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Why has Scientology opposed psychiatry and consciousness-altering drugs?

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Father of Scientology — Scientology L. Ron Hubbard's seminal – and controversial – work was *Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health*, written in 1950.

Scientology’s opposition to psychiatry and consciousness-altering drugs stems from a fundamental conflict between the movement and the psychiatric establishment regarding the nature of humanity.

When L. Ron Hubbard introduced his ideas as a form of mental therapy, psychiatrists and physicians accused the church of practicing medicine without a license. In response, church leaders charged psychiatry with denying the spiritual side of human nature. Scientologists view psychiatry as an illegitimate science, a position that has led to a long-term conflict with organizations such as the American Psychiatric Association.1

This opposition is central to the church’s belief system, which emphasizes the "thetan"—an eternal, spiritual self that can exist apart from the body. Because Scientology focuses on spiritual liberation through processes like auditing to eliminate "engrams" (energy clusters that inhibit the thetan), the church opposes procedures such as lobotomies and the use of consciousness-altering drugs, which it views as detrimental to the spiritual well-being of the individual. This stance is actively promoted by the church’s Citizens Commission on Human Rights.21