Are those labelled "mentall ill" simply able to percieve that which others cannot?

I think you're sort of right and sort of wrong. I do think that some people who suffer from mental illness, particularly depression, see the world as it really is more fully than others. I don't think this makes them in any way superior (which is slightly the implication of your phrasing "able to comprehend realities which most others are unable to"). In fact, on the contrary, it's a very important human capacity to be able to keep things that are unbearable out of consciousness. It's what makes it possible to function. Of course, keeping too much out of consciousness can also be highly problematic - less likely to get the label of mental illness, though sometimes it does.

But more importantly, I think the label of mental illness is simply applied to people whose particular way of being makes it hard for them to feel good about their lives and/or causes others to find them very difficult. I know people who have never had such a label who are very much sicker in themselves than some people who have been given the label. We are ALL full of quirks and odd ways of thinking and feeling and being - it's only when a particular configuration of quirks causes problems that such labels get applied, so I don't really feel that in general people with the label are any different from those without.

To properly answer your question, it is first necessary to provide some definitions for you. Firstly, Paganism itself is not a religion. "Pagan" is an umbrella term that defines a great number of religions. It is often difficult to define which qualities a religion must have in order to be classified as Pagan, but generally it is used to refer to either Earth/nature based religions or old polytheistic religions. Some modern examples would be Wicca and Druidism, while some older examples would be the religions of the ancient Greeks, Romans and Celts. However there are three religions which are definitely not Pagan and these are Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The umbrella term to refer to these religions is "Abrahamic Religions" as they are all based on the religious path that supposedly was founded by the mythical figure Abraham (though Islam was founded by Muhammad, it is an extension of the other two Abrahamic traditional beliefs). Now, Wicca: Wicca is an Earth-based Pagan mystery religion that worships a God and a Goddess. It is also a magical system of witchcraft and traditionally it is also a priesthood. Traditionally people would be initiated into Wicca and in so doing they become priests of Wicca and train as witches. The most notable thing in regards to your question is in what a Christian, Pagan and Wiccan are and whether or not these things can co-exist as a belief system. Wicca and Christianity really can't be joined from the Christian perspective. One of the chief reasons for this is because Wicca is a polytheistic religion (believes in multiple Gods) and Christianity is a monotheistic religion (believes that there is only one God). This means that the two religions are automatically at odds and cannot be unified. You cannot be a Christian and a Wicca. However, you CAN be Wiccan (or a Pagan in general) and still believe that the Christian God exists. The only difference is that in this way, you believe in the Christian God, but not that he is the only God. The Christian God would just be one among many and no better or worse than any other. If you choose this route, then don't expect Christians to look upon you too favourably - especially if you also begin to practice magic, which is frowned upon by the majority of Christians. Now, despite what some people may think, there is actually nothing to stop you being a witch (or any other kind of magic user) and also being Christian. It is true that most English Bibles say that a person must not practice witchcraft, however many scholars (and some Christians) see the use of the word "witchcraft" in Bibles as a mistranslation, misuse, or otherwise not applicable to modern positive uses of witchcraft. I myself know several Christians who also practice magic and it should be noted that the Jews themselves have their own magical systems and that there are some very prominent Christian magicians in history. But it should be noted that just because you are a witch, does not mean that you are a Wiccan. Witchcraft is merely a certain form of magic, while Wicca is a religion that incorporates witchcraft into its beliefs. There are a great many witches in the world today who are not Wiccan. I hope that helped in answering your question. But to summarise: You cannot be a "Christian-Wiccan". You can be a Pagan who believes in the Christian God as just one God among many. You can be a Christian and practice magic, though many Christians will look down on it.

Yeah, eating disorders are a mental illness and sufferers are more creative than the average person, or seem to do better in a certain subject. They are perfectionists too.

I know this because I was in psychiatric care for my eating disorder at the age of 12, and had to learn a lot about my illness in order to recover.

I had anorexia but now im almost fully recovered and Im 16.

x

NO! Nothing can be classified as a mental illness unless it causes harm or distress to the individual.

I love how you put "afflicted" in quotes! Trust me: someone with a mental illness is definitely afflicted.

The above average intelligence of most mentally ill people (that is true, actually) has nothing to do with it being an illness. Someone with a mental illness has a lousy quality of life.

I have a mental illness. It's f*cking miserable. Why not just tell people they should be happy that they have diabetes?

That is so true. My sister who is mentally ill have a IQ of that of a genius, however, her mental handicap keeps her from excelling like normal people. Some have very good spirits and others does not. Some are mentally challenge where others are demon possess. My best conversation is with mentally challenge people because the majority of the time they know what they are talking about and are very intelligence. They speak their minds without hesitations and are very truthful. Cases show that they are more intelligence then the so call normal person.

It depends on ones mental illness.

Some folks have a hard time filtering out a lot of the negativity around us and have chronic depression etc.

You'd have to be more specific in your question about what kinds of "ilnesses" and "comprehending realities".

In the old days, (perhaps a century ago), people who displayed psychotic tendancies were considered "tetched" or "touched" by the gods.

I've always wondered that- whether a psychotic hallucination could be some kind of sixth sense or something, or a glimpse into some alternate reality. It could be that they're not ill- they're just on another frequency

Still, considering that the science community believes psychosis is an illness of the mind and nothing more, I don't really think I can argue with that.

It should also be borne in mind that reality has a definition which does not include "I think the CIA are following me therefore the CIA are following me is reality"

The anorexic population has a higher average intelligence than the general population. If starving yourself is a reality that mere mortals can't comprehend then God bless incomprehension

People with problems connected to the mind perceive what is reality to them,they are as intelligent or as stupid as other humans.I have spent time in a facility that helps people with problems,normally short term.During my time there I saw and spoke to people with varying degrees of mental health problems.It made me realise how ignorant people on the outside can be,they consider themselves normal,but how do you define normal,look at society around you and look at the behaviour of so-called normal people and worry.

Our version of our own personal reality may not be seeing a complete picture.Have you ever seen something running up a wall or across the floor out of the corners of your eyes ?The redcaps,gremlins and other beasties,what would you see if you were fully sighted physically and mentally?----->>>forward into the twilight zone mon ami.