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Building Bridges: Mental Health Consumers and Members of Faith-Based and Community Organizations in Dialogue
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Dialogue Themes
and Findings
As the dialogue began, participants
shared in-depth, personal experiences in consumer-faith interactions that have
promoted or hindered recovery from mental illnesses. By telling personal stories,
participants understood better the context from which they each spoke, and they
learned that they had shared many of the same types of experiences. The stories
helped increase empathy and reduce perceived differences among the participants.
These histories lay the foundation for further discussion dialogues to build
partnerships.
Some participants spoke about the positive impact of spirituality and either
personal or organized religion on their recovery and coping . . . “I believe
that a relationship with God and spirituality are the most important supports
to help us recover.” (Consumer)
“The one thing that kept me from going off the deep end after three suicide
attempts was that God had other plans for me.” (Consumer)
“My spirituality is internal. After having been locked up in seclusion
for 45 days, I discovered I had found spirit.” (Consumer)
Others revealed the pain they suffered due to some faith communities’ lack
of knowledge of how to help them . . . “Mental illness is a ‘no casserole’
disease. When you have other illnesses, congregations reach out— not always
with mental illness.” (Family member)
Some told stories about having been turned away by faith communities and their
leaders . . . “I have worked with religious people for eons, and I have
been turned away many times. Once in a while, I’d come across a religious
group that would tolerate me for a tad, but not for long.” (Consumer)
Participants who work as advocates for persons with mental health problems described
how both positive and negative experiences affected their work . . .
“I finished seminary, but I realized I would not flourish where people
would be suspicious of my abilities and performance. Also I was recognizing
that people were not speaking up about mental illness, and people had no one
to advocate for them. I decided to pursue advocacy rather than ordination.”
(Consumer)
Leaders of faith communities
discussed encountering and/or fashioning welcoming environments for persons
with mental illnesses . . . “Some congregations have hired therapists for
families and members who have mental illnesses. The services provided are free
to those families.” (Consumer)
“It took me twenty years until I found a church that wanted to do a ministry
to people with severe mental illnesses. We wanted consumers integrated into
all parts of the church. The vision just exploded. We have maybe a hundred consumers
in all.” (Clergy/consumer)
Some participants described their work with community-based support programs
that include a focus on spirituality. . . “We made major changes in the
local mental health system. We invited ministers, consumers, and staff. We wanted
to look at spirituality in new ways to be helpful to people we serve. We started
training mental health staff
and religious professionals to run therapy groups as part of the services.”
(Mental health professional)
“I am not a mental health consumer, but I have interacted with many consumers.
It is my charge and calling to enable our faith’s resources to reach out
into the community in partnership with government. But the armies of compassion
are not engaged. Our churches tend to build walls.” (Faith community worker)
Factors That Promote Recovery
Participants identified factors that contribute to recovery within faith and
community organization settings:
A sense of community
- Faith communities can
offer a safe, comfortable, nonjudgmental environment to mental health consumers.
- Personal outreach, the
development of a social network, and the community’s gifts of “being
present,” of listening, and of friendship contribute to a validating
environment. An organization’s spirit of hospitality, expressed by both
clergy and congregants, can serve as a welcoming beacon.
- Persons with mental illnesses
have opportunities for self-disclosure—to tell their personal stories.
- People have opportunities
to forge connections in a spirit of trust and acceptance.
- Consumers’ participation in and contributions to the faith community
are valued.
- A consumer can begin a relationship with a faith community simply by telling
his or her story to a member of the clergy or a lay leader and explaining
how faith has been important for coping with a mental illness personally or
in the family.
“Consumers across the country consider their top needs to be housing,
jobs, and social supports. Faith and community organizations play such a crucial
role in these areas.” (Consumer)
Rituals and other spiritual
practices. Faith-based
rituals and other spiritual practices can foster recovery among persons with
mental illnesses. Rituals and other practices can include
- Prayer (personal and
congregational, formal and informal)
- Personal testimony
- Meditation
The forms may differ, but
spiritual practices are an important aspect and value of a faith community’s
connection with mental health consumers. Faith communities can help people achieve
solace and foster a greater sense of belonging.
“Talking about mental illness from the pulpit is healing and opens doors.”
(Consumer)
Understanding mental illnesses and psychiatric disabilities.
Faith communities that understand mental illnesses and psychiatric disabilities
are better able to meet the needs of mental health consumers. The following
concepts are important for faith communities both to understand and to act on:
- People can recover from
mental illnesses.
- Each consumer has unique
needs that require individual supports, rather than “cookie-cutter”
approaches.
- Discrimination and stigma
impede recovery. Faith communities that help overcome fears, stigma, and discrimination
regarding mental illness are better able to serve persons with mental illnesses.
- “Connectedness”
to family, faith, peers, the faith community—or anyone who listens and
supports during a time of need—is important to persons with mental illnesses.
Empathy and listening help build relationships.
- A holistic mind/body/spirit
approach that acknowledges a person’s strengths (as well as weaknesses)
places mental illness and psychiatric disability in the context of the whole
person.
- The cyclical nature of
some mental illnesses highlights the need for faith communities’ commitment
to ongoing involvement with (and outreach to) consumers and their families.
- Awareness that co-occurring
disorders, such as substance use or a physical disability, may accompany and
inhibit recovery from mental illnesses is helpful.
“Sharing my story has
been one of the greatest ways to relieve stigma. A few months ago, I organized
a walk across Wisconsin for awareness.” (Clergy/consumer)
Cultural competence
- A faith community’s
awareness of mental health consumers’ backgrounds—including language
and cultural understanding of mental health—in accommodating their needs
is important to recovery.
- Using “people-first”
language—saying “a person with mental health issues” or “a
person with a mental illness,” rather than “a mentally ill person”—is
an important practice in a welcoming community.
- It is important to understand
that traditional healing practices, in addition to or instead of contemporary
mental health practices, may be important to some persons with mental illnesses.
“Many small, ethnic minority churches impacted more on me than a community
support program, because of the cultural affinity.” (Faith community
organizer)
Other factors
- Mutual aid: Individuals
help themselves when they support others.
- Tradition: A sense of
historical connection related to faith can be healing.
Factors That Hinder Recovery
Participants identified a number of factors, related to consumers, faith communities,
and the broader community, that can impede recovery:
Discrimination and stigma.
The existence of discrimination and stigma within faith communities contributes
to the burden of silence and secrecy consumers carry about their mental illnesses.
They may feel shame about their illnesses and fear being judged negatively by
members of the faith community because of their illnesses. The perception by
members of the faith community that mental health consumers are somehow “different”
may further heighten stigma and discrimination.
“I attempted to talk with my priest about my bipolar disorder, but I got
the notion that I wasn’t to talk about this.” (Consumer)
Lack of outreach to persons with mental illnesses
- Welcoming people with
mental illnesses is not a priority for some faith communities.
- Some communities lack
knowledge about outreach strategies and practices.
Authoritarian perspective
and/or lack of openness in some faithbased organizations. The hierarchies
of some faith communities discriminate against and stigmatize clergy with mental
illnesses. Many clergy who suffer from mental health problems fear seeking care
because their positions in their pulpits may be endangered.
“As pastor, I kept my mental illness secret from my congregation for two
years. Carrying the burden of silence is most difficult. They tried to put me
on involuntary disability, to kick me out of the ministry.” (Clergy/consumer)
Historical schism between religion and the mental health community. For
more than a century, organized religion and the health field have taken divergent—and
sometimes antagonistic—paths in their approaches to mental health. Consequently,
many religious leaders lack an understanding of mental health issues and the
possibility for recovery, while many health and mental health providers lack
an appreciation for the significant role that religion, spirituality, and the
faith community may play in healing.
Spiritual crises or emergencies
not often validated. For many persons experiencing psychosis, there is a
fine line between spirituality and madness. These “spiritual crises”
or “emergencies” often are not validated by mental health professionals.
“How a person comes to accept and understand these experiences (spiritual
crises) may be a key to their recovery, including believing and calling up a
higher power for help.” (Consumer)
System-Level Issues That Impact Recovery
In discussion of contextual issues, dialogue participants identified many factors
that affect relationships between mental health consumers and faith-based organizations.
These factors center around institutions that train religious and mental health
providers, social policy, partnerships among community organizations that address
the needs of persons with mental illnesses, the role of the Federal government
in helping faith- and community-based organizations provide social services,
and the role of consumers, among others.
Education and training
- Seminary training typically
does not address the relationship between issues of spirituality and mental
health.
- Training programs for
mental health professionals lack instruction on the values and role of faith,
spirituality, and religion in healing mental illnesses, and on how to integrate
traditional healing practices.
- Chaplains in State hospitals—and
clergy in general—typically are not considered integral members of the
healing process or of the mental health team.
“Many practitioners
don’t understand the role of spirituality.” (Mental health provider)
Faith-based organizations
and social policy
- Faith-based organizations
can reach beyond the charity model and implement a model that focuses on recovery,
with and by persons with mental illnesses.
- Faith-based organizations
can serve as a bridge when they focus on mental health issues, including discrimination
and stigma in housing, insurance parity, seclusion and restraint, the criminal
justice system, and addictions.
- Faith communities that
wish to influence social policy and bring about social justice must allocate
resources to undertake this work.
Issues of church and
state. Some faith communities and government agencies avoid working with
each other to provide social services because of misperceptions about the legal
relationship between church and state. Education is needed to clarify the appropriate
relationship.
“The faith community needs to be helpful in trying to overcome the resistance
of the public health community.” (Consumer)
Consumer participation
- Consumer representation
on faith-based organizations’ advisory groups and governing boards contributes
to relevance of the organizations’ programs.
- Consumers can serve in
faith-based organizations as change agents, role models, and contributing
members.
- Hierarchies in faith-based
organizations and/or religious leaders may create barriers to participation
for members, potential members, and clergy with mental health issues.
- “Nothing about us
without us.” Consumer empowerment is fostered by the involvement of consumers
in all aspects of their connection with their faith community. Education about
and access to information or services that are relevant and culturally competent
empower consumers to make informed decisions.
Linkages between faith
and community organizations
- Clergy need to know when
and where to refer a person with mental health issues, and also to know how
to support that person in the congregation.
- Mental health providers
need tools to help them incorporate spirituality into their repertoires of
healing techniques.
Faith-based initiative
policy
- Officials of public mental
health programs may see faith-based approaches as an opportunity to cut costs
and to undermine or supplant the work of experienced mental health professionals.
Emphasis on delivery of high-quality mental health services is imperative.
- It is important to provide
technical assistance systematically to small faith-based and community organizations
that serve people with mental illnesses to enable those organizations to compete
successfully for Federal resources.
- Funds should be directed
where the need is greatest. Technical assistance can enhance faith-based organizations’
capability to use funds responsibly and effectively, and to integrate their
work with the health care delivery system.
Research to develop the
evidence base. Research should be directed toward the contributions of chaplains
and faith-based organizations in the treatment and recovery of individuals with
mental illnesses, and toward the factors that impede outreach to consumers.
Community organizing
- To implement effective
links between faith-based and community organizations and mental health providers
and consumers, all relevant stakeholders must join at the planning table in
a collaborative framework.
- Collaborations and partnerships
need to set short- and long-term goals that are incrementally achievable and
measurable.
“I help to build multi-ethnic, interfaith coalitions around quality of
life. I’m a community organizer with a spiritual imperative.” (Clergy/community
organizer)
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