Delusional Thinking

Delusional Thinking

Fr. Dale Matson

And God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. (Genesis 1:17, ASV”

I am elderly (77) and perhaps some would say, “This guy is out of touch with the modern world.” “His thinking is so black and white”. “He is so binary.” I was raised in an analogue world not a digital world. 

When I was working on my doctorate at Marquette University in Counseling Psychology in the 1980’s, I remember being asked by my advisor Dr. Kifmueller, what I would do if a homosexual wanted counseling. My answer was that I would refer the person to someone else, that I didn’t feel qualified to work with such a person. He encouraged me to finish my doctorate in the Educational Psychology program, which I did. I remember his bow ties. To me they are the sign of an expert or a crackpot. 

While I was working on my master’s degree in School Psychology, I worked at a county mental hospital. I remember one adult patient who thought he was a woman and wanted to have his testicles removed and insisted on the county paying for it. He would often slip out of bed and wander the halls at night dressed only in a diaper. I used to hate it when the Grateful Dead came to perform at Alpine Valley. We would have scores of John and Jane Does in the hospital emergency room every night of the concerts.

I remember many delusional patients including a woman who insisted on the attendants calling her Mrs. Elvis Presley. The attendants were the only ones who had keys to the locked doors. And the key helped remind me that I was a worker and not an inpatient. I was surrounded by lots of folks who were firmly ensconced in their delusions. One young man that we had placed in a security room was convinced the world had ended. He was so convincing that I checked to see if there were still cars in the parking lot outside. 

Cigarettes were behavioral rewards for those who obeyed the unit rules. I remember one of the movies we watched on weekends was “The Shining”. It seemed like an inappropriate movie for this group. 

And then there were folks who did not fit into the DSM. These were scary people who had given themselves over to Satan. One lady said that all her problems were solved by Satan…but of course she was in a mental institution. A man on the unit saw a Time Magazine with a cover of Pope John Paul, went into a rage and tore the magazine to bits. 

So many of these folks were fragile to begin with but would have made it in this world except for their drug involvement. The drugs pushed them into a madness from which most will probably never recover. John (not his real name) had a crucifix around his neck to protect him from the vampires that came after him in his sleep. He didn’t believe in drugs that the nurses offered but would accept any drug offered to him on the streets.

It seems like delusions are now mainstream and available on every street in every town.

Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy.