Loading...
Religious and spiritual (S/R) beliefs are associated with fewer psychiatric symptoms in community populations. Investigators in Switzerland studied S/R beliefs and values in 175 seriously mentally ill patients recruited from psychiatric clinics (schizophrenia, 74; borderline personality disorder [BPD], 37; bipolar disorder, 35; anorexia nervosa, 29) Age of patients varied by diagnosis (means, 25–45; 62% female).
Patients were assessed for their sense of meaning, purpose and fulfillment in life, values, and S/R beliefs and practices. Fifty percent reported being Christian, 40% were nonaffiliated, and the rest were affiliated with other traditional religions or minor movements. Overall, 71% said that they never did S/R practices with others; 4…