Product Description

Spirituality has emerged as a prominent theme in contemporary culture. It is seen in issues as diverse as Eastern philosophies and religious awakenings; its psychological impact is apparent in alternative medicine, Alcoholics Anonymous, and meditation. In their own ways, each of these has helped people get relief from the problems psychiatrists often treat. But the mental health profession has generally ignored these isues, focusing on specific target symptoms, from anxiety to heavy drinking. Their efforts rely increasingy on medications and brief therapies as they succumb to the chilling influence of managed care. This raises an important question: Can the spiritual and professional, two perspectives that seem different, be reconciled? This book is designed to provide an answer to this question. It draws on recent findings in psychology, neuroscience, and innovative therapies to understand how people in America and worldwide express their spiritual needs. It then shows how the mentally ill, substance abusers, and people troubled by a sense that something is missing in their lives can be helped by developing a sense of personal meaning, while still benefitting from contemporary therapy and medications. Finally, it examines shortcomings in both the biomedical and spiritually-oriented approaches. The book draws on clinical experience and recent research studies, including the author's work over thirty years. This is enhanced by case studies drawn from patients, mental health professionals, the lay public, and even cult members. All this is brought together to create a vivid understanding of how mental health treatment can be made more effective by giving meaning to people's lives.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #527004 in Books
• Published on: 2005-07-07
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 320 pages

Review

"A history, replete with stories and case examples, of the interface between spirituality and psychiatry, spanning world religions, cults, medication, meditation, placebo effects, and spiritual recovery groups. Galanter advocates a therapeutic approach that is based on spirituality and more generally on the exploration of human meaning and values." -William R. Miller, PhD Distinguished Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry, The University of New Mexico
"A scholarly but also compassionate study of individual and especially group means to achieve meaning in life. I had been troubled that things as diverse as an AA meeting, a jazz concert, and a church service have all been termed 'spiritual.' The book's first contribution is the clearest and most complete discussion of this concept I have read. The second contribution is its combination of seasoned clinical experience with thoughtful historical and cultural contextual work to explain some of the more remarkable and sometimes disturbing efforts to attain spiritual meaning. I came away more informed but also more inquisitive about man's seemingly universal yearning for meaning. You can't ask more from a book than that!" -A. Thomas McLellan, PhD Editor-in-Chief, Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment
"Marc Galanter's rich career experiences augment an extensive literature in this milestone volume. Case vignettes, quantitative data, and balanced interpretations bridge the intersections between our personal meanings and ultimate goals, and those of our patients." -Joe Westermeyer, MD, PhD Professor of Psychiatry and Adjunct Professor of Anthropology, University of Minnesota
"A wonderful marriage of psychotherapy and spirituality. It captures the curative elements of each, and helps the therapist see the value of melding the two." --Maryann Amodeo, MSW, PhD, President, Association for Medical Education and Research in Substance Abuse
"At a time when managed care is carving the humanistic traditions out of psychiatric care, Dr. Galanter provides us with this beautifully written and compelling book. It guides us in understanding how spiritual pathways help people in distress to find comfort and personal meaning." -Edward J. Khantzian, MD Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
"The most authoritative text on this subject yet to be published. It blends together culture and spirituality with neuroscience and mental sciences to offer new perspectives and meanings to patients. The clinical scope and vision of the book are unlimited. Dr. Galanter has creatively produced an invaluable resource not only for mental health professionals but also for all professionals in the healing arts field." -Pedro Ruiz, MD President-Elect, American Psychiatric Association
"A unique aspect of this book is the involvement of its author in investigating spirituality first hand and theoretically since the seventies. The anecdotal style gives the impression that the book is almost a history of the growing interest in spirituality and health over the past several decades."--Doody's
"...provides a carefully argued case for taking patients' spiritualities into account in psychiatric care."--Brain
"This book is very well written and is filled with stories of the experiences of mental health patients and professionals...I would highly recommend this book as an enjoyable and educational read for anyone with an interest in mental health and spirituality."--Psychological Medicine
Spirituality and the Healthy Mind provides a valuable introduction to its subject matter and will be informative for readers of varied backgrounds and persuasions."--The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease

About the Author
Marc Galanter is at New York University Medical Center.

Customer Reviews

A Timely and Important Book About Practical, Integrated Spirituality
There is any number of definitions of spirituality. In this timely and important book, Marc Galanter, a New York psychiatrist who specializes in alcohol and substance abuse, defines spirituality as the individual search for existential and transcendent meaning.

This wonderfully balanced book attempts to reconcile contemporary Western psychiatry with his definition of spirituality. There are chapters on Eastern spirituality and Christian psychiatry. It is an interesting paradox that spiritual counseling is used far more commonly in European than in American psychiatry, despite the dismal statistics on church attendance in Europe.

Galanter also discusses the power of large group experiences that can be harnessed for positive ends as in the Alcoholics Anonymous movement and its various offshoots, or can have dreadful negative consequences, as in the Jonestown mass suicide in 1978, that left some 913 people dead.

There is often a disconnect between what patients want and what doctors think that they want. Galanter relates that when medical students and nursing staff were asked to rank the items of greatest value to patient recovery, most put benefits and housing at the top of the list. By contrast patients with substance abuse problems most frequently rated belief in God and inner peace as the most important components in recovery. Galanter recognized the motivational power of spirituality in recovery and in overcoming stigma, and integrated it into his program. This combination has proven to be highly successful. This seems obvious to someone trained in Europe and who has practiced integrated medicine since back when the world was new. But it was far from obvious to most people raised within traditional American psychiatry.

Galanter deserves great credit for having helped create a fine integrated program and his book underlines the extraordinary healing potential of the many spiritual paths trodden by people trying to find meaning and purpose in their lives.

Highly recommended, not only to people working in health care, but for any spiritual seeker who wants to know more about the very practical consequences of a spiritually informed life.