“My religion consists of a humble admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble mind.” ― Albert Einstein
Bad things happen even to good people. These negative life events and the distress that comes with them can damage mental health unless the individual has a means to cope with the distress. Religion/spirituality is often used as a refuge during challenging times. Does it actually help? There is some evidence that it does. It has been shown that spirituality works with mindfulness to relieve depression (see http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/2015/07/17/does-spirituality-account-for-mindfulness-anti-depressive-effects/) and can improve end of life (see http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/2015/07/17/spirituality-improves-end-of-life/).
In today’s Research News article “The effect of spirituality and religious attendance on the relationship between psychological distress and negative life events”
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4157065/
Kidwai and colleagues investigated this very question. They studied the relationship between attendance at religious services, spirituality, and distress in an urban population. They found that people who were high on spirituality were less likely to be distressed following negative events as compared to those who were low on spirituality. They also found that high levels of spirituality were associated with attendance at religious services and that religious attendance was associated with lower distress. So, spirituality seemed to work indirectly on distress through increasing religious attendance that in turn reduced distress.
It appears that spiritual/religious coping is a powerful coping mechanisms that has the potential to buffer the damaging effects of negative life events on psychological functioning. There are a number of processes that could account for this. But, from the results it appears that religious attendance is primary and spirituality works by encouraging religious attendance.
It is possible that religious attendance provides social support when traversing difficult life situations. The common belief system connects individuals and promotes support and understanding during problems. In fact, this is precisely what Kidwai and colleagues found. Religious attendance was associated with higher social support which in turn was associated with lower distress. Hence, religious attendance can go a long way toward relieving distress directly and also by recruiting social support.
Regardless of the mechanism it is clear that spirituality and religious attendance can be helpful to the individual in difficult times.
So, be spiritual to help get you through life’s challenges.
CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies