Rabbi Ben Zion Mutzafi, a leading Sephardic rabbi, called on those who suffer mental health issues to see a doctor about the matter.
Speaking on radio, Rabbi Mutzafi received a query from a listener, who asked, "I suffer from anxiety, should I do a 'pidyon nefesh?'"
A pidyon nefesh involves giving charity to a rabbi, who then uses the money to perform a prayer ritual intended to free the person's soul from the issue at hand.
Rabbi Mutzafi answered firmly: "No. No pidyon, and no nefesh. What you need to do is to go to your family doctor, to receive appropriate treatment. Stop with these games. I yell about this all day long."
"I am informing everyone: Anyone who does not go to a doctor is playing with his life. You need to go to a doctor. There is anxiety - there are medications," he emphasized.