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A: Integration of Mind/Body/Spirit
The integration of body, mind, and spirit can create harmony and healing. In fact, the integration of body, mind, and spirit can also take into account culture and ethnicity to provide holistic care. There is no one way to integrate body, mind, and spirit, but multiple modalities that each person can choose to use at different points to address their own needs. Some body-mind-spirit integration practices like yoga or tai chi can also be divorced from their religious and cultural contexts to provide all people with access to their benefits (Luskin, 2004). Although there is some evidence starting to emerge showing how these types of practices lead to measurable or at least observable outcomes in patients, it is important for healthcare practitioners to focus more on phenomenological approaches and qualitative methods than on the potentially futile quest for quantitative data proving the efficacy of practices like meditation or prayer.
Therapists and healthcare practitioners working within a Christian worldview also have a wealth of tools at their disposal. The unification of body, mind, and spirit is grounded in Christian scripture and literally embodied in the teachings and example of Christ (Fossarelli, 2002). In fact, experiencing the connection between body, mind, and spirit can help guide a person through existential anxiety. Patients who struggle with pain, disease, chronic illness, or who are close to death especially benefit from a perspective that integrates body, mind, and spirit. The physical aging of the body is therefore put into a greater and broader perspective, allowing the person to transcend the psychic, emotional, and even physical pain through practices like mindfulness. In the future, innovations in mind/body integration techniques may even make it possible to gain greater control over body, mind, and spirit, allowing a person to create healthier systems in the body and experience self-healing.
References
Fossarelli, P. (2002). Fearfully wonderfully made: The interconnectedness of body-mind-spirit. Journal of Religion...
(2004). Transformative practices for integrating mind-body-spirit. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 10(Supplement), S15–s23.
B. Therapies
Mind-body integration and healing therapies abound, and many if not most can be aligned with a Christian worldview. Prayer is of course a cornerstone of Christian practice and faith, and is one of the most important techniques for refreshing and soothing the mind, rejuvenating the body through the calming of the spirit (Luskin, 2004). Scripture illuminates the necessity—and the theological underpinnings—of unifying body, mind, and spirit (Fossarelli, 2002). Through prayer, one can attain insight and understanding that helps to alleviate suffering in a profound way. Yet there are also other practices and therapies that can be used, in addition to or instead of prayer, which also align with a Christian worldview. As Saumel (2010) points out, spiritual practices are not necessarily “occult,” or antithetical to Christian values (p. 1). In fact, many practices reflect the core teachings of the Bible, directing each person towards a pathway to self-healing.
In addition to prayer, I believe that meditation aligns itself with a Christian worldview and my personal belief system too. I also believe that meditative movement, whether walking in the woods or doing yoga, has a profound impact on the body, mind, and spirit. These are all practical activities, which are not inherently “spiritual” and thus neutral in terms of their not requiring any ideology or belief system. Meditation is about mindfulness, getting in touch with emotions, sensations, and thoughts honestly. Knowing oneself through insight meditation or mindfulness meditation, one comes closer to wholeness and healing. Movement meditations also liberate the body from bad habits and sedentary lifestyle choices. Remaining as mindful as possible during movement, a person also pays closer attention to the body and its sensations, which can promote healing.…
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