Sudden religious experiences can be symptoms of temporal lobe epilepsy and such attacks can be caused by abnormalities in the brain such as injury or disease. I strongly advice anybody who has religious experiences to have their brains checked for possible abnormalities. If you come across somebody who suddenly start to have religious experiences or seem to become obsessed with religious matters get them to a doctor!
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18171635
Just had to mention this. I have right temporal lobe Epilepsy ever since I was young. Religions experiences and auras and Epileptic episodes are completed different. For example, some people with epilepsy may have a "flush" feeling. Others may zone out for a couple of seconds while others hallucinate. In each case, their consciousness or awareness (literal) is disturbed. The nuerons in that area of the brain goes "off track" and whichever part of the body it affects is how you see it affects them.
Religious experiences, on the other hand, I would claim it closer to psychology
not neurology. I guess personal experience lets me understand that. Why psychology? Many if not all religious have some type of need of mental, physical, and/or spiritual fulfillment. The nature of religion brings a sense of peace and wholeness. Unlike Epilepsy, especially temporal lobe that controls memory but not hallucinations. Usually most people are aware even those who practice as a medium or in deep prayer or more aware of their feelings. In seizures the core mark is unawareness. It impairs consciousness to where religious experiences (which is ultimate and peaceful awareness) cannot be reached.
I'd say the article is reaching out on a limb to connect the two. Epilepsy is neurology. In my opinion, religion is psychological. I see a psychologist for pseudo seizures. Seizures that do not have any neurological cause (nothing on the EEG). So, everything, my ictal and postical and the seizure itself are all psychological (as they say).
However, like a seizure, it alters awareness. Religious people are more self-aware and more at peace. They usually
know who or what they contact or whatever state they are in. Seizures, by their nature, are not like that post and ictal.
Post ictal psychosis? Never heard that in seizure disorders. You can call some seizures psychosis like pseudo seizures and maybe seizures that involve aura/ictal hallucinations; however, everything comes from the
brain not the heart and definitely not the mind. I read someone that this can be a religious thing. For example, I went to a protestant church and I had a seizure. Members didn't call 911. Instead, they held me down trying to get the holy spirit from me.
I think a lot of this is still ignorance. We are still learning about the brain and it does affect us psychologically. Most religious say their experiences are
not psychological (mine included since I know and have TLEpilepsy) but like any other event just more personal.
The article is right that the temporal lobe involves emotions. I experience that daily. The difference is, religious experiences are emotional (anyone can say that) but they do not replace or not seizures post nor ictal. People have emotions in religious experiences but as long as they are aware of the event, it isn't a seizure--hence it isn't epilepsy.
The article is reaching out on a limb trying to connect the two. I can see how it makes sense according to the author; and, as a patience with TLEpilepsy, I understand the differences between post and ictal, aura, and seizure experiences.
I actually feel the OP had a religious experience and not related to Epilepsy. Psychologically, which is fine because our emotions and experiences are, by nature, psychological. Epilepsy involves the neurons in the brain and alters awareness; so, I (and others) would find it impossible to have religious experiences with that type of altered awareness. If anything, we'd forgot (nature of seizure) what happened and can't associate it with religion because of forgetfulness.
Just my thoughts.
