There are two conferences on spirituality and mental health scheduled for early next month: Northern California Mental Health and Spirituality Conference, June 1-2 2009 in Oakland, CA; California Conference on Mental Health and Spirituality, June 4-5 2009 in Los Angeles, CA.
The basic purpose of these conferences is to increase the awareness of the possible ways that spirituality can and has played in the prevention, treatment, and recovery of mental illness, and to promote interaction and collaboration among religious organizations, mental health services providers, those with mental illness and their families, and the general public in learning more about the issues and combating stigmas that are associated with both religion and mental illness.
Important in these conferences is that they are presenting methods that integrate spirituality into mental health treatment that are both client-driven and respectful of the separation of church and state. These meetings provide research to educate the public on the important role spirituality has played for many people in recovery from trauma and mental illness.
Since there has been a rift or barrier between religion and the psychological/mental health community in the past and continuing today, these types of conferences are significant in taking steps in the direction of understanding, cooperation, and collaboration in fighting mental illness. Mental health service providers often have misguided and uninformed stereotypes about religious practices, rituals, disciplines, and beliefs and religious organizations oftentimes don't have concrete ways of offering themselves as a friendly outlet or community for those suffering from mental illness. I trust that the more we can initiate conferences and experimental/experiential meetings like the above the more able we'll be to tear down the walls separating the integration of spiritual practices and beliefs into mental health prevention and treatment.
As a Unity student and chaplain in training, I feel that spirituality does play a significant role (if not a primary role) in dealing with any illness or problem being experienced in many people's lives. Addressing the spiritual dimension of the human condition is important because without taking it into account we're missing an integral part of the whole. Treating only the physical and/or emotional while neglecting the spiritual can be greatly detrimental to one's well-being since spirituality is an essential element of the entire human being.
However, it's important to recognize that not every individual wants to bring spirituality or religion into their treatment. Thus, the integration of spirituality into treating illnesses must be initiated and guided by the patient so that spirituality isn't being forced into their lives against their will -- this wouldn't be conducive to growth or well-being at all.
Unity, as a movement, has always promoted a "whole-person"-oriented method of addressing well-being and health and has a strong history of advocating the coordination and integration of the spiritual with the scientific (or vice versa). Unity communities have been involved in building relationships with local health professionals and internal programs focused on actively dealing with mental and other illnesses with a whole-person mindset and methodology. One prominent example would be the Unity Church of Hawaii, ministered by Rev. Sky St. John, but there are many communities and individuals involved in this kind of work.
Let's keep up the good work and further it by supporting and initiating conferences such as these that bring together the disciplines of spirituality and mental health.
"Activists and advocates have launched an initiative to further the understanding of the role of religion and spirituality in mental health. Conferences next month will bring clergy and mental health workers together to break new ground." Read more by Gale Bataille and Bill Berkowitz at Relgion Dispatches.
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