Humanistic Psychiatry and Psychotherapy: Listening to Patients as Persons in Search of Meaning. The Case of Schizophrenia

Abstract

Confronted with any kind of critical event, people tend to develop an urgent need for answers that provide a useful interpretation of what they experience as a painfully intruding disaster. This urge results from the often-unbearable suffering and the disruption of everyday life, routines, and relations. Moreover, dreams and aspirations one had for the future, the realization of which they perceived as important in leading a meaningful life, may be lost or have to be reconsidered. Accompanying feelings of disappointment, demoralization, or even desperation are often treated as symptoms of depression. This approach is called into question by the concept of demoralization, which points to the presence of healthy modes of functioning in a state of lucid awareness of one's condition. In this article, we focus on the case of schizophrenia, as we suppose that having to deal

The Importance of Timing, Fundamental Attitudes, and Appropriate Interventions as Key Aspects of Chaplain Suicide Prevention: A European Expert Panel of Mental Health Chaplains

“…Sometimes, patients do not have hope for themselves, but meeting with a chaplain who holds hope for them can encourage them to start to have hope for themselves. Eneman and colleagues (2019) emphasise the importance of healthcare personnel as beholders of hope for patients (p. 163). In our research, it was accepted that chaplains should never give up hoping for and with their clients.…”

Suicidality: An existential phenomenon.

“…This frame challenges the effectiveness of assessments and interventions associated with suicide that are not rooted in this human, existential frame (Roberts & Lamont, 2014). Current methods of diagnosing and detecting client concerns may fail to address clients’ existential well-being (Enemen et al, 2019). Therefore, psychotherapy must move to address clients’ “meaning of Being,” as this question remains “at the heart of everything our patients bring” (Loewenthal & Snell, 2003, p. 26).…”

“…Tillich (1952) defined existentialism as participating with the “whole of one’s existence” (p. 115), and it is only when the client is considered in their full human condition, their existential dimension, when a “genuinely humanistic psychotherapy” can exist (Enemen et al, 2019, p. 149). Rooted in compassion, a genuine curiosity can be applied to the client’s suicidality.…”

Developing the Identity-based Psychodrama Package and Comparing It With Psychodrama on Neuroticism

“…Various models and theories have been proposed to explain and treat the symptoms of neuroticism, from psychoanalysis to new postmodern methods. These methods include cognitive-behavioral therapies such as dialectical behavior therapy (Linehan, 1993), cognitive behavioral analysis system of psychotherapy (McCullough, 2003), schema therapy (Young, Klosko, & Weishaar, 2006), humanistic-existential approaches (Berra, 2021;Eneman et al, 2019), and psychodrama (Shaughnessy, 2003). Cognitive-behavioral therapies have dealt mainly with symptoms such as impulsivity, harmful behaviors, and perceived interpersonal rejection, while humanisticexistential approaches emphasize those symptoms such as hopelessness and stress.…”