Spirituality, the sense of being part of something greater than ourselves, brings meaning and purpose to many. It helps us find order among the everyday chaos of our world. But can spirituality also bring measurable health benefits too, or help us manage health-related issues? Several research studies would suggest yes, it can.
Because spirituality features to a greater or lesser extent in most of our lives, it inevitably plays a role in our perception of any illness we face. Individuals with long term conditions many turn to their spiritual beliefs to try to make sense of and manage the impact of their disease.
For example, spirituality is an important factor in the experience of chronic pain. One study looked at adults with sickle cell disease, and found that patients with higher levels of spirituality or religiosity reported lower pain intensity and were better able to cope with their pain. The researchers, from Duke University Medical Center, North Carolina, USA, say, “Religion/spirituality has been identified by individuals with sickle cell disease as an important factor in coping with stress and in determining quality of life.” They add that previous research “has demonstrated positive associations between religiosity/spirituality and better physical and mental health outcomes.”
However, a further study of 71 patients indicated that spiritual well-being (i.e. religiosity as a specific relationship with God, spirituality as a sense of life purpose and satisfaction) was not linked to the severity of reported pain. Nevertheless, spiritual well-being helped adults with sickle cell disease cope better with pain through perceptions of life control and through social support.
The researchers, from Emory University, Atlanta, USA, say, “Patients with sickle cell disease cope with their disease in various ways, such as psychological counselling, hypnosis, medication, and prayer.” In their study, “Existential well-being was associated with general coping ability.” They conclude, “Spiritual well-being is important for some patients who must cope with the pain of sickle cell disease.”
Lead researcher, Dr Melanie Cooper-Effa, believes, “If a person is spiritually healthy existentially, that person has greater life satisfaction and life direction, as measured by this study. These two constructs are intuitively associated with quality of life and possibly even disease outcome.”
She adds, “The results of this study are in keeping with the body of evidence that has developed during the past decade associating spirituality in disease with an ability to tolerate pain. This study shows the importance of spiritual well-being in coping with the complications of sickle cell disease. Many clinicians might avoid issues of religiosity and spirituality because they view them as intensely personal, but this study suggests that these issues can be of therapeutic value.”
A larger study of 392 patients with chronic pain diseases and cancer explored “unmet spiritual needs in patients living in a secular society”. The team, from the Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies in Freiburg, Germany, gave the patients anonymous surveys that included questions on spiritual needs, spirituality/religiosity, coping, spiritual well-being, and life satisfaction.
They say, “Research has shown that several patients report unmet psychosocial and spiritual needs. Our results showed that religious needs and existential needs tended to be low, while needs for inner peace and giving/generative relatedness were high.” The need for generative relatedness was described in this study as a desire for interpersonal “meaning-making” as opposed to existential needs, which were viewed as more individual life-reflecting processes.
“Needs related to transcendent relatedness were of minor relevance,” the researchers add. “Nevertheless, even religious sceptics can express specific religious needs, and these should be recognised.”
Writing in the journal Pain Medicine they point out that, when facing chronic disease, many patients rely on their spirituality in terms of beliefs, ethical commitments, and formal practices such as meditation or attending church, as coping resources. “Spirituality may be beneficial for maintaining self-esteem, may provide a sense of meaning and purpose, and also provides emotional comfort and a sense of hope,” they write.
“Meanwhile, there is a large body of evidence which demonstrates that religious involvement is related to better psychological well-being, enhanced social support, less depression, fewer suicidal thoughts, and reduced substance abuse.” The authors feel that modern-day spirituality can be described as “a broad concept which seems to overlap with secular concepts such as humanism, existentialism, and probably also with specific esoteric views”. “Generally speaking,” they write, “spirituality can be considered a person’s commitment to a higher principle, which is embodied in daily life according to implicit ethical guidelines – either within the framework of institutionalised religiosity or beyond.”
The researchers suggest that health care professionals can play an important role in “enhancing patients’ psycho-spiritual well-being, i.e., self-awareness, coping and adjusting effectively to stress, relationships, sense of faith, sense of empowerment and confidence, and living with meaning and hope”.
A range of studies show a positive relation between spiritual wellbeing and psychological well-being, hope, and protection against anxiety and helplessness. This may be due to direct effects within the body, or indirectly via greater social interaction and a broader support network.
Surveys indicate that about 90% of medical patients view themselves as religious or spiritual. Attention must be given to these needs, and further studies are needed to investigate the role of spirituality/religiosity in as many different patient groups as possible.
References:
RSA (Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce) report on spirituality in the 21st century: https://www.thersa.org/discover/publications-and-articles/reports/spiritualise-revitalising-spirituality-to-address-21st-century-challenges/
Harrison, M. et al. Religiosity, spirituality, and pain in patients with sickle cell disease. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease. April 2005, Volume 193, Issue 4, pp. 250-57.
Cooper-Effa, M. et al. Role of spirituality in patients with sickle cell disease. The Journal of the American Board of Family Practice. March-April 2001, Volume 14, Issue 2, pp. 116-22.
Taylor, L. E. A biopsychosocial-spiritual model of chronic pain in adults with sickle cell disease. Pain Management Nursing. December 2013, Volume 14, Issue 4, pp. 287-301.
Bussing, A. et al. Spiritual Needs among Patients with Chronic Pain Diseases and Cancer Living in a Secular Society. Pain Medicine. September 2013, Volume 14, Issue 9, pp. 1362-73.