Case Study: White Australian Male

A 44-year-old white Australian man who was not religious was referred to outpatient psychiatric treatment. He had been playing with an Ouija board for two months when he started to believe that a spirit had entered his body through his rectum and was controlling him. He thought the spirit made him move and speak in a certain way.

He sought help from a local church, where he was told it was a psychiatric problem and that he was not really possessed. Two exorcisms at a local church failed to achieve any improvement.

Remember to answer these questions from your textbooks and NP guidelines. At all times, explain your answers.

1. Discuss the relationship between mental illness and religion.
2. Is this classified as psychopathology? Support your response using DSM5 criteria.
3. Submission Instructions:
   • Your initial post should be at least 500 words, formatted and cited in current APA style with support from at least 2 academic sources. Your initial post is worth 8 points.
   • You should respond to at least two of your peers by extending, refuting/correcting, or adding additional nuance to their posts. Your reply posts are worth 2 points (1 point per response.)
   • All replies must be constructive and use literature where possible.