Psychologist
Before a priest will even consider a demonic possession he will have a person go to a psychologist or psychiatrist to write out any natural explanations. Very often will a person confuse a mental disorder or illness with demonic possession and some of the most common are Schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, dissociative identity disorder or personality disorders. Schizophrenia is probably the most confused mental disorder among individuals who are accusing themselves or others of demonic possession. The reason may be because of this, "people with the disorder {schizophrenia] may hear voices other people don't hear. They may believe other people are reading their minds, controlling their thoughts, or plotting to harm them. This can terrify people with the illness and make them withdrawn or extremely agitated" (National Institute of Mental Health).
In an "Interview with an Exorcist; Fr. Gary Thomas wrestles with the reality of Satan," Fr. Gary states, "when a person comes to me, I may say, let's pray for awhile. I want to learn more about you. I'm always listening for doorways...But I'm always asking...any kinds of trauma...presenting an opening [to demons]...Then I may refer them to our clinical psychologist. If they've been under psychiatric care I might have our psychiatrist look at them. If they start manifesting in ways I've never seen before I might refer them to a doctor. If we get to the point of doing a formal exorcism, I always have our prayer team involved, even before the exorcism is going to happen, just praying for the person, praying for me" (qtd. in Coffin).
Dr. Richard Gallagher is a professor of clinical psychology at New York Medical College and has a close relationship with exorcists within the Catholic Church. "For the past 25 years [he] has assisted exorcists throughout the United States by screening people who say they are possessed and evaluating them for mental health afflictions" (Burke). It is important to note that he has never declared or diagnosed one of his patients as being demonically possessed. He explains that authority lies with the exorcist and that he is only a tool used in weeding out whether not a person is experiencing something that can be defined as a natural explanation. "'Most priests are well-educated and on the skeptical side, and that's good,' says Gallagher, 'A large percentage of people I see do turn out to have psychiatric problems...'Possession itself is not in any of the standard diagnostic manuals. Nor should it be,' says Gallagher. 'It's a spiritual disorder, not a psychiatric disorder" (qtd. in Burke).
In an "Interview with an Exorcist; Fr. Gary Thomas wrestles with the reality of Satan," Fr. Gary states, "when a person comes to me, I may say, let's pray for awhile. I want to learn more about you. I'm always listening for doorways...But I'm always asking...any kinds of trauma...presenting an opening [to demons]...Then I may refer them to our clinical psychologist. If they've been under psychiatric care I might have our psychiatrist look at them. If they start manifesting in ways I've never seen before I might refer them to a doctor. If we get to the point of doing a formal exorcism, I always have our prayer team involved, even before the exorcism is going to happen, just praying for the person, praying for me" (qtd. in Coffin).
Dr. Richard Gallagher is a professor of clinical psychology at New York Medical College and has a close relationship with exorcists within the Catholic Church. "For the past 25 years [he] has assisted exorcists throughout the United States by screening people who say they are possessed and evaluating them for mental health afflictions" (Burke). It is important to note that he has never declared or diagnosed one of his patients as being demonically possessed. He explains that authority lies with the exorcist and that he is only a tool used in weeding out whether not a person is experiencing something that can be defined as a natural explanation. "'Most priests are well-educated and on the skeptical side, and that's good,' says Gallagher, 'A large percentage of people I see do turn out to have psychiatric problems...'Possession itself is not in any of the standard diagnostic manuals. Nor should it be,' says Gallagher. 'It's a spiritual disorder, not a psychiatric disorder" (qtd. in Burke).