Ep252: Religion & Psychiatry - Dr Chencho Dorji & Dr Caroline Van Damme
Dr Chencho Dorji is Bhutan’s first psychiatrist and the Professor of Psychiatry at Khesar Gyalpo University of Medical Sciences. Dr Caroline Van Damme is an adult psychiatrist and family and systemic psychotherapist specialising in chronic psychotic disorders.
Available on Youtube, iTunes, SoundCloud & Spotify – search ‘Guru Viking Podcast’.
Drs Dorji and Van Damme dialogue about their experiences as psychiatrists in very different countries, Bhutan and Belgium.
They compare their experiences treating religious psychosis in which patients believe they are Jesus or Padmasambhava, address mental health stigma, and examine the interaction of supernatural beliefs such as spirit possession with modern psychiatry.
The Drs discuss the emerging mental health laws in Bhutan, including forced treatment laws, innovative treatment models, and pressures from pharmaceutical companies.
The Drs also consider the pros and cons of religion to both society and the individual, examine three levels of Bhutanese Buddhism, and reflect on the dire consequences of the death of Christianity in Europe.
00:00 - Intro
01:16 - How they met
03:44 - Dr Chencho’s visit to the Night Hospital in Belgium
05:12 - Dr Chencho’s side of the story
06:07 - Fascination with the ‘Night Hospital’ model
08:33 - Sharing models between countries
09:39 - Not trying to cure
12:36 - Mental health challenges in developed vs developing countries
15:04 - Psychiatry is a simple science
17:26 - Negligence of psychotic patients
19:01 - Stigma around mental illness
23:03 - Pressure from pharmaceutical companies
25:53 - Mental health laws in Bhutan
30:17 - Forced treatment laws in Belgium
39:15 - Complications of supernatural beliefs in Bhutan
41:28 - Getting the family on side
45:02 - Anti-psychiatry beliefs
46:57 - Psychosis or spirit possession?
49:25 - Dangers of marijuana
55:38 - Padmasambhava’s proscription against smoking
58:00 - Religion at societal and personal level
59:47 - Religious psychosis
01:01:23 - 3 levels of Buddhism
01:02:27 - Pros and cons of religious belief
01:06:25 - Treating psychotic Padmasambhavas
01:08:06 - Patients who hear God
01:11:00 - Fading of Christianity in Europe
01:13:03 - Spiritual void and fading of religion in Bhutan
01:13:55 - Today’s Buddhist monks’ failings
01:16:00 - Learning from the fall of European religion
01:21:17 - Science vs religion
01:22:05 - Spiritual void and suicide
01:24:04 - Is religion needed?
01:26:38 - Lack of priests
01:29:40 - Uniqueness of psychiatry
01:31:25 - Reflections on inter-cultural collaboration
01:33:53 - Dr Caroline praises Dr Chencho’s accomplishments
Previous episodes with Dr Chencho Dorji:
Previous episode with Dr Caroline Van Damme:
To find out more about Dr Chencho Dorji, visit:
To find out more about Dr Van Damme, visit:
- https://www.sowarigpainstitute.org/dr-caroline-van-damme
Music ‘Deva Dasi’ by Steve James