1. Marjorie Guthrie MD April 2014
Spiritual Dimension
Marjorie Guthrie MD
April 2014

2. goals Review Wellness Review 6 dimension of wellness
Define Spiritual Wellness
Religion
Spirituality
Purpose
Explore ways to thrive
Finding purpose
Service opportunities

3. Discover a greater sense of
Wellness…
…beyond the physical …more than psychological health
Discover a greater sense of
meaning and purpose
in your life!

4. Wellness: Achieving Balance in Life

5. Wellness: Thriving in life

6. Wellness 6 dimensions that focus to a core of wellness.
Struggles in one area prevent a full focus on wellness.

7. Dimensions of Wellness
Professional
Social
Emotional
Physical
Financial
Spiritual

8. Professional Social Emotional Physical Financial Spiritual
Wellness: 6 Dimensions
Professional
Perceived stress and goal setting
Social
Gratitude and communication
Emotional
Depression and emotional intelligence
Physical
Eat, sleep and move
Financial
Save, spend and give
Spiritual
Purpose and service

9. Spiritual Wellness

11. Spiritual Wellness The meaning and purpose of human existence
Make this a personal experience. Participants should have a piece of paper and pencil. Some individuals may choose to share aloud, some may not. Either approach is fine. Never force individuals to interact, but interaction is encouraged. Additionally, sharing examples may create a more open environment.

12. Spiritual Wellness is engaging in the process of being able to transcend oneself in order to question the meaning and purpose in his/her life and the lives of others.

14. Religion & Spirituality

15. World religion
Why does religion exist?

16. Spirituality and religion
Spirituality is found in all human cultures.
Expressed differently in individual religions and cultures.
Different mechanism for self- transcendence.

17. Self Transcendence Self Forgetfulness Transpersonal identification
Lost in an activity
Focus on the task at hand
Transpersonal identification
Unity to the universe
A big picture world view
Mysticism
Spiritual acceptance
Open to the unknown

18. Where does spirituality and religion come from?
Does our DNA compel us to seek a higher power?
Do we seek spiritual outlets because they are adaptive?
Does spirituality help humans cope and flourish?
Does self-transcendence foster health and wellness?

20. Is God in our genes? Time Oct. 25, 2004
Prompted by the publishing of a book by Dean Hamer
Which came first God or the need for God?
Growing sense that humans may not be able to survive with out spiritual life.
Discussed spirituality outside of organized religion.

21. God Gene
Dean Hamer is a geneticist who works with National Cancer Institute (NIH).
Ph.D from Harvard Medical School.
The God Gene: How faith is hardwired in our genes
Idea came from a study on smoking and addiction.
Spirituality not religion
No claims that God’s existence

22. The research Self Transcendence scale Twin study comparison
Done as part of genetic behavioral study and the human genome project
Twin study comparison
Looked at the self transcendence scale and practice
Found – gene for Vmat2
Vesicular monoamine transporter #2
Higher with high self transcendence scales
Regulates- Monoamines
Emotional sensitivity –more responsive to religious experinces

23. SCIENCE OF A RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE
Increased activity in the frontal lobe and limbic system with increased emotions and attention
Decrease activity in the parietal lobe decreasing boundaries of self awareness increasing the feeling of being one with the universe

24. Self-Transcendence Quiz

25. Spiritual inheritance?
Buddhists have long believed in a gene or genetic side to spirituality
Most other religious leaders are not impressed.
What do you think?

26. Spiritual inheritance
Spirituality does convey adaptive value.
Could be inherited in a broad sense.
Might help us cope and flourish.
Promote health and well-being.
More likely to have productive lives and strong families.
Which came first God or the gene?

27. What are the benefits? Spirituality has a biological expression.
Provides good stress reducer.
Neuroscientist Michael Persinger:
God experience is a brilliant adaptation. It’s a built-in pacifier.
Seek meaning in our lives.
Hope there is a purpose to it all.
Religion provides additional benefits.

28. Spirituality & REligion

29. Religion and wellness Benefits of participation in religious behavior.
Not just beliefs.
Those that attend services on regular basis report greater well-being and better health.
More than just social association.

30. Provides Social support
Social support strong predictor of well-being.
Community of like minded individuals.
Social psych: strongest bond are with others like ourselves.
Help others with problems in mind, body and spirit.

31. Support Health Lifestyles
Many religions urge moderation in use of alcohol and drugs.
Some prohibit use.
Others promote family guidelines.
Discourage other risky behavior.
Natural helpers: Referral sources.

32. Personality Integration
Deeper commitment helps people focus on goals and strivings.
Life-long path of discovery.
Meditation and prayer help us integrate our personalities.
Who we are and what we are about.

33. Increase Generativity
Erik Erickson’s Developmental Stages
Stage Seven – later adulthood, marked by generativity versus stagnation
In this stage generativity refers to the adult's ability to care for another person.
Not just your own children but the next generation(s).

34. Unique Coping Strategies
Providing hope, optimism.
Relief from stressors.
Place lives in a greater perspective.
Positive forms: Working with higher power to get through difficulty.
Negative forms (guilt and blaming) offer no relief.

35. Sense of Purpose Life has meaning and purpose.
Religion provides framework for life’s journey.
Traditions and rites of passage.
Add meaning to events.
Good times and bad.
Sense of control: Not just pawns.

36. Other benefits
Prayer
Meditation
Self-worth
Shared meaning

37. Purpose

38. GALLUP on purpose and religion
Regardless of whether they affiliate themselves with a religion,
more than 8 in 10 respondents across 84 countries say their lives have an important meaning or purpose.
Religion makes a difference:
Those who claim no religious affiliation are more than twice as likely as those who do claim one to say they do not feel their lives have an important purpose

43. Purpose driven life

44. Purpose Driven life
Rick Warren is often called "America's most influential spiritual leader."
He and his wife, Kay, founded Saddleback Church in Orange County, California, which is now one of the largest and best-known churches in the world.
He also wrote the #1 all-time bestselling hardcover book, The Purpose Driven Life.

45. We were planned for God's pleasure
First purpose is to offer real worship
the act of showing respect and love for a god especially by praying with other people who believe in the same god
excessive admiration for someone

46. We were formed for God's family
Second purpose is to enjoy real fellowship.
a friendly relationship among people
the relationship of people who share interests or feelings
a group of people who have similar interests

47. We were created to become like Christ
Third purpose is to learn real discipleship.
Following the teachings of God
Continued growth and discovery
Be a disciple

48. We were shaped for serving God
Fourth purpose is to practice real ministry.
to do the work that is needed to keep something in good condition
to provide (someone) with something that is needed or wanted

49. We were made for a mission
Fifth purpose is to live out real evangelism.
A task or job to do
Telling others about what is important to you

51. 12 steps

52. 12 steps
Twelve Steps were first published in the book Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How More Than One Hundred Men Have Recovered from Alcoholism in 1939.
Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), the first twelve-step fellowship, was founded on August 11, 1938
by Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob Smith, known to AA members as "Bill W." and "Dr. Bob", in Akron, Ohio.
They established the tradition within the "anonymous" twelve-step programs of using only first
As AA was growing in the 1930s and 1940s, definite guiding principles began to emerge as the Twelve Traditions.
A singleness of purpose emerged:
"Each group has but one primary purpose—to carry its message to the alcoholic who still suffers."[6]
Through closed meetings AA only alcohol addiction is discussed The reason for such emphasis on alcoholism as the problem is to overcome denial and distraction.
The principles of AA have been used to form many numbers of other fellowships for those recovering from various pathologies, each of which in turn emphasizes recovery from the specific malady which brought the sufferer into the fellowship.[8]

53. Find hope
Step 1 - We admitted we were powerless over our addiction - that our lives had become unmanageable *
Step 2 - Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity *
Step 3 - Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood God *

54. Take inventory
Step 4 - Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves *
Step 5 - Admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs *
Step 6 - Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character *
Step 7 - Humbly asked God to remove our shortcomings *

55. Make amends
Step 8 - Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all *
Step 9 - Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others *

56. Help others
Step 10 - Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it *
Step 11 - Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood God, praying only for knowledge of God's will for us and the power to carry that out *
Step 12 - Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to other addicts, and to practice these principles in all our affairs

57. What step are you on?

58. Meaning of life Where do you find meaning and purpose?
Where can you give back?

59. Step 1:Write Step 2 : Share Step 3 Serve Next steps
Define your life purpose.
Tell someone.
Give back
Next steps
Complete the handout and thrive!