Igros Moshe (YD II #57) Question Treating mental illmess with therapist who is a heretic or irreligious? Answer In my opinion one should not go to them for treatment since the treatment is not through drugs but through speaking to determine what bad thoughts the person is suffering from. The therapist gives advice based on that evaluation. Consequently there is concern that he will say to do things which are against the Torah or modesty. The reason they are typically used in medical issues is because there drugs are used for treatment which are not related to ideology and beliefs. The prohibition to be cured by heretics is only because of the concern that they will utilize the name of idolatry. The concern here is that they will say heresy and nivul peh. However in the case of a professional that the parents are confident that he won’t say anything against religion then it might be possible to trust him not to lie. Consequently it is best to find a religious therapist but if there isn’t one to have him promise not to talk about religion.
Nivul peh...as in subjects of a sxual nature?
ReplyDeleteLet's say someone has anxiety but does not want to use psychiatric drugs. It's a question of trial and error.
There may be therapists who focus on the subconscious.
Is discussing childhood, parents etc a problem halachically?
But it's interesting that Rav Moshe recognises the field of psychology.
Rav shach considered it all heretical
Often, psychologists are used for behavioral modification (most deny it, but ignore the background facts.)
ReplyDeleteFor example, parental alienation, gender reassignments, sexual addictions.
Sometimes, it's for a good cause, marriage counseling, bully treatment (the bully or the victim), sexual addictions.
Some consider the first set as a good cause.
Insurance considerations and ability to pay come into play in treatment. As does the difficulty of evaluating treatment success, especially in the middle of the treatment.
Rav Moshe doesn't rule on which conditions are permitted to be treated and which not. It seems he recognises there are a broad spectrum of conditions, and the question is the method of treatment.
DeleteBecause sexuality is something that is both a condition and also a method in therapy, it seems he is hesitant to use secular psychologists. On the other hand, we are told that every community has 3 stains - gilui arayot, geneiva, and avak loshon hara. So learning gemara is not going to change these behaviours. will psychology change it? Depends on the individual, the condition, and their desire to change.