Existential Crisis Support

Spiritual Emergence versus 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. It has also been referred to as the Dark Night of the Soul. This can 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. I do not underestimate how challenging an existential crisis or spiritual emergency can be. It is an honour and a privilege 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. I may be able to help you to ensure that your spiritual emergence does not spiral into a spiritual emergency.

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 need be 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.