Existential Crisis and Spiritual Emergency

When we start feeling a deepened sense of spirituality, we may feel a sense of connection with other people, animals, nature, God, universal consciousness or the cosmos; I encourage you to use terminology which resonates with you personally. Feeling these deepened feelings of connection is sometimes described as spiritual emergence. This is a healthy part of the human experience and can arise naturally, or from a number of transpersonal experiences.

However, without adequate support a spiritual emergence may become too intense, chaotic and challenging. At this process sometimes a crisis point may arise, which is sometimes described as a spiritual emergency, or existential crisis. This may affect psychological, occupational or social functioning. Some indications of a spiritual emergency may include;

● Fear and confusion over the meaning of life and one’s purpose

● When our sense of identity is challenged

● Questioning values and beliefs, and where they came from

● Experiencing new realms of mystical and spiritual experiences

● Fear that we may be going insane

● Existential anxiety or intense fear of death

This is a very important life stage, and there is no set timeline for each individual. We do not underestimate how challenging an existential crisis or spiritual emergency can be. Lena has a breadth of experience in helping people to navigate this stage of life, and it is an honour to support somebody through this stage with delicacy, care and compassion. There are a variety of practical ways to help to make this process easier, and even enjoyable and exciting. At Light Triad Wellness we may be able to help you turn your spiritual emergency into a spiritual emergence

Safety Note

If you feel that yourself or a loved one is experiencing a mental health crisis including psychosis, please seek help from your local Psychiatric Emergency Room, or call 911 if it is urgent. Psychosis is differentiated from spiritual emergency by a lack of insight, impairment of reality, persisting hallucinations or delusions, belief in delusions despite evidence, and considerably impaired functioning.