Medicine, Religion & A Client’s Death

Some years ago, I met a client who presented with depression. She complained of much lethargy, and though she was seeing a doctor, I, unfortunately, assumed that if she was under a doctor’s care, he had done various blood tests and assorted diagnostics, and they were still investigating. I also thought that her presentation was a result of her depression, and I began to target this. As she was encouraged to explore her depression, she described a part that was grey and like a blob. I asked her if she could make an illustration for me – symbols and images are our friends – and added it to my file.

One day, after another visit with this doctor, she indicated that he had concluded that “depression is your destiny,” and she appeared to be contemplating the veracity of this. I was stunned and instantly angry. How could someone discredit another person’s life, experience and hope for healing? It appears that her doctor was an orthopedist and he was holding “counselling” sessions with her. I urged her to seek another practitioner. She felt the urgency and spoke to a physician friend – things snowballed from there. Within a week, she had been seen, evaluated and a cancerous mass was found in her womb. When she saw the scan of the mass, she called me to say that it was the shape of the “blob” she had drawn for me during our work. Intuition is never to be ignored. My client went on to have a successful surgery, but sadly passed about 18 months later.

I live in a country where the melting pot of religions is full and bubbling. As a psychologist, I meet people from all backgrounds and faiths—including some that are relatively rare for my country: Baháʼí, Hare Krishna, Zoroastrian, and Jew. The primary religious makeup of the population is Christian, Hindu, and Muslim. The doctor my client saw was a Muslim practitioner, where the concept of predestination (which is a type of determinism) is part of their teachings. I feared three things: either he used the wrong terminology, or he interpreted the teaching differently and spoke it as such, or my client misunderstood. We can agree that he should have said nothing at all, regardless of his innermost thoughts; however, it is this very mistake that prompted her to take better action.

Since I am not Muslim and am fully aware of the inroads the global Islamic community has made in medicine in the world, it seemed odd that Islam would “give up” on the welfare of a person who had medical concerns under the justification of predestination. I eventually reached out to the Anjuman Sunnat-ul-Jamaat Association (ASJA)- the largest Muslim organisation in Trinidad and Tobago. They were great and connected me with an enthusiastic Islamic scholar to get some clarification – and he suspected that my fears were correct. He provided me with an insightful perspective on the topic. I often wonder how many others have been negatively impacted by that doctor and his single religious perspective, which may have led to a loss of will to live or the inability to make the best choices in their situation.

The power differential is clear here: the doctor is the “expert” and she is the willing patient seeking answers. Courage would have been helpful: the etymology of “courage” indicates that one must have the heart and passion for one’s cause. I do not think at that point she had any more courage to try and rectify the situation further, or advocate for herself, or if she did, it was dampened by this doctor and the cancer in her body. She was held in an ongoing cycle of suffering, frustration and hopelessness. Once she had her surgery, I can say that her zest for life returned.

I do things differently now. When I see a client who is under a doctor’s care, I confirm that they are receiving their tests, have good follow-up, and are taking their medications, if required. I encourage second and third opinions.

For a bit more insight into the intersectionality of medicine and faith, this article by Dr. Danish Zaidi from the American Medical Association’s Journal of Ethics is a good read: https://journalofethics.ama-assn.org/article/influences-religion-and-spirituality-medicine/2018-07

Moral of this story: look out for each other.

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