NOM

Basically this young adult is catatonic, nonresponsive. Hospital says its psychological, no medical cause. They refered the missionary for trauma psychotherapy. Mission leadership didn't alert parents, parents called in a welfare check bc they hadn't heard from their child in a few weeks and the MP tried to brush it aside, then conceded to send them home after mom kept asking questions. A connection in missionary medical support (MD) says the story doesn't add up. My thought initially was drug reaction but sounds like that's been ruled out. Anyone hear of something like this before?

No expert here but I'm betting this kid has just "checked out" psychologically because he wasn't coping with the mission rigors and demands well. That's not really his fault. He probably wasn't emotionally prepared being so young. He may not have had a "testimony" or the stress of constant failure may have been unexpected.

Whatever the cause, I don't blame him.

But I do get angry at these idiot mission presidents who try to cover up or keep parents in the dark about what their kids are going through. There's no excuse for that behavior. I don't know whether that's church policy or what but I had a similar experience with one of my sons who went through a brief period of despondency while on his mission. This was back in the early 2000's and when I called the MP, he refused to let me talk to him or contact him personally.

I have often regretted not just getting on a plane and flying over to see him and having a little visit without mission permission.

You can tell it's as cult when the organization restricts you from interaction with family members or withholds information about them. No true or honest organization usurps that kind of power from the family.

ETA:

My second son was assaulted and severely beaten by thugs while on his mission in South America. He was taken into the mission home for medical attention and had kidney damage and urinated blood for 3-4 days afterward. We never heard about that until after his mission was complete. This church policy is SO wrong and misguided. I lay full responsibility for this kind of idiocy on the Q15. They deserve great credit for being excellent business men. And that's where they all should go back to. Either go back to the "world" where they belong or retire and go play golf. They don't deserve to be running a real church much less a phony one.

Further, I'm betting with time this kid will do o.k. if his Bishop and SP have their heads on fairly straight. If his ward members will give him full support and refrain from any type of shaming, hopefully he'll do fine. It may take a couple of years.

Thoughtful wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:23 pm

Anyone hear of something like this before?

YES!

Read this: https://www.discovermagazine.com/health ... d-by-faith

Hagoth wrote: ↑

Sat Nov 30, 2019 11:31 am

Thoughtful wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:23 pm

Anyone hear of something like this before?

YES!

Read this: https://www.discovermagazine.com/health ... d-by-faith

Ah......

I remember reading this a number of years ago. Thanks for jogging my memory on this Hagoth. I can only believe that lowering the missionary age has contributed to these types of problems. Especially the early returns. Another brilliant revelation from inspired men.

Last year I came across a Sister missionary’s blog that had something similar. Her blog initially caught my attention because she was writing about her testimony of the BOM being tested. She was still very TBM about it, but you tell her shelf was breaking. I don’t think she realized her shelf was breaking, because she was so open about it, she was sincerely just struggling with doubts about the BOM and didn’t know what she was going through. She wrote about talking to the MP about her questions and praying harder, etc.

Anyway, it was literally like the next post that she was in the hospital for severe back pain. Then, the next post, she wrote the doctors were still trying figure out the cause of the back pain. Then the next post was that the MP had decided it would be best if she went home early for medical reasons so she could be treated for the health problems.

As someone who has experienced the stress of a faith transition, it seemed pretty clear that her cog dis stress was manifesting itself in real back pain. I bet the MP also probably realized the two were related and decided she was better off at home.

ETA: After I wrote this I went back and looked at the sister missionary’s blog and it looks like the posts about her BOm questions and doubts have been deleted. Now its only the typical TBM, “the church is the greatest” type of stuff and then it ends abruptly. Typical of TBMs who don’t want to express any doubt or struggle about the church.

Hagoth wrote: ↑

Sat Nov 30, 2019 11:31 am

Thoughtful wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:23 pm

Anyone hear of something like this before?

YES!

Read this: https://www.discovermagazine.com/health ... d-by-faith

Whoa.

This kid was not a young missionary, was well prepared, wanted to go, and had a great mission so far. Then suddenly sick. Still hospitalized.

Thanks for sharing similar stories.

"Conversion disorder." Wow! Another reason not to try and talk oneself out of honest doubts.

I did not want to go on a mission, but of course i did. There was way to much social pressure to go. I remember the first months I hated it so much. I use to think it would be OK if I got in an accident bad enough to send me home but not maim me for life.

Then later on my mission i use to think about just ridding my bike home. It was just 700 miles or so. Figured I would just have enough money to make it.

Of course they were all fantasies. I never did anything and finished the two years. Still it was not the best two years of my life. To this day it is one of my regrets I spent two years in my prime doing something I disliked so much.

I believe there are many missionaries that benefit, but there are just as many that hate it. I say shame on the leaders who have perpetuated the cultish mission agenda all these years. Toying with young peoples minds and shaming them into going. Like many things in the church it is showing signs of unraveling. Sooner the better I think.


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1smartdodog wrote: ↑

Sun Dec 01, 2019 8:38 pm

I say shame on the leaders who have perpetuated the cultish mission agenda all these years. Toying with young peoples minds and shaming them into going. Like many things in the church it is showing signs of unraveling. Sooner the better I think.


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This puts me in rememberance of a young man in the ward I grew up in who had always intended to go on his mission, but in his Senior year in high school fell hopelessly in love with his girlfriend. He was afraid to leave for the two years because he feared she wouldn't be there when he got back. So they were married.

Feeling some guilt for not serving his mission, when their first child was stillborn he was devastated and thought it was a sort of godly retribution for not fulfilling his responsibility. A self-inflicted payback. He wracked himself with guilt.

I can only hope that with time he "grew" out of that thinking.

That's the kind of twisted mental torture the church creates in it's impressionable youth by it's psychological coercion. Of course leadership would deny that they carry any responsibility for this type of occurance. But then they don't accept responsibility for anything that goes wrong in the church. It's ALWAYS the members fault for not understanding correctly.

Thoughtful wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:23 pm

Basically this young adult is catatonic, nonresponsive. Hospital says its psychological, no medical cause.

Has this been evaluated at a non-IHC hospital?

moksha wrote: ↑

Sun Dec 01, 2019 10:29 pm

Thoughtful wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:23 pm

Basically this young adult is catatonic, nonresponsive. Hospital says its psychological, no medical cause.

Has this been evaluated at a non-IHC hospital?

"We already gave him a priesthood blessing! What else could possibly be done?"

moksha wrote: ↑

Sun Dec 01, 2019 10:29 pm

Thoughtful wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:23 pm

Basically this young adult is catatonic, nonresponsive. Hospital says its psychological, no medical cause.

Has this been evaluated at a non-IHC hospital?

I don't know what they have in their area or who runs the facility. Missionary was admitted via ER after losing ability to shower, toilet, converse, etc. Now they are still inpatient but I am not clear whether its a medical or psychiatric hospital. (I do not live in the same area.) I heard they would discuss release this weekend, but havent heard criteria for discharge yet.

Thoughtful wrote: ↑

Sat Nov 30, 2019 9:10 pm

This kid was not a young missionary, was well prepared, wanted to go, and had a great mission so far. Then suddenly sick. Still hospitalized.

Thanks for sharing similar stories.

If this is a case of conversion disorder, maybe it's BECAUSE he was eager and well prepared and totally unprepared for an unexpected faith-devastating event. It seems like, if that is the case, his companion could offer the best clues about what happened just before the change. What I don't get is how the MP was just going to let it slide. A kid who is totally unresponsive and can't even go to the toilet by himself? Huh? What was the companion doing all this time? Changing diapers?

I hope there is some breakthrough with this awful situation. Please keep us updated if you get any news.

Hagoth wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 03, 2019 11:40 am

Thoughtful wrote: ↑

Sat Nov 30, 2019 9:10 pm

This kid was not a young missionary, was well prepared, wanted to go, and had a great mission so far. Then suddenly sick. Still hospitalized.

Thanks for sharing similar stories.

If this is a case of conversion disorder, maybe it's BECAUSE he was eager and well prepared and totally unprepared for an unexpected faith-devastating event. It seems like, if that is the case, his companion could offer the best clues about what happened just before the change. What I don't get is how the MP was just going to let it slide. A kid who is totally unresponsive and can't even go to the toilet by himself? Huh? What was the companion doing all this time? Changing diapers?

I hope there is some breakthrough with this awful situation. Please keep us updated if you get any news.

It's so bizarre! I am hoping to hear some sort of news soon.

Hagoth wrote: ↑

Sat Nov 30, 2019 11:31 am

Thoughtful wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 29, 2019 11:23 pm

Anyone hear of something like this before?

YES!

Read this: https://www.discovermagazine.com/health ... d-by-faith

Whoa. Mind blown, although I experience a similar phenomenon every Sunday morning...just the thoughts of going to church, spending a zero knowledge add morning at church does this to me...

I know this is a terrible situation for someone to be in. However, I can't help but to think of something like this:

After a few days, this former missionary comes to and announces to everyone in the hospital that they were taken up in the spirit and wracked with guilt for spreading the work of the devil. They then had an angel of the lord come to them and showed them the error of their way and now they have turned from Mormonism having seen the light and will spend the rest of their life spreading the true word of god.

If that happened, I would laugh my ass off. A modern Alma The Younger moment.

In all seriousness, I hope they are able to help this child.

Just This Guy wrote: ↑

Thu Dec 05, 2019 8:42 am

A modern Alma The Younger moment.

Wouldn't that be amazing?! And what would the church do? They would have to deny it and try to shut him up because God had bypassed them and delivered the message directly to someone else in a way that he never has and never will communicate with them.

Poor kid. I hope they find out the cause and that the child is healed.