Ellen's Story // The Intersection of Trauma, Spirituality & Psychiatry

⚠️ Disclaimer: This content is for educational and lived-experience sharing only. It is not medical advice. Always consult a qualified professional before making changes to medications. Can a profound spiritual experience be mistaken for mental illness? In this deeply personal conversation, Angie Peacock sits down with her longtime friend Ellen to discuss grief, trauma, psychiatric diagnosis, medication withdrawal, intuition, spirituality, and healing. After the deaths of multiple family members and an overwhelming spiritual experience following 9/11, Ellen was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and told she would need psychiatric medications for the rest of her life. Years later, she began questioning that narrative, safely tapered off multiple medications, and ultimately found a very different understanding of what had happened to her. Together, Angie and Ellen explore: • Bipolar diagnosis and psychiatric labeling • Spiritual emergency vs mental illness • Psychiatric drug withdrawal and recovery • Trauma, grief, and altered states • Intuition and self-trust • Akathisia, anxiety, and nervous system healing • The role of peer support in recovery • Finding meaning after profound suffering • Mediumship and spiritual experiences --This conversation is not intended to provide medical advice.-- It is a discussion of lived experience and personal perspectives. To contact Ellen on VerySoul: https://app.verysoul.com/embeded-code... To email Ellen about her mediumship buisness, not to be used for withdrawal support, email her here: [email protected] Resources mentioned: • Crazywise the film: https://crazywisefilm.com • Stanislav & Christina Grof – Spiritual Emergency: https://amzn.to/43ywxmX • Will Hall and The Harm Reduction Guide to Psychiatric Drug Withdrawal: https://willhall.net/comingoffmeds/ • National Empowerment Center: https://power2u.org • Icarus Project: https://fireweedcollective.org CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 01:00 Meeting During Psychiatric Drug Withdrawal 02:15 What Led Ellen Into Psychiatry? 04:40 A Bipolar Diagnosis After Grief 07:10 Spiritual Experiences & Sensitivity 10:40 Is Withdrawal a Spiritual Journey? 12:00 Spiritual Emergency vs Mental Illness 16:00 Learning to Respond With Love Instead of Fear 18:00 Emotional Numbness & Healing 22:00 Did Psychiatric Drugs Change Her Spiritual Experiences? 23:45 Questioning the Diagnosis 27:30 Realizing She Was Not Mentally Ill 30:00 Finding Courage to Stop Psychiatric Drugs 34:00 Skills, Not Pills 35:30 What Recovery Looked Like Years Later 41:30 Writing, Creativity & Healing 42:30 Singing for the Dying 45:00 Becoming a Medium 49:00 Intuition, Spirituality & Human Potential 53:00 The Meaning of Suffering 57:00 Lessons From Healing 59:30 Hope for Others 1:00:40 Ellen's Work as a Medium 1:01:40 Final Thoughts