In the last blog, we looked at the benefits of faith on physical health. Now I’d like to turn to the interaction of faith and mental health.
A number of studies have looked at the benefits of faith on mental health. These studies are generally examining people who attend church on a fairly regular and weekly basis. A summary of these mental health benefits is listed below:
* Better social support1
* Better insight to medical condition and more compliant with medication2
* Lower rates of suicide3
* Improved coping skills4
* Protection against depression5
* More able to fight depression4
* Praying for someone else can benefit relationships6
* High religious involvement in elderly lowered depression and disability7
* Higher self-esteem and more positive attitude towards life8
* More hopeful of future4
* Less likely to engage in domestic violent behavior9
* Trust in God improves positive outlook9
These various benefits can be summed up by stating that regular church attenders are generally happier. This is not to say that non-believers are unhappy or that all faith focused people are happy, but on average, church going folk tends to be happier.
One of the greatest health problems in the US is depression. The lifetime incidence of major depression is about 29%.10 Depression is detrimental to both the individual and society: it damages the brain, heart, weakens the immune system, shortens lifespans, causes sleep disturbance, memory and concentration problems, increases disability, causes decreased work/school performance, and causes social and family withdrawals.
Depression can be treated with counselling and medication, but adding a reliance on one’s faith not only protects against depression, but it can help us fight it and guard against suicide.
D
epression is one of the most common complaints that I see in my general internal medicine practice. Some of these patients are in a very dark mood with a variety of problems such as chronic pain, debility, job problems, financial problems, loss of a loved one, social isolation, and suffered physical and verbal abuse. Time and time again I’ve heard people tell me that it is their faith that keeps them afloat; it is their faith that has helped them endure and fight off any suicidal thoughts.
So faith helps support good mental health. But on the flip side, better mental health can help build faith. It works like this:
If our mental health is better, then we will be happier. As a result, we also have more positive attitude and thoughts. These positive thoughts lead to positive actions, which includes more prayer that gives thanks and gratitude towards God. Giving gratitude is one of the most positive, uplifting things that we do. Being positive helps us realize the works of God in our lives, which strengthens our faith.
This interaction is exemplified in the saying of St. Augustine:
“Faith is to believe what you do not see… the reward of this faith is to see what you believe.”
In other words, looking for the effects of God in our lives helps us to see these mini-miracles. There can be nothing more up-lifting to build both faith and good mental health. Think about it.
Next time we’ll take a look at love and health.
1. Strawbridge, W., et al, ‘Frequent attendance at religious services and mortality over 28 years.’ Am J Public Health 1997, Jun; 87(6): 957-61.
2. Kirov, G., et al, ‘Religious faith after psychotic illness.’ Psychopathology 1998; 31:234-245.
3. Pelham, Brett and Zsolt, Nyiri, ‘In more religious countries, lower suicide rates,’ World, July 3, 2008. www.gallup.com
4. Bunn, Alex and Randall, David, ‘Health Benefits of Christian Faith’, Christian Medical Fellowship, 2011. www.cmf.org.uk
5. Blazer, Dan, ‘Religion/spirituality and Depression: What can we learn from empirical studies?’, Am Journal of Psychiatry, Sept 1, 2011, p. 10-12.
6. Florida State University, ‘Power of Prayer: Study finds prayer can lead to cooperation, forgiveness in relationships.’ Science Daily. May 14, 2013
7. Kaplan, Daniel B. and Berkman, Barbara J., ‘Religion and Spirituality in the Elderly.’ Merck Manual. July 2013.
8. Smith, Christian and Faris, Robert, ‘Religion and the Life Attitudes and self-images of American Adolescents,’ Research Report of the National Study of Youth and Religion, Number 2, 2002.
9. Fagan, Patrick F. ‘Why religion matters even more: The impact of religious practice on social stability.’ Heritage Foundation, December 18, 2006.
10. Kessler, RC et al. ‘Twelve-month and lifetime prevalence and lifetime morbid risk of anxiety and mood disorders in the United States.’ Int J Methods Psychiatry Res. 2012. Sept 21(3): 169-84.
church visits. So, from a pure numbers standpoint, is going to church worth it? Well, if you go to church routinely, then let’s assume you spend 2 hours every week, for 50 weeks a year gives us 100 hours a year spent on church services (this could be more if your clergy is extremely long-winded). If the average life is about 80 years, then 80 times 100 gives us 8000 hours over a lifetime as a ballpark figure for us to spend going to church. There are 8760 actual hours in a year. That means that if you attend church regularly, then you spend about a year of your life going to church.
are less than 50%11). Faith is key to improving not only the health, but also the quality of life of these people.