Prayer and spirituality can be mysterious, but they are real, and have offered countless millions a place of refuge, solace, comfort, hope and a deeper sense of purpose especially in times of tragedy or crisis, where grief and despair crouch at the doorstep of the soul, seeking to rob a person of vitality and life. One might say prayer is an inherent aspect of human nature and incorporates concepts such as wholeness, restoration, comfort, joy, guidance, and hope in the hereafter. The discipline of prayer is often viewed as a way to help explore one’s ongoing search for meaning and creates an appreciation for deeper things.
Some argue the wounds of the soul are among the most difficult to detect and quantify. For those who believe in God, it begs the question: Does faith really matter when it comes to treating and resolving complex psychological problems? Although the role of prayer and spirituality continue to be evolving constructs among the social sciences, thus far, the research literature generally affirms their profound and dynamic impact on mental health and wellbeing.
This includes ongoing systemic studies by credible entities such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH), most of which show consistent and measureable benefits associated with prayer and other spiritual interventions.
A person’s religious beliefs and practice often serve as a positive source of interpersonal strength. According to researchers, a vibrant personal faith encounter, especially through prayer and quiet meditation, has proven to increase resilience and successful treatment for a variety of conditions including chronic pain, alcoholism, poly-substance abuse, depression, and comorbidity among trauma survivors.
Several researchers looking at depression examined more than 80 studies conducted over the past 100 years and found that spiritual/religious factors among individuals who placed high a value on their faith and engaged in prayer and other religious activities, generally accounted for lower rates of depression and reduced symptomology
Another study of over 400 chronic patients confirmed the causal relationship between the participant’s faith orientation and his or her symptomology. A significant majority (80%) utilized some form of religious belief or activity such as prayer, to cope with their symptoms on a daily basis, with 65% reporting their religious practice moderated symptom severity.
SPECIAL COVERAGE: The power of prayer: For America's future
Nearly half (48%) indicated their faith became even more relevant whenever symptoms worsened, while 30% stated this was the most important thing that kept them motivated in treatment. The longer patients integrated spiritual coping mechanisms, the lower their symptom levels were in six different categories (obsessive-compulsiveness, interpersonal sensitivity, phobic anxiety, paranoid ideation, psychosis, and total symptomology).
The most prevalent coping strategies were prayer (59%), followed by attending religious services (35%), worshipping God (35%), meditation (33%), reading Scriptures (30%), and meeting with a spiritual leader (15%).
Cardiologist and Harvard Medical School researcher, Dr. Herbert Benson, has been studying the impact of prayer for the past 30 years. He founded the Mind/Body Medical Institute in Boston and led the Study of the Therapeutic Effects of Intercessory Prayer (STEP). While patients facing coronary artery bypass surgery did not show tangible physiological benefits, Benson’s broader research has shown the brain’s limbic system activates during prayer and helps bring balance and stability to the automatic nervous system, heart rate, blood pressure, and metabolism.
Dr. Harold Koenig a psychiatrist and Director of the Center for Spirituality, Theology, and Health at Duke University Medical School along with his colleagues, completed a systematic review of nearly 1,600 published health-related studies and concluded that the integration of prayer and a spiritual paradigm not only demonstrated increased levels of self-esteem, social support and life satisfaction, but simultaneously reduced levels of anxiety, depression, loneliness, and suicide.
Given these kind of documented results, there appears to be tangible value for developing a more comprehensive mental health model that integrates the disciplines of psychology and theology. The implication is that treatment providers need to think and practice in terms of a bio-psycho-social-spiritual orientation.
Appropriate referrals to chaplains, other clergy members, and faith-based mental health clinicians who are equipped to engage clients within their cultural framework is a valid consideration for expanded and collaborative care.
SPECIAL COVERAGE: The power of prayer: Enhance your life
Yes spirituality is mysterious and yes, it is real. Faith and faith-based treatment protocols continue to show promise in the literature and researchers should be encouraged to pursue the ongoing exploration of this emerging construct.
Spirituality, while intensely personal, offers “believers” an anchor for the soul. It has a hopeful effect that can motivate a client and enhance the change process in ways that are transformational because it incorporates the whole person. Do prayer and faith make a difference? They can.
Dr. Eric Scalise, Ph.D., LPC, LMFT, is the president of LIV Enterprises & Consulting, LLC, the former vice president for Professional Development with the American Association of Christian Counselors and the former department chair of Counseling Programs at Regent University. He is a Licensed Professional Counselor and a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist with over 35 years of clinical and professional experience in the mental health field. Dr. Tim Clinton, Ed.D., LPC, LMFT, is president of the nearly 50,000-member American Association of Christian Counselors (www.aacc.net), the largest and most diverse Christian counseling association in the world. He is a professor of Counseling and Pastoral Care, and executive director of the Center for Counseling and Family Studies at Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA, and a Licensed Professional Counselor and Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.