Spirituality and the Cancer Patient

For many people, spirituality is a multifaceted resource for coping. Spirituality may help cancer survivors feel the challenge of facing cancer is "shared" and that God or a Higher Power provides strength needed to get through the experience. Others use spirituality to put cancer into perspective and reorder priorities. Personal religious practices may help to calm and reassure. The most common practice is prayer, but others include reading religious literature and the laying on of hands. Belonging to a faith community and the perception of being part of a group reduces the isolation that many cancer patients feel.

How is it Done?

There are many paths toward spirituality. Many different activities can be spiritual: praying, attending worship services, meditating, keeping a gratitude journal, and walking in nature. Prayer can be defined as a reverent request of a Higher Power for something or as a form of spiritual meditation. Every faith tradition has standard prayers for various needs.

If you once found meaning in worship services but no longer attend, one way to renew a spiritual perspective is to begin attending again. You can return to your previous community or try different services. You may want to attend services with people you know. Most faith communities are very welcoming to newcomers, and faith leaders will meet with you privately to explore what might be a good fit. Connecting with your religious heritage can also be a powerful, healing choice.

Pastoral counseling or spiritual direction focuses on the spiritual life rather than the related psychological or emotional arenas. Many members of the clergy or other faith leaders have the skills to provide this type of counseling.

Does it Work?

There is a broad range of research exploring the relationships between religion, spirituality, and health. The psychological benefit of spiritual well-being is well documented and the evidence is growing that spiritual distress is harmful. There is also evidence that prayer and spirituality improve resilience and coping for cancer survivors.

Much of the research in this area is based on observational or descriptive studies in which people who pray or observe religious rituals are compared to people who do not. Although there are many anecdotal accounts that suggest that prayer or other religious activity can have healing power for physical ailments, the research evidence is not strong.

Is it Safe?

The most harmful aspect of spiritual or religious observance might be the coercion of a person by someone else to reject medical care and rely on religious practice alone. Although the right to refuse medical treatment has been supported by the US Supreme Court, it goes against medical advice to abandon all medical care in the face of even terminal disease, since conventional medicine can be critically important to manage pain and other end-of-life symptoms.

Practitioner Qualifications

One way to find a spiritual guide is to talk to someone in your faith community. A pastoral counselor may be a layperson, meaning non-ordained, who has a master's degree in pastoral counseling, or an ordained person who has additional training in counseling. Pastoral counselors specialize in spiritual growth and in the interaction between psychological and spiritual issues. A Spiritual Director may be either lay or ordained, with special training in spiritual direction, also called spiritual formation.

Chaplains are members of the clergy officially attached to an institution such as a hospital or hospice program, a branch of the military, a police department, or a court. Chaplains must have a master's degree in divinity or theological studies.

Cost in Time and Money

Spiritual direction or counseling may be free, especially when offered by clergy within your faith community. It can also cost as much as secular counseling costs, with sessions ranging from $50 to $150 per hour. If the spiritual counselor is a licensed mental health practitioner, the fee might be partially reimbursed by your health insurance. Counseling of a spiritual nature can be a one-time meeting or a weekly session.