How Important is Spirituality Today?—(Is Spiritual Emergence Coaching Needed?)
IMHU’s mission is to expand our paradigm of healthcare to a bio-psycho-social and spiritual model. Spiritual issues need to be considered as equal in importance to psychological, social, or physical issues. Why? Research shows that a dedicated spiritual practice, like meditation or prayer, improves mental health[i]. Statistics gathered by Pew Research in 2023 show that 83% of US adults believe in the soul or spirit in addition to the physical body.[ii] How this is addressed in healthcare is inconsistent—often rare, as psychiatrists and psychotherapists are not usually trained in working with issues involving the soul or spirit, e.g. spiritual experiences.
An Overview
“Seven-in-ten U.S. adults think of themselves as spiritual or say that spirituality is very important in their lives.” –Pew Research (2023)
“A survey …found that six in 10 adults (60%) agree that their faith or spirituality is an important factor in supporting their mental wellness. Despite this, among those who belong to a religious community just half (52%) say their religious community discusses mental health openly and without stigma.”[iii]—Sept, 2024, American Psychiatric Association.
Two Important Questions
We are left with two important questions: Where can a spiritually-oriented person go if they have psychological issues, such as resurfacing of past trauma, mixed with strong spiritual experiences? Where can they find support if they feel disoriented by spiritual experiences that are not openly spoken about in their spiritual community, such as Near-Death Experience, or feeling a connection with those who have died?
In our estimation—there is a very strong need for professional training for coaches and psychotherapists to become spiritually competent and address these issues. This is the reason IMHU provides training and certification of Spiritual Emergence Coaches®. Increasingly this kind of support is needed throughout diverse cultures of the world.
Taking the Pulse of the Need
Even though Americans in recent decades have become less likely to identify with an organized religion, the Pew Research Center’s 2023 research reveals that “belief in spirits or a spiritual realm beyond this world is widespread, even among those who don’t consider themselves religious.
The survey finds that:
- 83% of all U.S. adults believe people have a soul or spirit in addition to their physical body.
- 81% say there is something spiritual beyond the natural world, even if we cannot see it.
- 74% say there are some things that science cannot possibly explain.
- 45% say they have had a sudden feeling of connection with something from beyond this world.
- 38% say they have had a strong feeling that someone who has passed away was communicating with them from beyond this world.
- 30% say they have personally encountered a spirit or unseen spiritual force.
Overall, 70% of U.S. adults can be considered “spiritual” in some way, because they think of themselves as spiritual people or say spirituality is very important in their lives.
These are among the key findings of a new Pew Research Center survey of American spirituality, conducted July 31-Aug. 6, 2023, among a nationally representative sample of 11,201 members of our American Trends Panel.
An overwhelming majority of U.S. adults (83%) say they believe that people have a soul or spirit in addition to their physical body.
About four-in-ten or more Americans say that dead people definitely, or probably, can assist, protect or guide the living (46%), be aware of what’s going on among the living (44%) or communicate with people who are still living (42%). Overall, U.S. adults are more than twice as likely to say that the dead can help the living (46%) as they are to say that the dead can harm the living (18%).
To gauge experiences that may be relatively rare, we asked respondents whether they have ever had specific otherworldly experiences.
Fully 45% say they have had a sudden feeling of connection with something from beyond this world, and 38% say they’ve had a strong feeling that someone who previously passed away was communicating with them from beyond this world. Three-in-ten say they believe in spirits or unseen spiritual forces and also say they have personally encountered one.”[iv]
Meditation and Meditation Teachers
“Roughly four-in-ten Americans meditate at least a few times a month (38%), including 22% of U.S. adults who meditate mainly to connect with their “true self” (11%) or with something bigger than themselves (10%).”[v]
Although we understand that meditation can bring about more peace and less depression and anxiety—it also happens that meditation can trigger the effects of past trauma and/or bring about disorientation from intense spiritual experiences. This can be called a “spiritual crisis”.
A problem to address: meditation teachers and yoga instructors are rarely trained in how to assist someone who is overwhelmed by a spiritual crisis. Appropriate support may involve being with the person and providing a deep understanding of the territory—not categorically sending them to a hospital where providers are not trained to recognize or appropriately “treat” someone in spiritual crisis.
What IMHU Provides
IMHU welcomes psychotherapists, peer coaches, meditation teachers and yoga instructors in our trainings so they can feel confident in giving appropriate support to individuals in distress regarding intense spiritual experiences mixed with psychological issues. Link HERE for more information. Some individuals with lived-experience and their concerned loved ones find the online webinars we offer to be helpful in grounding, gaining insight and understanding about how to manage spiritual crises. LINK
Let’s join together to create a world where individuals on the road to spiritual growth can find appropriate support and reach the peace and life satisfaction they yearn for.
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Author: Emma Bragdon, PhD. Co-Executive Director of IMHU.org
Financial Consideration: IMHU is a not for profit, charitable organization. Dr. Bragdon takes a modest stipend each month. Income is generated from course registrations at IMHU and donations/ grants. If you would like to contribute to scholarships for students who are financially challenged please go to https://imhu.org/contributions. Thank you.
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NOTES:
[i] Miller, L. (2022) The Awakened Brain. Penguin Books…Also, see Matthew Sachett, PhD. https://meditation.mgh.harvard.edu/sacchet/
[ii] Pew Research Study (2023) https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2023/12/07/spirituality-among-americans/
[iii] American Psychiatric Association (2024). https://www.psychiatry.org/news-room/news-releases/new-polling-data-shows-most-people-of-faith-would
[iv] Pew Research Study (2023) https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2023/12/07/spirituality-among-americans/
[v] Ibid.