Spirituality and religion in psychiatric rehabilitation and recovery from mental illness

Abstract

While mental health professionals frequently express concerns about the function of spirituality and religion in the lives of people diagnosed with severe mental disorders, there are both clinical and research bases for the increased acceptance of spirituality's potentially positive role in psychiatric rehabilitation and recovery. This paper first addresses issues of religious experience in diagnosis, including the importance of religiocultural context and overall functioning in diagnostic assessments. It then examines the roles of spirituality in recovery, exploring both positive and negative relationships between religion and consumers' well-being. Finally, it describes several specific ways in which spiritual and religious concerns may be integrated into psychosocial rehabilitation services: conducting spiritual assessments; offering spiritually-informed discussion groups; incorporating spiritual dimensions of psychotherapy; and facilitating linkages to faith communities and spiritual resources.