OBJECTIVES We have previously reported that a multifaith spiritually based intervention (SBI) may have efficacy in the treatment of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). This randomized pilot trial tested whether the SBI had greater efficacy than a nonspecific control condition in GAD. METHOD Twenty-three participants with GAD of at least moderate severity were randomized to 12 individual sessi...

Mindfulness and meditation (MM) are increasingly used in trauma treatment, yet there is little research about therapist qualifications and clinical applications of these practices. We surveyed trauma therapists (N = 116) about their clinical uses, training, and personal practice of MM. Most respondents reported use of MM in trauma therapy, primarily MM-related imagery and breathing exercises an...

BACKGROUND & PURPOSE Spirituality is an important factor influencing the decrease of substance abuse severity and maintenance of the recovery phase. This research, investigates the effect of spiritual experiences in the recovery of substance abusers. MATERIALS AND METHODS Qualitative data was collected from 16 men and 6 women, selected through purposeful sampling to ensure an equilibrated gen...

BACKGROUND Clinically significant anxiety and depression are common in patients with cancer, and are associated with poor psychiatric and medical outcomes. Historical and recent research suggests a role for psilocybin to treat cancer-related anxiety and depression. METHODS In this double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover trial, 29 patients with cancer-related anxiety and depression were ra...

The purpose of this study was to explore how contemporary German psychiatrists think about religiosity/spirituality (ReS) in regard to their therapies. We conducted an anonymous survey among the clinical staff of psychiatry and psychotherapy departments in German university hospitals and faith-based clinics in the same cities. Two main instruments were used, the Duke University Religion Index (...

How is spirituality relevant to mental health and to the busy practice of medicine? Until recently, a supplement devoted to this question wouid have been highly improbable— owing in part to Sigmund Freud's antireligious bias and to the subsequent focus of American psychiatry on the biologic aspects of mental illness. Consider briefly what has changed: Palliative medicine, which has long valued ...

Transpersonal psycho therapy is based on transpersonal psychology and considers that the psyche is multidimensional and that there are several "levels of consciousness" and each has different characteristics and is governed by different laws. Transpersonal psychology is the study of human nature and proceeds on the assumption that human beings possess potentials that exceed the limits of their ...

INTRODUCTION In Western Europe, the Christian churches are changing at a large scale. Two examples may illustrate the new situation: In France, a traditional catholic country, until the 1960s the belief in God remained stable around 75 %. In 2006, only 52 % of the population indicate that they trust in God. While in the 1990s around 80 % attended worship services regularly, today only 51 % do s...

This paper examines the life stories of 14 men and women who spent time in religious communities and who subsequently took up work in the caring professions. Their accounts reflect the alignment between the ethics of care and those of religious life, the centrality of contemplation and self-examination to both Christianity and psychotherapy. There are further correspondences between their narra...