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Chapter 8 - Substance Misuse and Addiction

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 October 2022

By
John F. Kelly  and
Christopher C. H. Cook
Edited by
Christopher C. H. Cook  and
Andrew Powell
Christopher C. H. Cook
Affiliation:
Institute for Medical Humanities, Durham University
Andrew Powell
Affiliation:
Formerly Warneford Hospital and University of Oxford
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Summary

Any role for spirituality in addressing the serious clinical and public health problems related to substance misuse and addiction might seem antiquated at best, and clinical malpractice at worst. Yet, from a phenomenological perspective, addiction often penetrates and pervades the core of conscious thought and behaviour, undermining personal values and meaning and purpose in life – factors that many people associate with a diminished sense of personal spirituality. Research on spiritual/religious identity and practices has shown that these both protect against the onset of substance misuse and help millions each year to recover from it. This chapter reviews the interplay of morality, spirituality/religion and substance misuse, suggests why addiction in particular is so prone to spiritual pathology, and describes why spirituality/religion have played such prominent roles in successful remission and stable recovery. Spiritually oriented treatment approaches to addiction are reviewed along with their implications for practice and research.

Keywords

addictionAlcoholics Anonymousmutual helpreligionself-help, spiritualitysubstance misusesubstance use disordertreatmentTwelve-Step
Type
Chapter
Information
Spirituality and Psychiatry , pp. 158 - 179
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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