Symposium I

A Model Combining Psychotherapy with Spirituality and Religion in the Area of Palliative Care and Bereavement

Benna Chase

This paper presents a Model for working with the dying and the bereaved within the Maltese context arising from my years of practice in oncology and palliative care. The Model has emerged from my doctoral work, where, drawing on autoethnography, which “works to hold self and culture together, albeit not in equilibrium or stasis” (Holman Jones, 2005: 764), I focused on the interplay between self and culture, seeing that death, dying and bereavement are so strongly embedded within culture. The use of self is an important element. Self, from a Gestalt perspective, indicates cohesion over time – Integrity, and openness to change at the contact boundary – Growth (Yontef, 1993), two important characteristics in the Model. The interplay between the psychotherapeutic and the spiritual and religious is addressed, within a culture where the Roman Catholic Religion is a dominant tradition. The Model advocates that, apart from practising presence and inclusion, a practitioner needs to be prepared to stay with the client in the long space between Withdrawal and Sensation, with its dearth of figure-formation. This requires a deep level of conviction that sustains the practitioner in the ‘between’ to allow a natural, positive figure to emerge, with the resulting growth of both practitioner and client.

References

Holman Jones, S. (2005): ‘Authoethnography. Making the personal political’, in N.K. Denzin & Y.S. Lincoln (Eds): The Sage handbook of qualitative research. (3rd ed.). London: Sage
Yontef, G.M. (1993): Awareness, Dialogue and process: Essays on gestalt therapy. NY: The Gestalt Journal Press, Inc.

The Psychologist's Role in the Spiritual Journey of a Child and Family during Palliative Care: A Case Study in Malta

Marisa Giordmaina

The aim of this reflective account is a reflection ‘in’ and ‘on’ my personal work with this family whose child was on palliative care. Working as a psychologist, dealing with childhood cancer is often experienced as a journey where the diagnosis of a life-threatening illness raises in me key questions at the interface of medicine, palliative care and my own spirituality. Literature suggests that the dimension of spirituality and the provision of spiritual care still prove to be stumbling blocks for many health professionals. This eight-year old child suffering from cancer has been diagnosed since the age of three years. In paediatric palliative care, there is not only the child that needs support, but also the family that needs constant support. This reflection includes how the Maltese culture of ‘the family’ is influenced and how palliative care is addressed in hospital. In Malta, 95% of the population is affiliated with the Roman Catholic religion. Although, people might not be practicing their religion, in times of illness, they may turn to God as a connection to something greater than themselves to help them make sense of their world.

By using the stages of the Gibbs (1988) Reflective Theory, namely description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusion, and action plan, I am unfolding the journey as a psychologist and reflecting on the spiritual impact of this child’s palliative journey on my life. My experience of spiritual growth has been both on a professional and personal basis. The personal spiritual growth has generated a ripple effect and is reflected on my behavior in my own family and on my relationships with others in my professional life. It has affected my beliefs and meaning of life and my values on how to look on life in general. My reflections on the circumstances of accompanying this child and the family, I became aware of the impact this journey has had on me, my family, my work, and others.

Reference:

Gibbs G. (1988) Learning by doing: A guide to teaching and learning methods. Further Education Unit, Oxford Polytechnic, Oxford.

The Healing Power of Forgiveness: The Convergence of Education and Clinical Practice from a Personal Stance

Therese Bugeja

Over the past ten years, research on forgiveness has proliferated and provides tangible reasons for unburdening ourselves of anger and resentment. Actually, forgiveness is the most powerful act that one can do for one’s own health (Luskin, 2002). Mounting evidence reveals that the people who can forgive are the ones who receive the real rewards. People who are forgiving tend to have not only less stress but also better relationships, fewer general health problems and lower incidences of the most serious illnesses — including depression, heart disease, stroke and cancer (Worthington, 2006).

Moreover, recent reviews of the literature pertaining to forgiveness and health have argued that the physical and mental health benefits of forgiveness can be startling, regardless of age, gender or even the most unimaginable hurts (Worthington,2006; Witvliet and McCullough, 2007).

This paper aims to highlight experiences in forgiveness encountered both with students as a lecturer in personal development, and clients as a psychotherapist. Each context presents both failure and success life stories.

Though most people probably feel they know what forgiveness means, researchers differ about what actually constitutes forgiveness. I have come to believe that how we define forgiveness usually depends on context.

References:

Luskin F (2002). Forgive for Good: A Proven Prescription for Health and Happiness. New York: HarperCollins.

Witvliet, C.V.O. & McCullough, M.E. (2007). Forgiveness and health: A review and theoretical exploration of emotion pathways. In S.G. Post (Ed), Altruism and health: perspectives from empirical research (Pg. 259-276). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Worthington E.L. Jr. (2006). Forgiveness and Reconciliation: Theory and Application. New York: Brunner-Routledge.

Faith, Hope and Love in the Experience of the Dying

Karin Tschanz

The imminence and fear of death are powerful forces that change priorities, values, and relationships of people, as well as their spirituality and faith, sometimes to their own surprise. Since spirituality and faith has become for many unknown territory, pastoral care givers are relevant to recognize and support their process. This field report is based on 20 years of the practice of spiritual care with dying patients given as a chaplain and 10 years of evaluating the practice and reports of 130 volunteers, 70 nurses, social workers and psychologists and 100 pastors and chaplains as director of training and supervisor in palliative and spiritual care.

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