STORY OF THE WEEK: The Hidden Dangers of Viewing Mental Health as a Spiritual Problem

Debunking a Dangerous Myth from an Instagram Preacher

Image by PeopleImages on iStock

Today, I stumbled upon an Instagram video that really opened my eyes. You see, I had always believed that things like chemical imbalances in the brain, traumatic childhood experiences, or complex neurological issues caused mental health issues. But it turns out I was wrong.

All of that science and research?

Useless!

According to Milicent Sedra, the passionate young preacher in the Instagram video I watched, it’s not depression, anxiety, PTSD, or schizophrenia we’re dealing with — it’s demons. Yes, actual, bona fide, pitchfork-wielding, fire-and-brimstone demons who have apparently gotten much better at blending in over the years and are cleverly hiding under the guise of “mental health.”

Why didn’t we see it sooner?

That’s the message from this Milcent Sedra on her Instagram channel. The only conclusion you could draw from her sermon is that we’ve all been duped — misled by the entire medical community, who, despite their decades of research, have somehow missed what was apparently obvious to our ancestors: that mental illness is simply demon possession in a new outfit.

She even painted a vivid picture of how things used to be so much simpler in biblical times. Back then, if someone was hearing voices or harming themselves, no one hesitated to call it what it was — demonic possession! But today, we’ve gone and complicated things with all this talk of “mental health.” We’ve let the demons get off scot-free, hiding behind diagnoses and medications, while the rest of us blindly play along with the charade.

This young preacher is here to set us straight. According to her, it’s time to throw out the prescriptions, cancel the therapy sessions, and get back to the basics. If you’re struggling with your mental health, don’t bother with a psychiatrist — grab your Bible and get ready to battle those demons. After all, if it worked 2,000 years ago, why shouldn’t it work now?

I hope you’re picking up my vibe. I’m not impressed by this kind of rhetoric. In fact, I think it’s really dangerous. Before I unpack it all for you, here is a link if you’d like to watch the offending video.

Otherwise, read on for a summary below:

Source: Instagram

Here is a transcript of the video:

“In Jesus’s time, demons were called out and therefore cast out. But today, demons are hiding under the disguise of “mental health.” In Mark Chapter 5, there was a man who was known to cry out day and night, and he would cut himself, and everyone in the town knew he was demon-possessed. In Jesus’s time, if there was someone who was hearing voices that were causing them to harm themselves or others, everyone knew they were possessed by demons. But, I wonder how many people today would look at Jesus and say, “No! Jesus, he’s not demon-possessed. That’s crazy! He has been seen by a psychologist. He’s been diagnosed by a health expert, and he’s got schizophrenia. He’s just hearing voices, and they put him on anti-psychosis medications. You know what, Jesus, just leave it. It’s best to just leave it to the experts.” Demons today are cheering because they are able to hide and they are able to operate under this disguise of mental health. They say, “Yes! You dummies! Keep calling it “mental health” so we can keep spreading evil. Yes!”

“Christians, wake up and stop having an atheistic worldview. If you are a Christian and you call yourself a Christian, read your Bible and have a Biblical Worldview. And it’s time to start exposing demons among us”

Oh boy!

Where to begin?

There is so much wrong here that it’s hard to know which part to tackle first. Here goes nothing.

You’re the problem

Now, I’m not saying that faith and spirituality don’t play a role in how we understand and cope with life’s challenges, but suggesting that mental illness is simply the work of demons is a dangerous oversimplification. And what makes it so dangerous is that it places the responsibility for the mental health condition firmly in the lap of the sufferer.

Think about it.

If your anxiety, depression, PTSD, or whatever is being framed as a manifestation of demonic influence, then suddenly, it’s your fault. You’re not just dealing with a health issue — you’re being accused of somehow allowing dark forces into your life. This rhetoric implies that you haven’t prayed hard enough, that your faith isn’t strong enough, or that you’ve opened the door to evil through your own sin. It turns what should be a call for compassion and understanding into a blame game.