Without Your Therapist: Contemplative Prayer During Treatment as a Religious Exposure Intervention to Reduce Religious Struggle and Anxious God Representation
H. Seesink, Pieter Klokkenburg, H. Schaap-jonker, B. Ostafin, R. Wiers
Clinical Case Studies March 25, 2022 Peer reviewed DOI: 10.1177/15346501221082231 via Semantic Scholar
Summary
A 44-year-old Dutch man with an anxious God representation and religious struggles, who had prior treatment for panic disorder and alcohol use disorder, received a 60-day intervention using the Jesus Prayer. This first case study of its kind found positive effects on his religious and spiritual problems, stress levels, and surrender to God. Symptoms of depression and anxiety decreased, with improvements sustained at a 3-month follow-up. The findings suggest the Jesus Prayer may be an effective treatment for religious and spiritual problems.
Study at a glance
| Design | case study |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 1 |
| Population | 44-year-old Dutch man with anxious God representation and religious struggles |
| Key finding | The Jesus Prayer intervention had positive effects on religious and spiritual problems, stress, and surrender to God, with symptom reductions sustained at 3-month follow-up. |
Abstract
This case study focuses on the treatment of a 44-year-old Dutch man presenting with an anxious God representation and religious struggles according to DSM-5 criteria. Having received prior treatment for a panic disorder and alcohol use disorder, the patient was given a 60-day treatment in which the Jesus Prayer intervention was used to address his religious and spiritual problems. To our knowledge, this is the first case study involving the Jesus Prayer in the treatment of a patient. The intervention had positive effects on the patient’s religious and spiritual problems concerning an anxious God representation, religious struggles, stress levels and surrender to God. The intervention may also play a supporting role in decreasing symptoms of depression and anxiety and in promoting global mental health, as reliable change index analyses revealed symptom reduction between baseline levels and at post-assessment levels for all measured symptoms, with a semi-gradual decrease over the course of treatment. These improvements were continued in a 3-month follow-up assessment, suggesting promise for the Jesus Prayer as an effective treatment method for religious and spiritual problems. Recommendations regarding the importance of assessing the religious life of patients and implementing spiritual interventions are discussed, as well as the relevance of the therapist’s own assumptions when treating a religious or spiritual problem.