bipolar disorder, and psychosis as having a genetic basis, and/or coming from a chemical imbalance (aka “broken brain”). Unresolved emotional traumas, clearly one of the most significant factors contributing to mental illnesses, are often overlooked, as our psychiatrists are trained to follow a drug-based treatment paradigm. Consumers might assume that psychiatry is the branch of medicine that should be best suited to address emotional wounding; unfortunately, it’s uncommon to find a recently-trained psychiatrist who is well-versed in tools for healing other than prescribing drugs that mask symptoms.
These biases are beginning to break down now, as more people are becoming aware of the long-term detrimental effects of psychiatric drugs and the possibility of recovering from emotional imbalances--referred to previously as “mental illness” and considered a diagnosis to be assumed for life.
Recovery is, by definition, not a quick fix. It is a journey that takes time, needs attention, and benefits from social-support structures such as peer counseling, supportive groups, complementary healthcare protocols such as acupuncture, and, if necessary, an extended stay in a “safe home” (see chapter devoted to “Safe Homes”). Recovery requires the willingness to cope with the resolution of previous emotional trauma as well as make positive life-style choices. (This does not always necessitate long-term psychotherapy, as there are effective and relatively quick methods for dealing with some traumas and other emotional problems, as described in Chapter One.) Full recovery does necessitate getting adequate sleep, exercise, time in nature, and appropriate nourishment. Finding an expression for one’s spirituality may be the singlemost valuable component of recovery, as it directly addresses the lack of meaning and purpose in a person’s life, which contributed to the emotional imbalance in the first place.
Let’s look more closely at the cultural, genetic and chemical points of view regarding serious mental illness:
Cultural: When we “medicalize” mental illness, we tend to interpret unusual perceptions, strong moods, upsetting emotional outbursts, and acting in unconventional ways as evidence of a problem in brain function. We live in a culture that feels safest in a steady, upbeat, light, happy mood. What lies outside of that harbor of safety can be seen as not ok, and off limits. That is our cultural bias at work. Psychiatric medications are often used to dissipate strong emotional experiences, and dissolve unusual visionary and auditory experiences, so we can indulge a desire to do away with what seems to be unacceptable feelings and perceptions through medication. They throw a blanket over the feelings and sensations—much like pain relievers make it possible for us not to feel physical pain.
Genetic: It has previously been thought that mental imbalance in a family is passed on through “bad genes,” that mental illness is genetically transferred through generations. It has not been adequately proven that this is a significant factor. Certainly, we can be predisposed to mental illness after growing up with a family member, or someone in our extended family, who models behaviors that are self-destructive or lack compassion for others, but that does not necessarily mean that all mental illness is “genetic.”
Chemical imbalance: For decades, consumers have been told that mental imbalances come from chemical imbalances in the brain. Mental illness is not categorically a chemical issue: it does not come solely from a “broken brain”. There are no accurate physical markers that can be measured through blood or other body fluid tests or brain-imaging that establish a diagnosis for mental illnesses. Diagnosis is then subjective and depends on the insight and training of the healthcare provider who is in charge. Research shows that psychiatric medications that supposedly supplement brain chemistry actually cause brain imbalances when taken for extended periods. Some people respond to psychiatric drugs by becoming increasingly more agitated, suicidal or even homicidal but mistake their deepening emotional problems as more evidence of the disease, rather than a side-effect of the medication.
It is true that many people can be helped by short-term use of psychiatric medications, eg. when they need to sleep after not sleeping for a long period of time, or when they need to calm down after an extremely emotional experience. This does not mean that ‘more is better’, in other words, if it helps in the short run, it will be even better long term. Judicious and moderate use when necessary is a safer course. Psychiatric medications are extremely powerful.
The Role of Spirituality in Health
In the USA, spirituality is often defined as the umbrella that encloses those thoughts, feelings and attitudes connected to ultimate meaning and purpose in life. It is formally recognized as an important component in health. The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) Medical School Objectives Report III from 1999 made this definition:
“Spirituality is recognized as a factor that contributes to health in many persons. The concept of spirituality is found in all cultures and societies. It is expressed in an individual’s search for ultimate meaning through participation in religion and/or belief in God, family, naturalism, rationalism, humanism and the arts. All these factors can influence how patients and health care professionals perceive health and illness and how they interact with one another.”
The way spirituality manifests in a hospital setting is changing: it is required that patients be asked about their spiritual and religious orientation. Their answers are a possible lead to understand the dynamics at play in the complex web of their diseases. However, there is little agreement about what a treatment plan that is “spiritual” might be. In fact, hospital staff are generally not allowed to perform procedures that might be considered spiritual or religious unless the patient has asked the staff member to pray with him; hospital staff usually rely on visiting religious chaplains, or spiritually-based healers authorized by the patient and his or her family to attend the spiritual needs of each patient. This perpetuates a strong sense of separation between medical treatment and the healing that is available through spirituality, and it capitalizes on the hospital being geared to biochemical treatment and treating all health issues as having a physical basis.
One of the strongest healing aspects of spirituality may be that it helps us shift attention away from self-absorption to the beneficial qualities personified in highly spiritual beings who transmit love, compassion, truth, and joy. When human beings are mentally imbalanced they easily become self-absorbed, locked in the narrow scope of their perceived problems, their negative thinking, helplessness, and despair, unable to think about what they might do for others. Learning how to shift attention to a benevolent force, to invoke one’s higher power, inner divinity, or spirit guide can be liberating and empowering and a significant part of an overall treatment plan. Being encouraged to participate in helping others is helpful in rising out of negativity.
A Perspective from Brazil
“Biologists suggest that within the dense and vital biodiversity of the rain forest are chemical compounds that may someday cure modern plagues. Similarly, within the diversity of different cultural understandings of mental health and illness may exist knowledge that we cannot afford to lose. We erase this diversity at our own peril.”
-E. Watters, 2010, p. 7
Spiritism is a branch of Spiritualism that grew out of the writings of Allan Kardec, a French academic. In the late 19th century, Spiritists started a social movement in Brazil that has spawned community centers and psychiatric hospitals, which have proven to be highly effective in a program of integrative care, treating the needs of the public side-by-side conventional medical practitioners. Some of the Spiritist physicians are excellent both as MDs as well as spiritual healers.
The Spiritist Community Centers are valuable as centers for spiritual growth, as they offer classes to address the most important questions in life without proselytizing a specific religion. Answering such questions as “Why am I alive?” “What happens at death?” “Do spirits interact with those in body?” “What or who is God?” helps one
