Spirituality and Healing
John Mulder, MD
Vice President of Medical Services, Faith Hospice
Medical Director of Palliative Care Services
MetroHealth
Director, Grand Rapids Palliative Medicine Fellowship
Program
Objectives
•
Define our spiritual nature
• Understand the scientific basis for the role of
spirituality in health and disease
• Understand the interrelationship between the
spiritual, physical, and emotional aspects of our
being
• Equip participants with techniques for dealing
with spiritual issues with patients
“Few men make themselves masters of
the things they write or speak.”
-- John Selden, 1564-1654
“We are inclined to believe those whom
we do not know because they have
never deceived us.”
-- Dr. Samuel Johnson, 1709-1784
What is Spirituality?
“Spirituality is one of those words which is sort
of like an old Barnum and Bailey circus tent; it
covers so many various kinds of animals, events,
acts and episodes that it’s hard to pin down.”
-- Joseph Sittler, theologian/writer
What is Spirituality?
-- The non-physical part of our being -•
The part that motivates us to look for meaning
• Connects our experiences with sources of
meaning
• Provides capacity to see beyond and rise above
momentary experiences to find meaning and
purpose in life
What is Spirituality?
• A vehicle for faith that provides a basis for
prayer, meditation and worship
• Gives us a reason to love, forgive and seek
reconciliation
• Values such as love, meaning, beauty, hope and
truth guide our search for meaning in life and in its
life’s experiences
• Brings clarity to personal concepts such as
personhood, life, death, grieving, compassion, and
life’s purposes
What is Spirituality?
• PHYSICAL BODY -- senses of sight, sound,
hearing, taste, capacity for motion, experiencing
pain and pleasure
• MIND -- capacity for having thoughts, holding
beliefs, experiencing emotions
• SPIRIT or SOUL -- site of supreme values
and ultimate realities; perception and understanding
of God, love, meaning, hope, beauty, and truth
What is Spirituality?
TWO DIMENSIONS:
• VERTICAL -- Our personal relationship with
God, ultimate source of being; model for
understanding life’s experiences; basis for coping
with illnesses, pain, suffering, etc.
• HORIZONTAL -- Our personal relationship
with others; basis for personal lifestyle or life story
The “Human Moment”
What is Spiritual Healing?
• Spiritual healing is not a matter of God
breaking the physical laws of nature.
• Spiritual laws co-exist with physical laws
interacting constantly.
• Following spiritual laws directly affects the
body and can influence disease and health
• Spiritual healing is a discipline to be practiced a life style, not an event to be prayed for
“There is no cure for birth and death
save to enjoy the interval.”
-- George Santayana, 1863-1952
What is Health?
•
Fitness and lifestyle
•
Proper diet
•
Proper exercise
•
Proper sleep
What is Health?
•
Fitness and lifestyle
•
Fulfilling our calling
“An unfulfilled vocation drains the
color from a man’s entire existence.”
-- Honore de Balzac 1799-1850
“Unhappiness is best defined as the
difference between our talents and our
expectations.”
-- Edward de Bono, 1933-
What is Health?
•
Fitness and lifestyle
•
Fulfilling our calling
•
Forgiveness: Giving and receiving
“Science without religion is lame;
religion without science is blind.”
-- Albert Einstein, 1897-1955
Healthcare professionals
have both an opportunity
and an obligation
to impact their patients’ spiritual
as well as physical health.
Physician reluctance to endorse healthy spirituality:
•
Most physicians not aware of data
• Many doctors specifically instructed to keep
religion out of medical practices - don’t mix science
and faith
• The possibility of opening “Pandora’s Box”
unsettling for many physicians; untrained to address
spiritual beliefs, practices, and experiences
Why Faith Heals . . .
• Social Support -- People who have strong religious
commitment are more connected to each other
• Ritual -- Rituals in and of themselves have health
benefits; they also give a sense of security
• Appreciation of Beauty -- Nearly everyone revels in
nature’s beauty; the faithful are reminded to look up and
enjoy the view
Why Faith Heals . . .
• Worship -- Through song, dance, uplifted hands or
prayer, worship bathes us in a variety of healing faith
factors (ritual, social support, beauty)
• Serenity -- In the midst of stress, forms of meditation
create a relaxation response, reducing the damaging effects
of that stress
• Confession -- Faith can drive us to make good on our
guilt; confession and forgiveness allow us to learn from our
mistakes and move on
Why Faith Heals . . .
• Temperance -- Most faiths take a negative view of
risk factors for illness and disease: drunkenness, sexual
immorality, smoking, overeating
• Hope -- Those with deep faith believe that God has
their best interests at heart regardless of their circumstances;
present worries pale in comparison to the wonder of God’s
ultimate promises
• Unity -- An opportunity to gather and communicate
bring healing into faith-based environments; accountability
helps keep a focus on faith-based values
Why Faith Heals . . .
• Meaning -- The presence of hope, social support, and
unity gives meaning and purpose to life
• Trust -- People of faith do what they are able with the
strength, ingenuity and desire that God gives them, and trust
Him for the results; a positive, health-preserving sense of
peace results
• Love -- God’s love, and love reflected in behavior of
friends and family, blunts the effect of physical and
emotional trauma; healing power of love sometimes seen
best when it’s lost
“Prayer does not change God, but it
changes him who prays.”
-- Soren Kierkegaard, 1813-1855
If God had designated an ideal
place to bring down men and
women’s emotional barriers, He
could have designed no better
environment than the doctor’s
office or hospital.
Keys to Influence Spiritual Health
•
Influence requires professional competence
•
Influence requires character
•
Influence requires compassion
Physicians and nurses can be powerful
spiritual forces for healing by being
there with their patients, by being
attentive, and by demonstrating caring,
and professional and personal concern
for patients.
Addressing Spiritual Self Care Needs
“ . . . ‘you shall love the Lord your God with all
your heart, and with all your soul, and with all
your mind, and with all your strength.’ The
second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as
yourself.’ There is no other commandment
greater than these.”
Mark 12:30-31
Addressing Spiritual Self Care Needs
Love God completely
Love others compassionately
Love yourself correctly
“There are two ways of spreading
light: to be the candle or the mirror
that reflects it.”
-- Edith Wharton
How can health be evaluated?
•
Objective data
•
Independent observation (family, friends)
•
Self-evaluation (questionnaire)
A Popular Platform
Public media has turned an eye onto this issue, and
the research findings:
• Time, McCall’s, Family Circle, Prevention, Self,
NY Times, Chicago Tribune, LA Times, Cooking
Light, ABC World News Tonight, USA Today, The
Today Show, Good Morning America, Gentleman’s
Quarterly, Omni, Reader’s Digest . . .
What the research shows . . .
•
95% of Americans express belief in God
• Nearly 3 in 4 claim that they base their approach to life
on their religious beliefs
• 63% of patients desire to have their doctor address
religious faith - only 10% of physicians do so
• Levels of religious practice are significantly related to
health status, regardless of age, even after controlling for
education, social class, and social membership
What the research shows . . .
•
Less than 2/3 family physicians believe that God exists
• Less than 25% report believing in a personal God,
believing in an afterlife, or having a close relationship with
God
•
More than 1/4 were atheists or agnostics
• Only 5% of doctors report that religious and spiritual
issues were regularly addressed in their training
• As of April, 1996, ~20 medical schools include a course
on addressing faith issues with patients
Application in Clinical Settings
HYPERTENSION
• Persons who both attended church frequently and rated
their religion as very important had lower diastolic blood
pressures
• Findings even more impressive in smokers who rated
religion as important and attended church at least once
weekly
Application in Clinical Settings
ARTERIOSCLEROTIC HEART DISEASE
• Risk of dying from heart disease was much less for men
who attended church at least once a week; risk for frequent
church attenders was only 60% of the risk for men who
attended infrequently
• At least 6 community-based studies have shown that the
religiously committed person, particularly the church
attender, has a greater chance of living longer than do
persons lacking a religious commitment
Application in Clinical Settings
DRUG/ALCOHOL ABUSE
• 20 studies have examined relationship between religion
and drug use
• Drug abuse is related to the absence of religious
commitment in a person’s life
• In 10/11 studies, religious commitment protected against
alcohol abuse
Application in Clinical Settings
SUICIDE
• Persons who did not attend church were 4 x more likely
to commit suicide than were frequent church attenders
DELIQUENCY
• 12/13 studies found that religious commitment particularly church attendance - played a protective role
against delinquency
Application in Clinical Settings
CORONARY CARE OUTCOMES
•
Intercessory prayer for CCU patients, double blind
• Daily prayer for: rapid recovery, prevention of
complications and death; other areas they believed to be
beneficial
RESULTS
• Fewer cases of CHF, fewer cardiopulmonary arrests,
fewer cases needing intubation or ventilation, fewer cases of
pneumonia in the group that was consistently prayed for
A Medieval Perspective . . .
“For when the wretched man findyng all helpe of man not able to
uphold him from perishing, being striken with the mightie hande of
God, feleth him selfe unable to stande, no soundes in his bodye, no
strength in his limmes, no helpe of nature to resist the violence of
that disease that Gods displeasure hath laid upon him, seeth no
signe of Gods grace in his soule, but the deep woundes that Gods
anger hath left in his conscience, perceiveth no token to argue him
th’elect of God and partaker of the death of his Saviour, hearyng
pronounced that the soule which sinneth shall die, knowyng him
selfe to have sinned, and felying him selfe dying: alas what helpe
remaineth in this extremitie?”
-- Anne Lock, 1560
Introductory interview questions
•
Is religion or spirituality important to you?
• Do your religious or spiritual beliefs influence
the way you look at your medical problems and the
way you think about your health?
• Would you like me to address your religious or
spiritual beliefs and practices with you?
Introductory interview questions
• Do you attend religious services? (If “yes,”
how often do you attend? Which church?)
•
Do you pray? (If “yes,” how frequently?)
• How important is religion to you? (If “very” or
“somewhat,” go to next question?)
• Is your relationship with God more formal or
personal?
Faith Stories
PRINCIPLES
•
They should fit as a natural part of conversation
•
They should take no more than 2 minutes
• They should be about God/Bible/relationship to
God, not about church or a book
• They should provide a glimpse of what it’s like
to be God’s child
Faith Stories
THEY SHOULD AVOID
•
Religious jargon
•
Pushing for a decision
•
Becoming a sermon
• Identifying you as a member of a specific
religious group or denomination
• Identifying faith as a reason for not doing
something
•
Attempts to convict