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Has some one being born with natural gifts, do you think that mental illness can have an effect on the a natural Witches ability to use their gifts?

I'm not looking for yes or no answers here. I want to know why you think, what you think. Thank you.

it might have an effect. i'm a natural born witch, but i'm not too powerfull. i'm also bipolar. i dont know if the bipolar disorder has anything to do with my limited powers, but they seem to circle mainly around water magic (possibly because its my element). sorry i couldent be much help, mabey someone else has a better answer.

I don't know if my answer will help any! Your emotions go into your magic there for if you are upset angry anything like that it's going to affect your magic! So yes I honestly think it could have an affect on it!

I think everyone is born with the ability to use magic/powers. I just dont think everyone choses to use them. Like the person above me said, emotions play a huge part in magic/powers and I think anything (not just disorders) that upset us has an effect on our ability to use those magic/powers.

i also think everyone is borned with them. But not all walk the path so they learn to use it.

i've never suffered from a mental illness but i am assuming that an imbalance chemically or hormonally would imbalance your abilities. i'd say that taking a firm grip on any sort of illness only makes you stronger.

well, it seems to me that a mental illness, or any emotional imbalance..no matter what would affect any powers or any magic done.

What is a "natural witch"? Do you mean someone who was born a witch? If that is the case then I don't think psych disturbances have any effect on witches. Not unless you act out and get captured and put in a psych facility; that is only if you scare people.

i think it would diminish them depending on what type of mental illness they have

a "natural witch" is born knowing how to manipulate the energies to do as they wish, one way of casting a spell i would assume. in other words, we don't get up in fancy occult stores to "book-learn" how to do magick..we have the basic concepts down already and use books to refine what we already know.

Yes it affects your magic. If u are not in the right frame of mind the magic will not be as effective

http://www.empathys.co.uk/35.html

i finded this article kinda interesting in this subject.

I think it would affect your magic if you have a mental disorder. You probably wouldn't be able to concentrate like you would if you didn't.

It would depend if you are taking a chemical to help with your inbalance.

I was lucky to be guided by teachers and also to attend meditation classes...this helps one learn how to put the mind in a relaxed state.

I am bi-polar one and through meditation I have learnt that it is a diease that is controllable. One just has to learn to change their whole perspective of their thinking.

Bi-polar one is not as bad as the higher bi-polars. This is just what has helped me to overcome depression....unnecessary crying. Being up and down like a roller coaster.

Personally I would think that any form of a mental unbalance could affect the way one practices their craft. For me it takes being able to focus on the task as I do a ritual. Centering is key I believe. If ones mind is not centered then I see problems arising within the attempt. Just an opinion.

That is where meditation helps the mind to become focusued. After years of meditation you learn to become into the relaxed mode of thinking.
This helps greatly when performing magic...for you have recondidtioned the mind to concentrate more indepth of what you are doing.

Of course I am on no medication...nor do I now have the signs of bi-polar. It was not a easy task....but the effort, and time put into it..well paided off.

Well ,if a natural witch..or any witch for that matter,has homicidal tendencies or anger problems or something,then yeh,she just might go around dishing out alot of bad stuff..

I do think that mental illness can have an effect on abilities, in many different ways. I believe that if a witch is more open to people's emotions, then she/he could develop a mental illness such as anxiety, panic attacks, depression. When you use your abilities they are stronger when used with high emotion, unfortunately this can cause you to loose control of them. Meaning that you may do something without meaning to.

I am a natural witch the only thing i can do is candles i have epilepsy also i have to be careful or in one spell I melt a brand new candle

I was born a natural witch..But Iam also bi-polor, my medications severely disable my abilities. I cant access my powers as easily or see as Iam usually able to.

During the time when I MUST cast, I'll stop my medication about 2 weeks prior...so that my abilities are at there fullest.

Yes I believe mental illness may very well effect a witches physic abilities.. To what level it would effect a natural born witches abilities would be effected would depend on the Witch and the illness of cause..

in many ways Yes I think and know it would.

If others saw their gifts they would write it off as part of their condition, if their gift was sight they would be even more insain or unstable. So on and so forth..

I have known a few and they ended up in state run hospitals and then dead... Not a pretty picture.

Yes it would affect the magic but I think more in a control then in power I don't think metal issues affect the power just the focus.

always, in the case of mental illness...seek help. it's no fun and certainly okay to get help.

i'm sure that mental illnesse's effects on magick vary at different degrees within people.

I think that they are born with powers and as we grow older we develop them just like talking.

we all know that the american indian shaman's use paoti to altar thier mental state to do magick and as so many people have already stated your emotional state of mind effects your magick with out a doubt

Mental illness I would think would effect your abilities the same way it affects you physically.
Autistic Children are physically stong. Its possible that It can make their magickal abilities just as strong, but without focus.

"we all know that the american indian shaman's use paoti to altar thier mental state to do magick and as so many people have already stated your emotional state of mind effects your magick with out a doubt"

Right but that is a different ball game.

Savants.....yes they are truely amazing.

just a note
Autistism is always different with who it effects

and i guess is the same with mental illness and natural witches. it can make them stronger in some cases or worse.
but magic should always find a way.

I dont think I can contribute to this. I know when I was younger I made a toy fall off the desk. I didn't touch it.

Magic, I believe, is the directing of energies within and around you. If you have conflicting energies, or energies that you cannot control, as is the case with most mental disabilities, I don't believe anybody could properly channel that energy to create efficient magic. However, by some strange twist of fate a mental illness could have the potential to enhance one's magical abilities, I suppose.

I think yes it does cuz I am a Natural born witch and I am Dyslectic and it makes it hard to study and learn new spells but it is just something I just learned to live with it

well I feel that everyone has a born gift it is just a matter of learning how to use it and fine tune it whether or not if you have any kind of mental disability or not to me has no bearing on you not using it yet maybe on how to control or fine tune it

My family is all natural Witches if that is what one chooses to call us LOL yet we each do have our own way of using and tuning it to our uses, some of us do have disorders yet it does not interfere with our giftsa or powers in any way. So I feel it depends on the individual ....

I mean you can be perfectly healthy in all aspects and still not be able to use your powers or gifts because you have not learn to.

I don't think mental illness would have an effect on the power itself... Just on how it is applied.

Some who know me on VR know I am a Gypsy, so I was born with a different "skill set" if you will. ~

im empathic and i have premonitions, and when im stressed it affects my abilities terribly

I think that a mental illness would affect a natural gift either way. It could go to the darker side it depends on the person.

As a person who can cast naturally, I would say that mental or emotional conditions could indeed effect the spells you are csting, but not necessarily all of the time.

Most people with mental or emotional issues do not suffer them all day, every day throughout their lives, and if given the correct medication, can actually be just like everyone else.

As emotions do effect magick in many ways, i would guess that there is a link between mental conditions and magick.

Also I feel that as magick can effect emotions and mentality, it would really go hand in hand.

Mener

lol. ignore my last post. i was distracted from the page i was reading.

but i think a lot of people have hit this on the nose. emotions or emotional states/sicknesses affect every day living, so one can only assume since magic is a highly pliable source. it would also be affected by a imbalance as well. like i said before there is no natural casters. we all learn it from somewhere. some people are just made aware of it at different times based on life in general. maybe your grandma showed you or you were so scared when a large dog tried to bite you. the stronger the emotion the stronger the effect. the more you practice the more capable you are of manipulating the energy around you.

Mental illness would affect our powers because our mental stability is required to contain the powers we hold within ourselves. it's difficult not to lash out with raw power in an unstable state.

I actually think it does. It’s a good question. If you do not feel up to par, or u have depression (etc.) then it probably would have an impact on your powers. Sometimes it may be that you arent “feeling” up to completing the task you are trying to complete. Think about this. If you arent feeling well, or feeling down, your body suffers right, so is there any reason your powers wouldnt?

Sincerely Me,
Blair Cresent (*

yes i do believe it makes a dif, and must be intune and positive to achieve such a power effectively

well the thing is that anyone whom uses a power must be focused on the craft and what their sole purpose is that the out come is a positive one and not a negative one.... So fram of mind is very important to practice any gift. even if someone has mental problems they need to still focus on Positive things when doing it.

Obviously , mental illness effects every aspect of the sufferers life , and being a Witch with Bi-Polar disorder , I would say , yes it effects your abilities , in both positive and negative ways , I think , depending on the illness and what sort of working you're attempting.

yes you are born with the gift for it is who you are and apart of your family history. it is up to the person to choose to execpt that part of there life or not. if you think that you are then i think it would be best to find out what part of it is your and learn as much as you can about it. if you are it is in your blood and will come to you just like riding a bike.

yes i belive it can affect you, myself, i can " sense " stuff. im rather gifted with it, but, alot of times it's clouded, and, it sucks when i try to rely on it to much.

Yes. I believe any emotion can interact with any ability. If you take empathy for an example, if you have something in the way of you and another person, it is going to be harder to get a solid read. I don't see why it can't be any different in magic.

I believe that any illness affects how your magic works. Mental or not your emotions feed to the energy that you possess and can either help or hinder your abilities.

I would believe that it would have an effect on the magic being done because it would throw off the natural balance once needs to work the magic. But then again In my opinion is that any illness at all would effect this internal balance.

It would seem that yes it would a limited effect on the amount of your powers it would effect... but i wouldn't see it as much of a bother as mental illness runs in my family and it hasn't effected me ...yet ...blessed be

I fully believe that the healthier your mental faculties the stronger your rituals,invocations etc - I quote- "Wicca teaches that nature includes a broad spectrum of mental and spiritual states of which most of us are ignorant. Effective Wiccan ritual enables us to slip into such states, allowing communication and communion with the Goddess and God."(Scott Cunningham) - c/o http://www.bewitchingways.com/rituals/rituals.htm

So having said that i believe that any mental illness per se would be a hindrance to your abilities to perform any rituals etc successfully...then again i haven't practiced in over 12 years now so who knows?

Couldnt have said it better Neocrop

If a natural which is strong enough the inbalance of emotion would not affect the powers. But for one still trying to control their emotion and keep that seperated from their powers would be affect depending on which emotion.

being one who has had a chemical imbalance and one that still practices i would say it would be dependant on how that person believed it affected them as for myself it causes me to use more focus on things i do so i dont get lost in everything at one time

Yes but I actually think it help me when I have my seizures it keeps me from relly hurting myself and several times people have come over "just becuase" had has found me on the floor passed out

Does being drunk affect anything???? :P

im not sure its posible

i'd say maybe ----- depending on the ilness... confusion would have a great effect ...

i would just like to say that no1 is born a witch.. being a witch is a choice that u make when u fully understand all the responsibilites that are entilted to u

why do you have to be a "witch" to be born with special/certain abilities? There are ppl who have certain mental illness whom are genious. Some people are savants with savant syndrome..that have computer brains and beyond..Or perhaps their brains are more tuned with other dimensions and realities. Things that for this dimension and being a human of todays world, do not always seem to help in todays society...Let alone in nature..Some ppl whom can't remember the recorded information, are sort of lost in time...They can't learn from mistakes, let alone konw they even made one...Yet perhaps they hold key to something great...Perhaps some of us can tap into certain things more than others..Things beyond this realities webs...Beneith the veil of humanized eyes...I have experienced and tapped into things, perhaps born with, or rememberence of other worldly things...Sadly some of the savants would not survive an attack in the wild...if humans were all like that, we would die off, because we live in a world where we have to fight to survive, and remember what we learn, along with have instincts..perhaps through evolution...that's why not everyone is so in touch with other things...but some intuition is a key role in survival...and other times, it's just seeing what you can't always avoid..and we don't always embrace the inevitable...

Xvoid is absolutely right about this!!!!!!

many practitioners of Magic (Witches, Shamen, Mages etc) have used halucinogenic substances to help with visions or to assist in the transisition to another state of consciousness - sometimes in the form of LSD or Heroin, sometimes in the form of Fly Agaric or Peyote - but what they are doing is reproducing a state of mind which often occurs naturally in someone who is menatally ill due to a chemical imballance.

in olden times, people who suffered fits (such as epileptics) were veiwed as being holy and touched by the gods, so often were "natural Witches".

It can be a help or a hiderence - depending on whether the Witch is able to control their powers, and more importantly able to tell the difference between a true vision and a psychotic delusion.

i have known schizophrenics to have genuine telepathic abilities, but this is often marred by paranoia, so sometimes they imagine they know what someone is thinking when it is really just there own fear.

I was born into a family with a history of witchcraft.. my mother a christain and a very strict one never wanted me to know the reall truth about my families past... she couldn't keep me from my birthright I know I am meant for something greater I feel it inside me... but I will never tell her.. I believe that people do infact have metal stress from living their lives keeping their secrets though they possess a gift they aren't freed from the mortal stresses that is this world around us...we can't run from it and we most certainly can't hide it is all around us the only thing we can do is cope... though magic exisits in our lives we can't control everything...

I think that mental disorders would effect the outcome of magick just as much as the effects of drugs and alcohol have. Simply put the energy from your emotional state, coupled with your focus, will and intent need to be clear. If it is muddled or murky then things will go astray immediately!

Hence a clear mind, clear emotional energy and clear intention is vital. So a mental disorder would affect all of that badly.

i think it does. our magic is tied to our emotions

sry not a witch

im not a witch

well i am a natural born witch, it runs in my blood. i find if i'm sick or incapasitated i won't do anything magical, wecause it will strain me or make me fell worse.

when I'm going through a bad bout of depression,I don't do work with magic as I have found it tends to have a adversed affect on what I'm doing.

emotions will alter your magic.

many things can alter your gifts emotions, other people, places, but if you are born with a gift and have an illness i believe gift and illness work together

Has some one being born with natural gifts, do you think that mental illness can have an effect on the a natural Witches ability to use their gifts?


Yes, mental illness can have an effect on your abilities as a witch. It requires a full and clear mind free from struggle to practice magic/the craft/ or whatever you prefer to call it. If you are mentally ill, or your attention is not fully on what you are doing, you can easily foul up the whole process and possibly endanger yourself and others.

I think that whatever handicap a person has will never get in the way of a gift that one has since birth. Maybe the gift would make up for the handicap that that person has to endure.

everything that we hav is already inside us

I'm autistic and it has an effect on my abilities. It enhances them actually. In fact, my autism may be the cause. It allows my mind to tap into certain forms of energy as well as block out others which may be harmful. This makes it impossible for anyone to feed off my energy and it seems that is also makes demonic possession impossible, thank goodness.

we are all born with healing powers.. mental/physical illness does not exist

i think that who ever has the gift its no good to them unless they actually know how to use it....if someone say is mentally challenged they really couldnt know how to truely use it and anyone there trying to tell about it is just not gonna believe them and chaulk it up to being metally challenged believe me i have a cousin in that fram of mind and iam the only one who believes her about it...... i feel sorry for her.........and i try and help her as much as possible.......

Humans only use a very small percentage of their brain unfortuntely, imagine the posibilities if we were able to tap into the parts of the brain that we currently do not access. The posibilities are endless.

I think that a person who is mental could still have giftsss like thiss or be able to develop them...which is dangerouse in most cases

Being a natural born , it was a life of hell things happen to you now that they persicute you terribly growing up. then at some point you block it so know-one see it to hide it from your children so they might not know and then you find out your daughter has inherited these special abilities.

Mental illness has been accused by many scientist in this aspect , insy=tead of dealing with it and nurturing it they condemn you.

I am BiPolar but it hasn't seemed to effect anything. Some people say that they can even sense me getting stronger. I don't know if this has to do with the medicines that my Doctor has me on to keep my BiPolar under control or the fact that when I do any kind of magic I put my whole soul into it. Either way, it has not effected me.

A mental illness is a gift in itself. For example a female having dyslexica. She thinks with her left brain and is creative, and crafty. Eh so what if math is abit off or you are more passionate then most for it is not only a learning disability but a mental one. Many donot realize dyslexic people are more prone to feeling sad worse than the average person.
Nature in general breeds gifts in all. It is just up to the human to see what gifts they got and bring it to the surface.
Why I think this I have experienced it on levels many have not for I was born into a pagan house hold.
What I think is everyone has a gift and if it is in you that you are a natural born witch fabulous. If not start practicing and getto what it is you want to do and be no matter the illness.

well, mental illnesses affects every aspect of a person's life, why not their magical powers? if it's not a "serious" illness, like OCD, or ADD, or something like that then not too much but some of the more degenerative illnesses will def effect your powers.

Interesting question …. Im assuming you mean people with a born ability or awakening to magical practices such as ability to help or hurt people with personal powers of focus n herb law.
Depending on level of mental illness I think it will affect, as magic is of the mind and perception of the witch.

I would also think that taking medication for mental illnesses might tame your powers.

Although my major depression is controlled by Cymbalta to control the brain I don't think that it would matter to the question you asked for this thread

Yes, a mental illness can have an effect on you and your abilities.

As for magic and rites, it can either increase or decrease your "powers"

If you have ADHD or are manic, then in some cases you can have a hard time keeping the focus that some rites require and vice versa.

If also depends on the severness of the illness in question. If it is a very mild degree then it can be easier to focus and stay calm.

i think that if it is a mental illness like epilepsy or something really severe like that then yes it would affect the magic but if it's a less severe mental illness i don't think it would affect the magic that much

You don't hear about much natural born lawyers or doctors do you? Now, I will say that there are certainly individuals who possess natural talents and abilities that enable them to be very talented Witches, but still, one must learn how to use these properly first! And nearly all human beings at one time or another (depending on how well society suppresses them) have "psychic" tendencies---it's not an unusual thing. The Pagan/Mystery Path religions certainly do allow for a great more acceptance of these abilities than other religions, which is why they're often associated with each other.

I (like most children) was fascinated with Witchcraft and magic, as well as archaeology and mythology. We used to camp often during my childhood, and I had a special bond with nature and Spirit. My best friends were dogs and cats and all manner of winged and footed familiars, and of course, I brought as many of them home as I could. I just never identified this impulse as spirituality (I was only 10); I just knew what needed to be done and thought nothing of doing it. It just was. I also was a very sensitive child, which I've now come to identify as clairsentience, which made me the butt of many a joke and made my childhood somewhat miserable and my adulthood rich and wonderful.

my gift is seeing things that will happen. but to be honest i don't really like my gift, sometimes i think it's best that i don't know things so i try my best not to pick up on things.

yes it is very hard to control your "powers " is you are not stable if you can not control your emotions or body then how are you going to get control of anything else. medicine,s also make you cloudy in the mind and unable to focus.

What an interesting topic. My grandmother always said that the people of my family all have a gift of powerful intuition. I have it, but I never listen to it and it get's me into trouble a lot. But that's just me. She could also read tarot cards, something i am still struggling with. I think so though. because i know I have it, but I don't know how to use it, lol.

i don't know... i was kept away from that talk and any wierd behaviors were punished

it depends, I belive many witches are inableded by mental illnesses.

I say no mental illness wouldnt affect natural born ability.... my logic is this....


If you are born with a mental illness... you grow with it correct? You learn to adjust and adapt to life with it, actually technically you dont learn to because you do it from the start. You just adjust to the way it is.... well if you are born with gifts you also grow with those too and adapt to that as well..... put them both in a person and that person will adapt and grow with them and learn just like everyone else does. I think that may have been the most confusing explanation Ive ever given....... Basically what I am saying is... if you are born with something its the only thing you know... you dont know what its like to not have it so how could something you were born with affect something you were born with? Its not like you can say... ohhh I think I want to give this bit of my life up for one day to see what it is like.... just to have the experiance. It becomes instinct. Hope that makes sense.

I'm certain it would distort and perhaps either weaken or strengthen the effects of the magick used.

Very well put CursedtoDarkness. and logially speaking yesI would agree if you are born with something you grow and are able to adjust to it. For someone that is bi polar, they learn to adjust with the highs and lows and with any type of magic your emotions do play a big role in what you are doing. So as a natural witch with bipolar for example woul;d have had the experience to know when the moods swings from high to low that they need to keep things in check.

As you wouldnt want to be casting in a manic state , all of the negitiy energy wouldnt be that helpful but it again would depend on what your doing.


Just my opinion.

LDR

Also, to the medication part someone brought up ... what if the mental illness can't be cured by medication or is too far far advanced for medication to work?

yes i think every one born with powers but its up to them if they can open there minds and us them or not i think not every one can open there minds and us them its only a few that can

I believe that if someone is born with natural gifts...but also is either born with a mental illness or develops one it could have an affect on their powers. I am not sure if t would increase their power or not...but I think it would almost definitely decrease it if they aren't able to think clearly.

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