “Have I Received An Answer From the Spirit?” Ensign Apr. 1989)
Seems simple enough. Like Farmer Hogget in the movie Babe good Mormons know “that little ideas that tickled, and nagged, and refused to go away should never be ignored, for in them lie the seeds of destiny”.
But here’s where it gets tricky. OCD is also associated with recurrent and persistent thoughts, urges, or images. Some individuals even report a distressing sense of “incompleteness” or uneasiness until things look, feel, or sound “just right.” Furthermore, the obsessions of OCD can include content that is odd, irrational, or of a seemingly “magical” nature. Sometimes OCD beliefs can include an inflated sense of responsibility and the tendency to overestimate threat; perfectionism and intolerance of uncertainty; and an over-importance of thoughts (e.g., believing that having a forbidden thought is as bad as acting on it) and the need to control thought.
So, how do I know if my urge to go back and check the oven after I left the house is a warning from God or an OCD urge?
To make matters worse many times Mormon "revelation stories" begin with or emphasize “I didn’t know why I was doing it...”. So, in my faith culture we also emphasize that sometimes these important revelatory feelings don’t follow rational thought.
Very confusing to someone with an anxiety disorder.
Now, I’m not suggesting that we completely ignore our intuition or this “sixth sense” we have been born with. However, I am suggesting a healthy skepticism of our feelings—realizing that not everything we feel is “true” or helpful, well, can be helpful!
How do I know if my feelings of uneasiness are God’s way of communicating with me or are “just me”?
I don’t pretend to have all the answers. And I don’t think we can ever get away from some of the trial and error learning associated with life. However, for what it’s worth, here are some things that may help:
Just remember that not every anxious, worried thought is “revelation”. Thoughts and feelings come from many different places: anxiety disorders, lack of sleep, trauma, normal fluctuations in mood, etc.
We can establish a baseline for how we generally perceive the world. For example, if you feel significant anxiety 6 out of 7 days a week regularly, you may be ok to doubt whether one more feeling of anxiety is a revelation or warning of God or just one more instance of anxiety that is “normal” for you.
You can reality check by counseling with trusted friends, family, professionals, and ecclesiastical leaders. As we continue to learn about the difference between anxiety and helpful intuition it is we carefully choose some trusted souls to share their perception of what we are experiencing.
We can learn to distinguish helpful intuition from the unhelpful symptoms of an anxiety disorder.
Also some religious teachings can help counteract the confusing overlap between anxiety and revelation.
Sometimes when I am tempted to interpret anxiety as revelation I reflect on Paul’s teaching in 2 Timothy 1:7
“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
In my experience very few decisions I have made in fear turn out to be helpful.
Rather, when I make decisions that flow from faith, hope, excitement—more positive emotions—do I look back with confidence in my decisions. In fact, I would venture to say that while I believe we *can* receive helpful warning in our lives, taking counsel from our fears is almost always a recipe from disaster.
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