Islamic religious leaders' knowledge and attitudes towards AIDS and their perception of people living with HIV/AIDS: a qualitative study F. A. Abu-Moghli et al. Islamic religious leaders' knowledge and attitudes towards AIDS.

Tags:

• AIDS (Disease)
• AIDS (Disease) -- Prevention
• ATTITUDE (Psychology)
• CONTENT analysis (Communication)
• empirical research
• Focus Groups
• HEALTH literacy
• INTERVIEWING
• ISLAM
• JORDAN
• LEADERS
• PSYCHOLOGICAL factors
• Qualitative Research
• religion
• RESEARCH -- Methodology
• SOUND recordings
• SPIRITUAL care (Medical care)

Notes:

•  This study explored   twenty Islamic religious leaders' (males and females) perception, knowledge and attitudes towards AIDS, AIDS prevention and attitudes towards people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA).  Results showed that Muslim religious leaders do not perceive AIDS as a major health problem in Jordan, and that following the Islamic values lowers the risky behaviours. The religious leaders reflected varied responses to PLWHA but they agreed that they have responsibilities towards the prevention of HIV/AIDS, and that sex education contributes to healthy behaviours, and consequently to the prevention of HIV transmission.

  
  

Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use among Women with Breast Cancer

Notes:

• Results from a qualitative prospective cohort study challenge previous stereotypes by indicating that CAM usage does not increase dramatically with the initial diagnosis of cancer and that younger women are more likely to use CAM than older women.

Religion and spirituality in coping with advanced breast cancer: perspectives from Malaysian Muslim women

Notes:

• This article is part of a larger study on the role of spirituality in coping with breast cancer among Malaysian Muslim women. The study seeks to reveal the meaning of the experience through the stories of three Muslim women surviving advanced breast cancer, to better understand the deep meanings that inform their experiences with spirituality and transformation as they cope with the challenges of breast cancer. Data were gathered using in-depth interview. Qualitative methods were used in identifying two themes--illness as an awakening and hope and freedom comes from surrendering to God. The themes were discussed in the context of two broad areas: (1) what are the new meanings these women discovered in their experiences with cancer; and (2) how did the new meanings change their lives? The study suggests that cancer survivors' experiences with cancer and their learning processes must be understood within the appropriate cultural context. This is especially so for spirituality. The common emphasis of spirituality on relationship with God, self and others, may significantly influence how people learn to live with cancer.

Divine love and deep connections: a long-term followup of patients surviving cardiac surgery

Notes:

• The authors examined experiencing divine love as an indicator of affective spiritual growth in a prospective cohort of 200 patients surviving cardiac surgery. These patients previously completed two-wave preoperative interviews when standardized cardiac surgery data were also collected. The information included left ventricular ejection fraction, New York Heart Association Classification, baseline health (physical and mental), optimism, hope, religiousness, prayer coping, religious/spiritual coping, and demographics. The authors then measured divine love at 900 days postoperatively. Hierarchical linear regression indicated the direct effect of positive religious coping on experiences of divine love, controlling for other key variables. Postoperatively perceived spiritual support was entered at the final step as an explanatory factor, which appeared to mediate the coping effect. None of the other faith factors predicted divine love. Further research regarding divine love and spiritual support may eventually guide clinical attempts to support patients' spiritual growth as an independently relevant outcome of cardiac surgery.

Spiritual struggle related to plasma interleukin-6 prior to cardiac surgery.

Tags:

• cardiac diseases & cardiac surgery
• Coping Behavior
• coping with stress
• Heart Disorders
• Heart Surgery
• immune-inflammatory marker interleukin-6
• Interleukins
• religion
• spiritual struggle
• spirituality
• Stress

Notes:

• Spiritual struggle appeared consistently to predict poor health outcomes, including mortality. Despite surging interest in the health benefits of religion and spirituality, the health hassle of existential conflicts and proinflammatory cytokines as a potential physiological mechanism has been overlooked. Based on psychological and theological assumptions, we argue for the universal nature of spiritual struggle, a crisis-related existential conflict, and for investigating its physiological influence as essential to understanding human nature. Increased levels of inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-6 (IL-6) have been linked with adverse health outcomes and negative emotions. This study thus examined spiritual struggle related to plasma IL-6 in 235 adult patients undergoing cardiac surgery, along with positive religious coping, general coping, and optimism, controlling for standardized clinical medical indicators. Multiple regression analysis, following a preplanned sequence, showed that spiritual struggle (p = .011), behavioral coping (p = .013) were positively associated with excess plasma IL-6, controlling for medical correlates (e.g., left ventricular ejection fraction). We conclude that spiritual struggle, indicating the crisis in an existential relation, and behavioral coping strategies are associated with elevated pre-operative plasma IL-6. The interdisciplinary implications are discussed.

Private prayer and quality of life in cardiac patients: Pathways of cognitive coping and social support.

Tags:

• cardiac patients
• Coping
• Coping Behavior
• Heart Surgery
• prayer
• private prayer
• Quality of Life
• short term quality of life

Notes:

• Despite the growing evidence linking faith with health and well-being, national leaders noted the need to explore the mechanism underlying these linkages. The goal of this prospective study was to investigate the psychosocial mechanisms involved in the preoperative use of private prayer for coping and the effects of such act on short-term quality of life (SPQOL) in 294 patients following open-heart surgery. Using established instruments, three interviews were conducted with middle-aged and older patients (average age 62) at two weeks and two days preoperatively, then 36 days postoperatively. The endpoints were assessed with levels of distress (e.g., depression and anxiety) and fatigue symptoms. Structural equation modeling was used to test a theoretical model. The final model showed the indirect influence of using prayer for coping on SPQOL through the mediation of cognitive coping and perceived social support. However, this mediation was not observed for behavioral, anger, and avoidant coping. Psychosocial factors may explain the potential role of using prayer for coping on short-term postoperative quality of life.

Pathways to postoperative hostility in cardiac patients: mediation of coping, spiritual struggle and interleukin-6

Notes:

• Using structural equation modeling, we estimated major pathways from preoperative distress, indicated by anxiety and other factors, to postoperative hostility in cardiac patients. Sequential interviews were conducted before and after surgery. Standardized medical and surgical indices were selected from a national database. Results showed that preoperative spiritual struggle mediated indirect effects of anxiety and anger coping on Interleukin-6 (IL-6) immediately before surgery. The link between spiritual struggle and IL-6 further mediated the indirect effects of anxiety and anger coping on postoperative hostility. Anger coping mediated the harmful influence of anxiety and counteracted the protection of positive religious coping on adjustment.

Prayer and reverence in naturalistic, aesthetic, and socio-moral contexts predicted fewer complications following coronary artery bypass.

Tags:

• CORONARY artery bypass
• DISEASES -- Religious aspects
• HEART -- Blood-vessels
• PATIENTS
• SURGERY -- Complications

Notes:

• This prospective study explores prayer, reverence, and other aspects of faith in postoperative complications and hospital length of stay of patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft surgery. Alongside traditional religiousness measures, we examined sense of reverence in religious and secular contexts. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with 177 patients 2 weeks before surgery at a medical center. Medical variables were retrieved from the national Society of Thoracic Surgeons’ Database. Logistic and multiple regression models were performed to predict outcomes. Prayer frequencies were associated with reduced complications but not hospitalization. Sense of reverence in secular contexts predicted fewer complications and shorter hospitalization. Controlling for complications reduced the initial influence of reverence on hospitalization, suggesting the potential mediation of complications. No interaction between demographics and faith factors was evident. The role of faith in medicine is complex and context-dependent. Future studies are needed on mediating factors

Long-term Adjustment After Surviving Open Heart Surgery: The Effect of Using Prayer for Coping Replicated in a Prospective Design

Notes:

• A study examines multifaceted effects of religious factors on long-term postoperative adjustment, extending author's previous findings concerning prayer and coping with cardiac disease.

"If God wanted me yesterday, I wouldn't be here today": religious and spiritual themes in patients' experiences of advanced cancer

Notes:

• This study sought to inductively derive core themes of religion and/or spirituality (R/S) active in patients' experiences of advanced cancer to inform the development of spiritual care interventions in the terminally ill cancer setting. The authors concluded that R/S plays a variety of important and inter-related roles for most advanced cancer patients. Future research is needed to determine how spiritual care can incorporate these five themes and address R/S concerns.

Perception among medical students in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, regarding alcohol and substance abuse in the community: a cross-sectional survey

Tags:

• Islam

Effectiveness of skill-based substance abuse intervention among male adolescents in an Islamic country: case of the Islamic Republic of Iran

Tags:

• Adolescent
• Adolescent Behavior
• Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
• Humans
• Iran
• ISLAM
• Longitudinal Studies
• Male
• Primary Prevention
• Smoking
• Substance-Related Disorders

Addiction treatment intervention: an uncontrolled prospective pilot study of spiritual self-schema therapy with latina women

Effect of yoga-nidra on blood glucose level in diabetic patients

Tags:

• Adult
• Aged
• Blood Glucose
• Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2
• Female
• Humans
• Hypoglycemic Agents
• Male
• Middle Aged
• yoga

Efficacy of short-term life-review interviews on the spiritual well-being of terminally ill cancer patients

Notes:

• The primary aim of the study was to examine the efficacy of a one-week Short-Term Life Review for the enhancement of spiritual well-being, using a randomized controlled trial. The secondary aim was to assess the effect of this therapy on anxiety and depression, suffering, and elements of a good death.

The Efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Meditation Therapy on Anxiety, Depression, and Spirituality in Japanese Patients with Cancer

Tags:

• prepub

Notes:

• The primary goal of the study was to assess the efficacy of mindfulness-based meditation therapy on anxiety, depression, and spiritual well-being of Japanese patients undergoing anticancer treatment. Conclusions: Mindfulness-based meditation therapy may be effective for anxiety and depression in Japanese cancer patients, and spiritual well-being is related to anxiety and depression, growth, and pain.

Spiritual well-being in individuals with fibromyalgia syndrome: relationships with symptom pattern variability, uncertainty, and psychosocial adaptation

Tags:

• Adaptation, Psychological
• Adult
• Attitude to Health
• Female
• Fibromyalgia
• Humans
• Internet
• Male
• mental health
• Models, Psychological
• Nursing Methodology Research
• Quality of Life
• Questionnaires
• Regression Analysis
• Religion and Psychology
• Self Care
• Severity of Illness Index
• spirituality
• Stress, Psychological
• Uncertainty

Notes:

• This study examined relationships among symptom pattern variability, uncertainty, spiritual well-being, and psychosocial adaptation in individuals with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS). A survey design was used with 58 individuals with FMS. The Fibromyalgia Symptom Pattern Questionnaire, Mishel Uncertainty in Illness Scale--Community Form, Spiritual Well-Being Scale, and Psychosocial Adjustment to Illness Scale-Self Report were used to collect data. Positive relationships were found between symptom pattern variability and uncertainty and between uncertainty and poor psychosocial adaptation; spiritual well-being moderated the relationship between uncertainty and psychosocial adaptation. A positive sense of well-being aided adaptation to symptoms and uncertainties of FMS. Spiritual well-being had a greater effect on the relationship between symptom pattern variability and uncertainty than expected.

Spirituality, sense of coherence, and coping responses in women receiving treatment for alcohol and drug addiction

Tags:

• Adaptation, Psychological
• Adolescent
• Adult
• Age Factors
• Alcoholism
• Attitude to Health
• Female
• Follow-Up Studies
• Humans
• Logistic Models
• Massachusetts
• Patient Compliance
• Patient Dropouts
• Poverty
• Probability
• Registries
• Retrospective Studies
• Risk Factors
• Sick Role
• social support
• spirituality
• Stress, Psychological
• Substance Abuse Treatment Centers
• Substance-Related Disorders
• Treatment Outcome
• Urban Population

Notes:

• Purpose: To examine the role of spirituality, sense of coherence, and coping responses in relation to stress and trauma symptoms among women in substance abuse treatment. PRINCIPAL Findings: Stress was significantly associated with drug addiction severity and trauma symptoms were significantly related to alcohol addiction severity. Spirituality, sense of coherence, and coping responses did not mediate the relationship between perceived stress, and posttraumatic stress, and alcohol and drug addiction severity.

Multimodal analgesia for chronic pain: rationale and future directions

Notes:

• Chronic pain is a multifaceted disease requiring multimodal treatment. Clinicians routinely employ various combinations of pharmacologic, interventional, cognitive-behavioral, rehabilitative, and other nonmedical therapies despite the paucity of robust evidence in support of such an approach. Therapies are selected consistent with the biopsychosocial model of chronic pain, reflecting the subjective nature of the pain complaint, and the myriad stressors that shape it. Elucidating mechanisms that govern normal sensation in the periphery has provided insights into the biochemical, molecular, and neuroanatomic correlates of chronic pain, an understanding of which is leading increasingly to mechanism-specific multidrug therapies. Peripheral and central neuroplastic reorganization underlying the disease of chronic pain is influenced by patient-specific emotions, cognition, and memories, further impairing function and idiosyncratically defining the illness of chronic pain. Clinical perceptions of these and related subjective elements associated with the suffering of chronic pain drive psychosocial treatments, including, among other options, relaxation therapies, coping skills development, and cognitive-behavioral therapy. Treatment selection is thus guided by comprehensive assessment of the phenomenology and inferred pathophysiology of the pain syndrome; patient goals, preferences, and expectations; behavioral, cognitive, and physical function; and level of risk. Experiential, practice-based evidence may be necessary for improving patient care, but it is insufficient; certainly, well-designed studies are needed to support therapeutic decision making. This review will discuss the biochemical basis of pain, factors that govern its severity and chronicity, and foundational elements for current and emerging multimodal treatment strategies.

Patient attitudes concerning the inclusion of spirituality into addiction treatment

Tags:

• Adult
• Attitude
• Connecticut
• Female
• Focus Groups
• Harm Reduction
• HIV Infections
• Humans
• Male
• Patient Compliance
• Questionnaires
• Religion and Medicine
• spirituality
• Substance-Related Disorders
• Urban Population

Notes:

• The purpose of this exploratory study was 3-fold: (a) to determine how ‘spirituality’ is defined by inner-city HIV-positive drug users; (b) to determine perceived relationships between spirituality and abstinence, harm reduction, and health promotion; and (c) to assess interest in a spirituality-based intervention.

The relationship between religiosity and subjective well-being: A case of Kuwaiti car accident victims.

Tags:

• car accident victims
• Emotional Trauma
• Health
• Motor Traffic Accidents
• religion
• religiosity
• subjective well being
• Trauma
• Victimization
• well being

Religiosity and its relation to quality of life in Christian Orthodox cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy

Tags:

• Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols
• Christianity
• Female
• Humans
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Neoplasms
• Quality of Life
• Questionnaires
• religion

Notes:

• The first objective of the current observational study was to assess the levels of religiosity in Greek Christian Orthodox cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. The second objective was to evaluate the associations between religiosity and quality of life (QoL), an endpoint of considerable importance in clinical cancer research and practice.

Religiosity and participation in mutual-aid support groups for addiction

Tags:

• Adolescent
• Adult
• Aged
• Aged, 80 and over
• Alcoholism
• Behavior, Addictive
• Female
• Health Care Surveys
• Humans
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Recurrence
• Self-Help Groups
• spirituality
• Substance-Related Disorders
• Temperance
• Treatment Outcome

Notes:

• A national survey of mutual-aid support groups for addiction was conducted to identify key differences between participants in recovery groups. Survey data indicate that active involvement in support groups significantly improves one’s chances of remaining clean and sober, regardless of the group in which one participates. Respondents whose individual beliefs better matched those of their primary support groups showed greater levels of group participation.

Religiosity and quality of life in breast cancer patients

The benefits of yoga for rheumatoid arthritis: results of a preliminary, structured 8-week program

Chronic pain and fatigue: Associations with religion and spirituality

Tags:

• Adaptation, Psychological
• Adolescent
• Adult
• Aged
• Canada
• Chronic Disease
• Cross-Sectional Studies
• Fatigue Syndrome, Chronic
• Female
• Health Surveys
• Humans
• Linear Models
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Pain
• religion
• Young Adult

Notes:

• The Canadian Community Health Survey (2002) obtained data from 37,000 individuals 15 years of age or older. From these data, four conditions with chronic pain and fatigue were analyzed together -- fibromyalgia, back pain, migraine headaches and chronic fatigue syndrome. Additional data from the survey were used to determine how religion and spirituality affect psychological well-being, as well as the use of various coping methods.

"It depends": viewpoints of patients, physicians, and nurses on patient-practitioner prayer in the setting of advanced cancer

Notes:

• Although prayer potentially serves as an important practice in offering religious/spiritual support, its role in the clinical setting remains disputed. Few data exist to guide the role of patient-practitioner prayer in the setting of advanced illness. The aim of the study was to inform the role of prayer in the setting of life-threatening illness, this study used mixed quantitative-qualitative methods to describe the viewpoints expressed by patients with advanced cancer, oncology nurses, and oncology physicians concerning the appropriateness of clinician prayer.

Provision of spiritual care to patients with advanced cancer: associations with medical care and quality of life near death

Notes:

• To determine whether spiritual care from the medical team impacts medical care received and quality of life (QoL) at the end of life (EoL) and to examine these relationships according to patient religious coping.

Support of Cancer Patients' Spiritual Needs and Associations with Medical Care Costs at the End of Life (419-C)

Notes:

• Determine the relationship of spiritual care to end of life costs.

Effect of Iyengar yoga practice on fatigue and diurnal salivary cortisol concentration in breast cancer survivors

Notes:

• This study examines the effect of regular lyengar yoga practice on measures of self-perceived psychosocial function and diurnal salivary cortisol secretion in stage II-IV breast cancer survivors.

Qualitative systemic review of randomized controlled trials on complementary and alternative medicine treatments in fibromyalgia

Tags:

• prepub

Notes:

• This study investigates the effects of alternative therapies on fibromyalgia. Mindfulness meditation was found to have generally beneficial results, while acupuncture had mixed results that tended positive. No effects were found for Qi Gong, biofeedback, or body awareness therapy.

Acute effects of transcendental meditation on hemodynamic functioning in middle-aged adults

Tags:

• Adult
• Blood Pressure
• Female
• Heart Rate
• Hemodynamics
• Hypertension
• Life Style
• Male
• Meditation
• Middle Aged
• Questionnaires
• Vascular Resistance

Notes:

• Some studies have demonstrated that Transcendental Meditation (TM) reduces high blood pressure, but the hemodynamic adjustments behind these blood pressure reductions have not been elucidated. The aim of this study was to provide a preliminary investigation of the acute effects of TM on TPR. Conclusions: TPR decreased significantly during TM.

God and genes in the caring professions: clinician and clergy perceptions of religion and genetics

Tags:

• Adult
• Clergy
• Female
• Genetics, Medical
• Humans
• Male
• Questionnaires
• religion

Spirituality, well-being, and quality of life in people with rheumatoid arthritis

Tags:

• Adaptation, Psychological
• Arthritis, Rheumatoid
• Female
• Humans
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Quality of Life
• Questionnaires
• Sickness Impact Profile
• spirituality

Spirituality and support for family presence during invasive procedures and resuscitations in adults

Psychosocial factors, quality of life, and psychological distress: ethnic differences in patients with heart failure

Notes:

• Advances in treatment have prolonged life in heart failure (HF) patients, leading to increased attention to quality of life (QOL) and psychological functioning. It is not clear if ethnic differences exist in factors associated with psychological well-being. We examined psychosocial factors associated with depression and anxiety in 97 HF patients. Medical records were reviewed and patients (M age 53, 50% African American) completed surveys examining social support, coping, spirituality, and QOL for their association with depression and anxiety. Multiple regressions suggested that psychosocial factors were associated with psychological health. Patients with lower social support, lower meaning/peace and more negative coping reported greater depression; positive coping, and lower meaning/peace were associated with higher anxiety. Ethnicity stratified models suggested that spiritual well-being was associated with depression only among African Americans and QOL partially mediated this relationship. Findings suggest the importance of considering the unique psychosocial needs of diverse populations to appropriately target clinical interventions.

Effects of mindful yoga on sleep in pregnant women: a pilot study

Notes:

• This study explores the effects of yoga practice on sleep patterns among women in their second and third trimesters of pregnancy.  "Mindful yoga shows promise for women in their second trimester of pregnancy to diminish total number of awakenings at night and improve sleep efficiency and merits further exploration. Results from this pilot study provide the data to estimate sample size and design and implement powered and more controlled studies in the future."

Spirituality in persons with heart failure

Tags:

• Adult
• Aged
• Cross-Sectional Studies
• Faith Healing
• Female
• Heart Failure
• Humans
• Longitudinal Studies
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Quality of Life
• Questionnaires
• Religion and Medicine
• spirituality
• Time Factors

Notes:

• The authors examined the role spirituality plays in the lives of 58 people with heart failure being treated medically or by transplant. Instruments used included the Medical Outcome Survey Short Form 36 and Index of Well-Being measures of quality of life, the Spiritual Well-Being Scale, and the Relative Importance Scale. Combined spirituality scores predicted 24% of the variance in global quality of life. There were no significant gender differences in spiritual well-being or quality of life.

Reflections by inner-city drug users on a Buddhist-based spirituality-focused therapy: a qualitative study

Tags:

• Adult
• Attitude to Health
• Buddhism
• Female
• Humans
• Male
• Meditation
• Middle Aged
• Questionnaires
• Risk-Taking
• Spiritual Therapies
• spirituality
• Substance-Related Disorders
• Treatment Outcome
• Urban Population

Notes:

• A manual-guided, spirituality-focused intervention--spiritual self-schema (3-S) therapy--for the treatment of addiction and HIV-risk behavior was developed as part of a Stage I behavioral therapies development project. It is theoretically grounded in cognitive and Buddhist psychologies and may be suitable for individuals of diverse faiths. THere the authors report on inner-city, methadone-maintained clients’ personal experiences that were recorded in semistructured interviews following completion of the therapy.

Spiritual well-being and depression in patients with heart failure

Tags:

• Aged
• Aged, 80 and over
• Cross-Sectional Studies
• Depressive Disorder
• Female
• Heart Failure
• Humans
• Male
• Quality of Life
• Sickness Impact Profile
• spirituality

Notes:

• Objective: To identify the relationship between spiritual well-being and depression in patients with heart failure. Conclusions: Among outpatients with heart failure, greater spiritual well-being, particularly meaning/peace, was strongly associated with less depression.

God Image as a Function of Self-Esteem and Locus of Control

Notes:

• A cognitive consistency framework was adopted to predict that a believer’s level of self-esteem and his location on the locus of control dimension influence his description and definition of God. On a sample of 128 Catholic subjects with approximately identical religious backgrounds, self-esteem was positively related to loving-accepting God-images and negatively to rejecting images. Locus of control was unrelated to controlling beliefs.

Taking It to the Pews: a CBPR-guided HIV awareness and screening project with black churches

Tags:

• Adult
• African Americans
• Community-Based Participatory Research
• Female
• Focus Groups
• HIV Infections
• Humans
• Kansas
• Male
• Mass Screening
• Missouri
• Patient Education as Topic
• religion

Notes:

• <div> <div>This community-based participatory research (CBPR) guided study describes a church-based HIV awareness and screening intervention that fully involved African American church leaders in all phases of the research project. Findings presented in the article suggest that implementing an HIV intervention in Black church settings is achievable, particularly when a CBPR approach is used.<br /><span><br /><a href="../../../../zotero.jar%21/content/zotero/tinymce/note.html"></a></span></div> </div>

Religiosity in a hemodialysis population and its relationship to satisfaction with medical care, satisfaction with life, and adherence

Tags:

• Adult
• Aged
• Aged, 80 and over
• Attitude to Health
• Female
• Humans
• Linear Models
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Patient Compliance
• Patient Satisfaction
• Quality of Life
• religion
• Renal Dialysis

Notes:

• The religious beliefs and spirituality of patients on hemodialysis (HD) therapy have not been studied extensively. Studies of the dialysis population seem to indicate that religion may be associated with increased patient satisfaction with life and increased levels of social support. Using multiple religiosity scales and scales to assess patient satisfaction with life and social support, we studied the relationship between religiosity and medical and/or social factors and adherence to treatment in 74 HD patients.

Effect Of Rosary Prayer And Yoga Mantras On Autonomic Cardiovascular Rhythms: Comparative Study

Notes:

• This study investigated whether rhythmic formulas such as the rosary and yoga mantras can synchronise and reinforce inherent cardiovascular rhythms and modify baroreflex sensitivity. The authors conclude that rhythm formulas that involve breathing at six breaths per minute induce favourable psychological and possibly physiological effects.

Using Spirituality to Cope With Early-Stage Alzheimer's Disease

Religious support, motives for having large families, and psychological functioning among religious Jewish mothers

Notes:

• This study finds that religious support from religious leaders, religious communities and G-d, along with religiously oriented maternal motivation, positively correlate with adaptive psychological functioning.  This is in contrast to internal maternal motivation which is negatively correlated with adaptive psychological functioning.

Exercise intervention in brain injury: a pilot randomized study of Tai Chi Qigong

Notes:

• Objective: To examine the effects of a brief Tai Chi Chuan Qigong (‘Qigong’) exercise intervention on individuals with traumatic brain injury. Conclusions: This study provides preliminary evidence that a brief Qigong exercise intervention programme may improve mood and self-esteem for individuals with traumatic brain injury.

Spirituality, religion, and clinical outcomes in patients recovering from an acute myocardial infarction

Tags:

• Depressive Disorder
• Female
• Humans
• Male
• Middle Aged
• mortality
• Myocardial Infarction
• Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
• Recurrence
• religion
• Risk
• social support
• spirituality
• Treatment Outcome
• United States

Notes:

• Objective: To assess the prospective relationship between spiritual experiences and health in a sample of patients surviving an acute myocardial infarction (AMI) with depression or low social support. Conclusion: We found little evidence that self-reported spirituality, frequency of church attendance, or frequency of prayer is associated with cardiac morbidity or all-cause mortality post AMI in patients with depression and/or low perceived support.

Religiosity associated with prolonged survival in liver transplant recipients

Increases in positive reappraisal coping during a group-based mantram intervention mediate sustained reductions in anger in HIV-positive persons

Tags:

• Adaptation, Psychological
• Adolescent
• Adult
• Anger
• Female
• Follow-Up Studies
• HIV Seropositivity
• Homosexuality, Female
• Homosexuality, Male
• Humans
• Male
• Meditation
• Middle Aged
• Personality Inventory
• Psychotherapy, Group
• Sick Role
• spirituality
• Treatment Outcome
• Young Adult

Notes:

• We examined the hypothesis of whether increases in positive reappraisal coping or distancing coping mediated the sustained decreases in anger found following a group-based mantram intervention. Findings suggest that a group-based mantram intervention may reduce anger by enhancing positive reappraisal coping.

Effects of spiritual mantram repetition on HIV outcomes: a randomized controlled trial

Tags:

• Adaptation, Psychological
• Adult
• Anger
• Antiretroviral Therapy, Highly Active
• CD4 Lymphocyte Count
• depression
• Female
• Follow-Up Studies
• HIV Infections
• HIV-1
• Humans
• Male
• Meditation
• Middle Aged
• Outcome Assessment (Health Care)
• Practice (Psychology)
• Religion and Psychology
• RNA, Viral
• spirituality
• Stress, Psychological
• Viral Load

Notes:

• We examined the efficacy of a psycho-spiritual intervention of mantram repetition--a word or phrase with spiritual associations repeated silently throughout the day--on psychological distress (intrusive thoughts, stress, anxiety, anger, depression), quality of life enjoyment and satisfaction, and existential spiritual well-being in HIV-infected adults.

The relationship between addiction and religion and its possible implication for care

The contribution of spirituality and spiritual coping to anxiety and depression in women with a recent diagnosis of gynecological cancer

Tags:

• Adaptation, Psychological
• Adult
• Aged
• Anxiety
• depression
• Female
• Genital Neoplasms, Female
• Humans
• Middle Aged
• spirituality

Notes:

• The objective of this study was to determine whether, after accounting for illness and demographic variables, spiritual involvement and beliefs and positive and negative spiritual coping could account for any of the variation in anxiety and depression among women within 1 year’s diagnosis of gynecological cancer (GC).

Yoga for persistent fatigue in breast cancer survivors: results of a pilot study

Tags:

• breast cancer
• Fatigue
• Iyengar
• yoga

Notes:

• Approximately one-third of breast cancer survivors experiences persistent fatigue for months or years after successful treatment completion.  There is a lack of evidence-based treatments for cancer-related fatigue, particularly among cancer survivors.  This single-arm pilot study evaluated the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a yoga intervention for fatigued breast cancer survivors based on the Iyengar tradition.  Iyengar yoga prescribes specific poses for individuals with specific medical problems and conditions; this trial emphasized postures believed to be effective for reducing fatigue among breast cancer survivors, including inversions and backbends performed with the support of props. Twelve women were enrolled in the trial, and 11 completed the full 12-week course of treatment.  There was a significant improvement in fatigue scores from pre- to post-intervention that was maintained at the 3-month post-intervention followup.  Significant improvements were also observed in measures of physical function, depressed mood, and quality of life.  These results support the acceptability of this intervention and suggest that it may have beneficial effects on persistent post-treatment fatigue.  However, results require replication in a larger randomized controlled trial.

Spirituality and care of prostate cancer patients: a pilot study

Tags:

• Adaptation, Psychological
• Aged
• Humans
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Physician-Patient Relations
• Pilot Projects
• Prostatic Neoplasms
• spirituality

Notes:

• Purpose: To explore the integration of spirituality into medical care for African-American men coping with prostate cancer. Findings: A high proportion of survivors reported a general religious orientation as expressed through church affiliation and frequent church attendance. While one-third of the men reported their doctors had been in contact with their clergy, two-thirds would like their doctor and clergy to be in contact with one another.

The Cancer and Deity Questionnaire: A New Religion and Cancer Measure

Notes:

• We evaluated a new measure, the Cancer and Deity Questionnaire (CDQ), which assesses perceived relations with God after a cancer diagnosis. Based on object relations theory, the 12-item CDQ assesses benevolent and abandoning God representations. Sixty-one older participants with recent cancer diagnoses completed the questionnaire at baseline, and 52 of these participants completed the same questionnaire at follow-up. Internal consistency was excellent for the Benevolence scale (α = .97) and good for the Abandonment scale (α = .80). Moderate correlations with the Spiritual Well-Being Scale support divergent validity. Correlations between CDQ scales and the Styles of Religious Coping scales support convergent validity. The CDQ is brief, easily scored, practical for psycho-oncology research, and adaptable for use with other illnesses.

Religiosity and HIV risk behaviors in African-American students

Tags:

• Adolescent
• Adult
• African Americans
• Female
• Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
• Health Surveys
• HIV Infections
• Humans
• Male
• Personality Inventory
• Psychometrics
• Religion and Medicine
• spirituality
• Statistics as Topic
• Students
• Substance-Related Disorders
• Unsafe Sex
• Young Adult

Notes:

•  The purpose of this study was to see how dimensions of religiosity and spirituality influenced the HIV risk behavior in African-American college students. 256 African-American students between the ages of 18 and 25 were participants. The results from the study confirmed that there was a relationship between religiosity/spirituality and one's tendency to engage in HIV risk behaviors in the population of African-American college students. The portions of religiosity with the greatest impact on these behaviors were the Experiential/Phenomenological, the Existential Well-being, and the Cognitive dimensions.

Mindfulness training in stuttering therapy: A tutorial for speech-language pathologists

Tags:

• Acceptance
• Mindfulness
• Stuttering
• treatment

A broader framework for exploring the influence of spiritual experience in the wake of stressful life events: examining connections between posttraumatic growth and psycho-spiritual transformation.

Tags:

• MIDLIFE crisis
• Post-traumatic stress disorder
• Psychotherapy
• STRESS (Psychology)
• TRAUMATIC neuroses

Notes:

Spirituality and meaning in supportive care: spirituality- and meaning-centered group psychotherapy interventions in advanced cancer

Tags:

• Attitude to Health
• Humans
• Neoplasms
• Palliative Care
• Psychotherapy
• Psychotherapy, Group
• Quality of Life
• Religion and Medicine
• Self Concept
• Terminal Care

Notes:

• This paper reviews the topics of spirituality and end-of-life care, defines spirituality, and suggests measures of spirituality that deal with two of its main components: faith/religious beliefs and meaning/spiritual well-being.

Meaning-centered group psychotherapy for patients with advanced cancer: a pilot randomized controlled trial

Notes:

• An increasingly important concern for clinicians who care for patients at the end of life is their spiritual well-being and sense of meaning and purpose in life. In response to the need for short-term interventions to address spiritual well-being, the authors developed Meaning Centered Group Psychotherapy (MCGP) to help patients with advanced cancer sustain or enhance a sense of meaning, peace and purpose in their lives, even as they approach the end of life.

The effect of Johrei healing on substance abuse recovery: a pilot study

Tags:

• Adult
• Anxiety
• Community Mental Health Services
• depression
• Double-Blind Method
• Female
• Humans
• Male
• Mental Healing
• Middle Aged
• Mind-Body Relations (Metaphysics)
• Pilot Projects
• Quality of Life
• Questionnaires
• spirituality
• Stress, Psychological
• Substance-Related Disorders
• Treatment Outcome

Notes:

• The purpose of the present study was to determine the effectiveness of Johrei healing, a form of energy healing, on substance use and psychologic symptoms in a sample of clients receiving substance abuse treatment. Conclusions: Variables related to substance use and relapse showed improvement in the treatment group suggesting that Johrei healing shows promise and should be studied with a larger sample, over a longer treatment period, with sham controls.

An examination of the relationship between multiple dimensions of religiosity, blood pressure, and hypertension

Tags:

• Adolescent
• Adult
• Aged
• Aged, 80 and over
• Blood Pressure
• Chicago
• Female
• Humans
• Hypertension
• Logistic Models
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Religion and Medicine
• social support
• Socioeconomic Factors
• spirituality
• Stress, Psychological
• Young Adult

Notes:

• Researchers have established the role of heredity and lifestyle in the occurrence of hypertension, but the potential role of psychosocial factors, especially religiosity, is less understood. This paper analyzes the relationship between multiple dimensions of religiosity and systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, and hypertension using data taken from the Chicago Community Adult Health Study, a probability sample of adults (N=3105) aged 18 and over living in the city of Chicago, USA. Of the primary religiosity variables examined here, attendance and public participation were not significantly related to the outcomes. Prayer was associated with an increased likelihood of hypertension, and spirituality was associated with increased diastolic blood pressure. The addition of several other religiosity variables to the models did not appear to affect these findings. However, variables for meaning and forgiveness were associated with lower diastolic blood pressure and a decreased likelihood of hypertension outcomes. These findings emphasize the importance of analyzing religiosity as a multidimensional phenomenon. This study should be regarded as a first step toward systematically analyzing a complex relationship.

An examination of the relationship between multiple dimensions of religiosity, blood pressure, and hypertension

Tags:

• Adolescent
• Adult
• Aged
• Aged, 80 and over
• Blood Pressure
• Chicago
• Female
• Humans
• Hypertension
• Logistic Models
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Religion and Medicine
• social support
• Socioeconomic Factors
• spirituality
• Stress, Psychological
• Young Adult

Notes:

• This paper analyzes the relationship between multiple dimensions of religiosity and systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, and hypertension. Of the primary religiosity variables examined here, attendance and public participation were not significantly related to the outcomes. Prayer was associated with an increased likelihood of hypertension, and spirituality was associated with increased diastolic blood pressure.

Alcohol intake and its correlates in a transitional predominantly Muslim population in southeastern Europe

Are spirituality and religiosity resources for patients with chronic pain conditions?

Tags:

• Adaptation, Psychological
• Attitude to Health
• Chronic Disease
• Cross-Sectional Studies
• Female
• Humans
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Pain
• Questionnaires
• Spiritualism
• spirituality

Notes:

• A study about whether or not spirituality/religiosity is a relevant resource for patients with chronic pain conditions, and to analyze interrelations between spirituality/religiosity (SpREUK Questionnaire; SpREUK is an acronym of the German translation of “Spiritual and Religious Attitudes in Dealing with Illness”), adaptive coping styles that refer to the concept of locus of disease control (AKU Questionnaire; AKU is an acronym of the German translation of “Adaptive Coping with Disease”), life satisfaction, and appraisal dimensions.

Yoga lifestyle intervention reduces blood pressure in HIV-infected adults with cardiovascular disease risk factors

Notes:

• This article presents a prospective, randomized, controlled study to evaluate whether a yoga lifestyle intervention improves cardiovascular disease risk factors, virological or immunological status, or quality of life (QOL) in HIV-infected adults relative to standard of care treatment in a matched control group.  The results showed that among traditional lifestyle modifications, yoga is a low-cost, simple to administer, nonpharmacological, popular behavioural intervention that can lower blood pressure in pre-hypertensive HIV-infected adults with mild–moderate cardiovascular risk factors.

Spirituality/religiosity promotes acceptance-based responding and 12-step involvement

Tags:

• Adaptation, Psychological
• Adult
• Aftercare
• Alcoholics Anonymous
• Alcoholism
• Awareness
• Cognitive Therapy
• COMBINED modality therapy
• Female
• Follow-Up Studies
• Humans
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Models, Psychological
• Patient Acceptance of Health Care
• Religion and Psychology
• Self-Help Groups
• spirituality
• Substance-Related Disorders
• Veterans

Notes:

• For the present investigation, we examined whether acceptance-based responding (ABR) - awareness or acknowledgement of internal experiences that allows one to consider and perform potentially adaptive responses - accounted for the effect of S/R on 12-step self-help group involvement 2 years after a treatment episode. Conclusions: S/R promotes the use of post-treatment self-regulation skills that, in turn, directly contribute to ongoing 12-step self-help group involvement.

Yoga of Awareness program for menopausal symptoms in breast cancer survivors: results from a randomized trial

Tags:

• prepub

Notes:

• Breast cancer survivors have limited options for the treatment of hot flashes and related symptoms. Further, therapies widely used to prevent recurrence in survivors, such as tamoxifen, tend to induce or exacerbate menopausal symptoms. The aim of this preliminary, randomized controlled trial was to evaluate the effects of a yoga intervention on menopausal symptoms in a sample of survivors of early-stage breast cancer (stages IA-IIB).

A pilot randomized controlled trial of the Yoga of Awareness program in the management of fibromyalgia

Tags:

• Fibromyalgia
• Meditation
• Mindfulness
• Pain
• Randomized controlled trial
• yoga

A Model for Integrating a Mind/Body Approach to Cardiac Rehabilitation: Outcomes and Correlators

Tags:

• Cardiac rehabilitation
• Mind and body

Yoga improves quality of life and benefit finding in women undergoing radiotherapy for breast cancer

Acupuncture and relaxation response for substance use disorder recovery.

Tags:

• Acupuncture
• DRUG abuse
• Drug Rehabilitation
• Recovery
• Recovery (Disorders)
• Relaxation
• relaxation responses
• Responses
• substance use disorder

Notes:

Relaxation response and spirituality: Pathways to improve psychological outcomes in cardiac rehabilitation

Notes:

• A study to test the hypothesis that increased spiritual well-being by eliciting the relaxation response is one pathway resulting in improved psychological outcomes. The data demonstrated a possible dose-response relationship among relaxation relationship, spiritual and psychological well-being.

The combined effect of relaxation response and acupuncture on quality of life in patients with HIV: a pilot study

Tags:

• Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
• Acupuncture Therapy
• Adult
• COMBINED modality therapy
• Double-Blind Method
• Female
• Humans
• mental health
• Middle Aged
• Patient Satisfaction
• Pilot Projects
• Quality of Life
• Questionnaires
• Relaxation
• spirituality
• Treatment Outcome

Notes:

• Some studies have shown the individual effects of acupuncture and the relaxation response (RR) in improving QoL of patients with HIV/AIDS. We conducted a pilot study to examine the effects of adding the RR to usual acupuncture treatment on improving the QoL of HIV/AIDS patients. Data from this pilot trial suggested that adding the RR to acupuncture may enhance improvement in QoL of patients with HIV/AIDS.

Effects of external qigong therapy on osteoarthritis of the knee. A randomized controlled trial

Tags:

• Breathing Exercises
• Female
• Humans
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Osteoarthritis, Knee
• Pain Measurement
• Recovery of Function
• Severity of Illness Index

Notes:

• Qigong therapy may be an important complement to conventional medicine in treating diabetes, but the quality of studies needs to be improved.

An analytical review of the Chinese literature on Qigong therapy for diabetes mellitus

Tags:

• Breathing Exercises
• Databases, Factual
• Diabetes Mellitus
• Humans
• Medicine, Chinese Traditional
• Qi

Notes:

• The objective of our study was to assess the efficacy of external qigong therapy (EQT), a traditional Chinese medicine practice, in reducing pain and improving functionality of patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA). The apparent efficacy of EQT appears to be dependent on some quality of the healer.

Medical versus spiritual orientations: Differential patient views toward recovery

Tags:

• Adult
• Attitude to Health
• Diagnosis, Dual (Psychiatry)
• Female
• Humans
• Male
• Mental Disorders
• Middle Aged
• Motivation
• Patient Selection
• Questionnaires
• Recurrence
• Religion and Medicine
• Religion and Psychology
• spirituality
• Substance Abuse Treatment Centers
• Substance-Related Disorders

A Randomized Trial Comparing Acupuncture, Simulated Acupuncture, and Usual Care for Chronic Low Back Pain

Notes:

• This trial addresses the importance of needle placement and skin penetration in eliciting acupuncture effects for patients with chronic low back pain. Participants in the treatment groups were more likely than those receiving usual care to experience clinically meaningful improvements in dysfunction (59% to 65% vs 50%, respectively; P = .02) but not in symptoms (P > .05). Although acupuncture was found effective for chronic low back pain, tailoring needling sites to each patient and penetration of the skin appear to be unimportant in eliciting therapeutic benefits.

Relaxation training for essential hypertension at the worksite: I. The untreated mild hypertensive

Tags:

• Adult
• Aged
• Behavior Therapy
• Biofeedback (Psychology)
• Blood Pressure
• Female
• Humans
• Hypertension
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Occupational Diseases
• Relaxation Therapy
• Social Environment

Notes:

• This industry-based randomized study compared the effects of behavioral treatment (BT) and blood pressure monitoring (BPM) on blood pressure (BP) change in 158 unmedicated persons with mild hypertension (diastolic blood pressure 90 to 104 mm Hg). At 18 weeks into the study, after the BT groups completed training, both the BT and BPM groups showed significant reductions in systolic blood pressure (SBP) and DBP assessed in the company medical clinic.

Mindfulness-based interventions for chronic pain: a systematic review of the evidence

Tags:

• Chronic Disease
• depression
• Humans
• Meditation
• Mind-Body Relations, Metaphysical
• Outcome Assessment (Health Care)
• Pain, Intractable

Notes:

• Chronic pain is a common disabling illness that does not completely respond to current medical treatments. As a consequence, in recent years many alternative interventions have been suggested. Among them, mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) are receiving growing attention. The aim of the present article is to review controlled studies investigating the efficacy of MBIs for the reduction of pain and the improvement of depressive symptoms in patients suffering from chronic pain.A literature search was undertaken using MEDLINE,(®) ISI web of knowledge, the Cochrane database, and references of retrieved articles. The search included articles written in English published up to July 2009. The data were independently extracted by two reviewers from the original reports. Quality of included trials was also assessed.Ten (10) studies were considered eligible for the present review. Current studies showed that MBIs could have nonspecific effects for the reduction of pain symptoms and the improvement of depressive symptoms in patients with chronic pain, while there is only limited evidence suggesting specific effects of such interventions. Further findings evidenced some improvements in psychologic measures related to chronic pain such as copying with pain following MBIs as well.There is not yet sufficient evidence to determine the magnitude of the effects of MBIs for patients with chronic pain. Main limitations of reviewed studies include small sample size, absence of randomization, the use of a waiting list control group that does not allow distinguishing of specific from nonspecific effects of MBI as well as differences among interventions.However, because of these preliminary results, further research in larger properly powered and better designed studies is warranted.

The effect of religious practice on the prevalence of knee osteoarthritis

Religion and spirituality in coping with breast cancer: perspectives of Chilean women

Tags:

• Adaptation, Psychological
• Adult
• Aged
• Aged, 80 and over
• Breast Neoplasms
• Chile
• Female
• Humans
• Middle Aged
• religion
• Religion and Psychology
• spirituality

Notes:

• This study examined the roles of religion and spirituality in relation to coping with breast cancer in Chilean women. Specifically, the purpose of the study was to examine how these patients used religion and spirituality to cope with their illness; how their illness changed the roles of religion and spirituality in their lives; and their views regarding whether, and if so how, spiritual faith can help patients recuperate from breast cancer.

Spiritual distress to spiritual transformation: Stroke survivor narratives from Hong Kong

Tags:

• Culture
• Disability
• Self-making
• Spiritual recovery
• spirituality
• Stroke
• Suffering

Drug users' spiritual beliefs, locus of control and the disease concept in relation to Narcotics Anonymous attendance and six-month outcomes.

Notes:

•  After 6 months ninety percent of 101 drug users in treatment were followed up. Narcotics Anonymous attendance was inversely related to drug use for those who had left residential care. We found that spiritual beliefs and disease concept beliefs were not prerequisites for attendance of NA. Spiritual beliefs were not found to cause external attributions for previous drug use or possible future lapse events.

Racial differences in desistance from substance abuse: the impact of religious involvement on recovery

The experience of persons with allergic respiratory symptoms: practicing yoga as a self-healing modality

Exploring Spiritual Well-Being Among Survivors of Colorectal and Lung Cancer

Notes:

• This descriptive, exploratory study is part of a larger observational study of the quality of cancer care delivered to population‐based cohorts of newly diagnosed patients with lung and colorectal cancer. The current study explores the role of spiritual well‐being in adjustment to life after the cancer diagnosis, utilizing the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy–Spiritual Well‐Being–Expanded (FACIT‐Sp‐Ex) Scale. Survey data collected from 304 newly diagnosed cancer survivors were analyzed to explore important aspects of spirituality, such as sense of meaning in one's life, harmony, peacefulness, and a sense of strength and comfort from one's faith. Spiritual well‐being scores, particularly meaning/peace, were statistically significant for African Americans, women, and colorectal cancer survivors. These findings amplify a need for oncology social workers and other practitioners to assess spiritual well‐being in cancer survivors in an effort to strengthen psychosocial treatment plans. Implications for social work practice and research are discussed.

Religiosity and Alcohol Behavior: An Exploration of Reference Group Theory

Notes:

• This study examines the relationship between religiosity and alcohol use and perceived misuse. Unlike most past research, we focus on adults rather than adolescents and distinguish among specific Protestant denominations. We also use a more appropriate statistical technique and place the findings in a theoretical context. The analysis shows that religiosity is clearly related to alcohol use, mainly because people’s religion serves as a reference group influencing their behavior.

Regulation, religious experience, and epilepsy: a lens on complementary therapies

Tags:

• Complementary Therapies
• Epilepsy
• Health Services Needs and Demand
• Humans
• Mental Healing
• religion
• Social Control, Formal
• Spiritual Therapies
• spirituality

Notes:

• The historic relationship between the study of epilepsy and religious experience suggests particular, potential associations between CAM therapies (and especially spiritual healing) and care for epileptic patients. There are at least two dimensions to this exploration: first, the widespread use of spiritual healing for treatment of epilepsy; and second, the hypothesized connection between epileptic seizures and mystical states.

Does religiosity protect against cognitive and behavioral decline in Alzheimer's dementia?

Spirituality and sexual orientation: relationship to mental well-being and functional health status

Tags:

• Adult
• African Americans
• Attitude to Health
• Cross-Sectional Studies
• Female
• Health Status
• HIV Infections
• Humans
• Male
• mental health
• Questionnaires
• Regression Analysis
• Religion and Psychology
• Sexual behavior
• Socioeconomic Factors
• spirituality

Notes:

• This descriptive cross-sectional study was designed to examine the relationships among spirituality, sexual orientation, mental well-being and aspects of functional health status (physical, role, social and cognitive functioning) in a sample of 117 African-American men and women living with HIV/AIDS. Conclusions: The regression analysis showed that spirituality, sexual orientation, age and HIV symptoms contributed significantly to mental well-being and functional health status.

Fire and ice. Natives, alcohol and spirituality, a northern health paradigm

Tags:

• Alcoholism
• Arctic Regions
• Canada
• Cultural Characteristics
• Culture
• Humans
• Indians, North American
• Religion and Psychology
• Risk Factors
• Social Environment

Effect of Religiosity and Spirituality on Drug Treatment Outcomes.

Tags:

• DRUG addiction -- Treatment
• DRUG addiction -- Treatment -- Religious aspects
• OUTCOME assessment (Medical care) -- Research
• RELIGIOUSNESS -- Research
• SPIRITUALITY -- Therapeutic use

Effect of religiosity and spirituality on drug treatment outcomes

Tags:

• Adult
• Analgesics, Opioid
• Cocaine-Related Disorders
• Female
• Heroin Dependence
• Humans
• Male
• Methadone
• Methadyl Acetate
• Middle Aged
• Narcotics
• Religion and Medicine
• spirituality
• Treatment Outcome

Notes:

• Data collected from individuals dependent on heroin receiving narcotic replacement therapy were used to assess the effects of R/S on drug treatment outcomes. Results indicated that at both study completion (12 months after admission) and 6 months after that participants in the consistently high and increasing spirituality groups self-reported significantly fewer days of heroin and cocaine/crack use than those in the consistently low group (p < 0.05). There were no significant differences among the religiosity groups on self-reported heroin or cocaine/crack use.

Case Study of a Chaplain's Spiritual Care for a Patient with Advanced Metastatic Breast Cancer

Notes:

• The case study seeks to describe an oncology chaplain's pastoral relationship with a 64-year-old woman with advanced metastatic breast cancer. The patient's distress was complicated by a history of anxiety and other chronic medical conditions. Approximately 16 pastoral encounters occurred during the last year of the patient's life. The patient, chaplain, and the pastoral conversations are presented as well as a retrospective assessment of them. The chaplain's interventions were appropriate for the patient's spiritual needs, particularly in regard to her fear of death, loneliness, grief that her life was "too short" and estrangement from her inherited faith tradition, with observable benefits for the patient. The oncology chaplain has a distinctive role in the healthcare team as one who can meet the patient at the point of their spiritual need, provide appropriate interventions and, thereby, ameliorate the distress, particularly in regard to death anxiety, peace of mind, and issues of meaning.

Changes in religiousness and spirituality attributed to HIV/AIDS: are there sex and race differences?

Tags:

• Adult
• African Americans
• Female
• HIV Infections
• Humans
• Life Change Events
• Male
• Odds Ratio
• Religion and Psychology
• Sex Distribution
• Social Alienation
• United States

Notes:

• The purpose of this study is to characterize spirituality/religion in a large and diverse sample of patients with HIV/AIDS by using several measures of spirituality/religion, to examine associations between spirituality/religion and a number of demographic, clinical, and psychosocial variables, and to assess changes in levels of spirituality over 12 to 18 months. Conclusions: Most patients with HIV/AIDS belonged to an organized religion and use their religion to cope with their illness. Patients with greater optimism, greater self-esteem, greater life satisfaction, minorities, and patients who drink less alcohol tend to be both more spiritual and religious. Spirituality levels remain stable over 12 to 18 months.

Spirituality and religion in patients with HIV/AIDS

Tags:

• Adaptation, Psychological
• Adult
• Alcohol Drinking
• Ethnic Groups
• Female
• Follow-Up Studies
• HIV Infections
• Humans
• Logistic Models
• Male
• Multivariate Analysis
• Personal Satisfaction
• Religion and Psychology
• Residence Characteristics
• Self Concept
• social support
• spirituality
• United States

Notes:

• The objective of this study was (1) to describe changes in religiousness and spirituality of people with HIV/AIDS, and (2) to determine if these changes differed by sex and race. Conclusions: Many participants report having become more spiritual or religious since contracting HIV/AIDS, though many have felt alienated by a religious group-some to the point of changing their place of worship.

A randomised controlled trial of yoga for the treatment of chronic low back pain: Results of a pilot study

Tags:

• Feasibility
• Low Back Pain
• Pilot study
• Primary care
• RCT
• yoga

Notes:

• This book is about a a pilot trial of yoga for the treatment of chronic low back pain (LBP) to inform the feasibility and practicality of conducting a full-scale trial in the UK; and to assess the efficacy of yoga for the treatment of chronic low back pain. This pilot study provided useful data and information to inform the design and development of a full-scale trial of yoga for CLBP in the UK. A key finding is the calculation of GP practice total list size required for patient recruitment in a full-scale trial, and the need to implement methods to increase class attendance.

A pragmatic multi-centred randomised controlled trial of yoga for chronic low back pain: trial protocol

Notes:

• A systematic review revealed three small randomised controlled trials of yoga for low back pain, all of which showed effects on back pain that favoured the yoga group. To build on these studies a larger trial, with longer term follow-up, and a number of different yoga teachers delivering the intervention is required. This study protocol describes the details of a randomised controlled trial (RCT) to determine the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of Yoga for chronic Low Back Pain, which is funded by Arthritis Research Campaign (arc) and is being conducted by the University of York. 262 patients will be recruited from GP practices in 5 centres in England. Patients will be randomised to receive usual care or 12 weekly classes of yoga. A yoga programme will be devised that can be delivered by yoga teachers of the two main national yoga organisations in the UK (British Wheel of Yoga and Iyengar Yoga Association (UK)).

The Native American healing experience

Tags:

• Alcoholism
• Health promotion
• Humans
• Indians, North American
• Medicine, Traditional
• Models, Theoretical
• Montana
• North America
• Program Development
• spirituality
• Substance-Related Disorders

Notes:

• Recovery from addiction to alcohol and other drugs is taking place with the assistance of culture-specific methods in American Indian and Alaska Native communities in North America. These communities utilize many of the recovery approaches that make up today’s best practices, but they also use their own cultural and ethnic strengths as an important part of their addictions recovery. The Wellbriety Movement among Native people is one such expression of culture-specific healing for North Americans having the heritage of indigenous peoples. The rallying call, “Our culture is prevention,” expresses an approach unique in addictions recovery processes anywhere.

Religion and Cancer: Examining the Possible Connections

Notes:

• Numerous sound scientific studies (cross-sectional and longitudinal) have found a positive correlation between religion and physical and mental health. In particular, there is evidence that demonstrates that religion helps cancer patients better adjust to and cope with their disease, at least psychologically. However, some research suggests that mediating factors associated with religion may explain the positive effects of religion on health. This article argues that even if this is the case, there is still intrinsic value to religion in that the mediators themselves are strongly connected to religion, and therefore religion is important to the patient in terms of coping, support, hope, and meaning. This has possible important implications for clinical practice.

Mindfulness meditation training effects on CD4+ T lymphocytes in HIV-1 infected adults: a small randomized controlled trial

Tags:

• Adult
• CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes
• Female
• Follow-Up Studies
• HIV Infections
• HIV-1
• Humans
• Male
• Meditation
• Middle Aged
• Stress, Psychological
• Time Factors
• Treatment Outcome

Notes:

• The present study tested the efficacy of an 8-week Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) meditation program compared to a 1-day control seminar on CD4+ T lymphocyte counts in stressed HIV infected adults. The authors' findings provide an initial indication that mindfulness meditation training can buffer CD4+ T lymphocyte declines in HIV-1 infected adults.

Evaluation of the Breathworks Mindfulness-Based Pain Management Programme: Effects on Well-Being and Multiple Measures of Mindfulness

Notes:

• Two studies of a mindfulness training program are presented. Study 1 reports on a pilot investigation of the impact on well-being of the Breathworks mindfulness-based pain management program. Significant positive change was found on self-report measures of depression, outlook, catastrophizing and pain self-efficacy in the Intervention Group, but not the Comparison Group. Particularly large effects were found for pain acceptance. These results support the short-term efficacy of the Breathworks program and reinforce the importance of acceptance for positive outcome with chronic pain patients. Study 2 investigated alterations in mindfulness following participation in the Breathworks program. Subjective and non-subjective measures of mindfulness were used. Scores on the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale were significantly higher at Time 2 in the Intervention Group, but not in the Comparison Group. There was no change on a measure of sustained attention. Results from an Implicit Association Test provided some support for an increased awareness of positive stimuli, following the intervention. These results are discussed with reference to the mechanisms of mindfulness.

Spiritual Well-Being and Health-Related Quality of Life Among African-American Women with HIV/AIDS

Notes:

• The authors argue in this study that many HIV-positive women regard spirituality as an important part of their lives.This descriptive, crosssectional study examined associations between spiritual well-being (SWB) and its components, existential well-being (EWB) and religious well-being (RWB), and dimensions of HRQOL among a non-random sample of 118 African American HIV-positive women.

Spiritual well-being, depressive symptoms, and immune status among women living with HIV/AIDS