The Remnant Radio's Podcast How to Discern: Is It Mental Health Or Spiritual Warfare? Interview with Dr. Natalie Atwell
Sep 18, 2025
Dr. Natalie Atwell, a licensed clinical mental health therapist, dives into the complex intersection of mental health and spiritual warfare. She shares her expertise on distinguishing between mental illness and demonization, emphasizing the need for clinical assessments alongside biblical discernment. Dr. Atwell discusses the importance of a trauma-informed approach in pastoral care and highlights generational influences on mental health. Practical tools, like genograms, help illuminate underlying issues, guiding compassionate and informed ministry.
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Start With Clinical Assessment
- Start with standard mental-health assessment and treatment before considering spiritual influences.
- Use a focused assessment for “other influences” if progress stalls or signs point beyond clinical causes.
Introduce Spiritual Topics Carefully
- Broach spiritual influence gently with unbelievers and offer assessment as a possibility, not a conclusion.
- Use language like replacing lies with truth and plant gospel seeds if the client is open.
Combine Therapy And Deliverance
- Work counseling and deliverance alongside each other when needed, and refer to vetted faith-based clinicians.
- Be patient: healing often takes long, trauma-informed care and slow progression.
