SSRIs, Feeling, and the Loss of the Divine

These are more than just drugs #25

Yesterday I wrote a post on X about SSRIs and their effect on blunting feelings, and how this can create a sense of disconnection from the divine. The response was striking. Many resonated with the critique of how casually these drugs are prescribed in the UK and US. Others, especially from a bioenergetic perspective, shared how they had been deeply affected by these medications.

What stood out most were the personal accounts: people who once felt deeply attuned to the world described how, after starting SSRIs, they experienced apathy, numbness, and even a creeping sense of nihilism

The Deeper Pattern

These patterns captured my attention. It became clear that SSRIs don’t just dull emotions they seem to disrupt our capacity to feel energetically present. And when that presence is lost, the sense of connection to something greaterthe divine, the luminous, the living current of life fades too.

As Yoda said in Star Wars:

When we lose touch with our feelings, we lose touch with luminous quality.

The Bioenergetic Perspective

Through my partial study and practice of bioenergetics, I’ve come to see how essential bodily presence and sensation are to this connection. Thinkers like Wilhelm Reich, Alexander Lowen, and John Pierrakos emphasized that when energy cannot flow

And when we are cut off from sensation we lose the ability to connect with the deeper fountain of life, and ultimately with God itself.

Scripture echoes the same truth:

> “Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me and see; a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.” – Luke 24:39

To feel fully is to be connected. Without that presence, we become disconnected not only from ourselves, but from the divine itself.

The Biochemical Link

My hypothesis is that this disconnection comes down to the biochemical effects of SSRIs. Beyond altering serotonin levels, SSRIs impact pathways involving oxytocin and certain 5-HT2A receptor subtypes the very same receptor heterodimers that psychedelics like psilocybin interact with.

This could explain the difference:

Psilocybin = lights on

SSRIs = lights off

If SSRIs desensitize these receptors, it makes sense that people would feel cut off from mystical or spiritual experience.

Toward a Solution

This question how to reverse or rebalance these pathways led me into my research on intranasal oxytocin. Early findings suggest it may positively influence the prefrontal cortex and the same receptor systems affected by SSRIs. In theory, this could help restore normal functioning and reopen the channels of connection for these individuals, maybe in the future we could see the leverage of both pharmacology and awareness / bioenergetics techniques to see these individuals return to their birthright of joy.