Spirituality and Extreme States

This article is a reflection on my journey to become a clinical psychologist following a psychotic episode in which I believed I was a reincarnation of Buddha and Christ with a mission to write a new “Holy Book.” But this 2-month episode also served as my spiritual awakening. It transformed me from being a secularist, totally unconcerned with issues pertaining to religion and spirituality, to becoming a spiritual seeker. In my career I have focused on spiritual emergencies and worked to get this concept into the mainstream through a DSM category.