Week 3 - Kenrick Chiang

I personally thought that the article did a really good job linking the beliefs of shamanism and mental illness. We can see many of the idea of Western versus foreign beliefs and how they hold different meanings to different people. I thought that the article did a really good job comparing the two beliefs. As mentioned in the article, when we think of mental illness in the United States, people tend to think of negative things associated with mental illness. Meanwhile, in Shamanism, it is seen as "good news" because it showcases "the birth of a healer." Mental illness for these healers involve seeing spirits and hearing voices. One usually can jump to the conclusion of schizophrenia, but in Shamanism, it is seen as something spiritual. I also thought that a lot of the different ideas that were mentioned in this reading were similar occurrences that had to do with our guest speaker. She mentioned how when she first became a Shaman, she would hear a lot of voices and see a lot of things that would prevent her from leaving her house. This would be an example in which wester medicine would diagnose her with medication. Medication was something that was discussed because medication numbs these visions instead of naturally allowing the body to be one with spirits. She would also mention how the doctors would just keep giving her medicine and to come back when the issues come back. It is important to note these different beliefs and how drastically different people have an outlook on mental illness.