This week, I couldn’t help but be drawn to a couple of articles regarding spirituality and the health profession. Both were wonderful, and the second story thoughtful and humorous, but the first story, based in Orange County, California really got my attention.
The article in question is about this young psychiatrist, Dr. Aaron Keriaty, who is a practicing Catholic. He says he prays for every one of his patients, and prays that God will use him to heal those with mental troubles.
Given that he is only a year older than I am, he is very likely an Indigo soul who is here to change the face of psychiatry and help build bridges between heretofore opposing viewpoints. In this case, the bridge needed was to eradicate the duality created by humanity between the mental health sector and those of a religious bent.
His interest in the psychiatric field took a personal turn when a friend of his was diagnosed bipolar. That friend has since committed suicide, and Keriaty spoke about his friend’s mother praying that he would use his profession as a way to help those like her son.
This story was very encouraging, as my own boyfriend’s experiences with the psychiatric profession have not been positive, especially as my boyfriend is something of a mystic. Also, it was doubly encouraging, because it reminded me of my dad’s own therapist who is a practicing Lutheran. This tells me that psychologists and psychiatrists are beginning to see that the world of the spiritual has many lessons for them in the way they help their patients, and that the world of the spiritual is to be pondered and wondered at instead of scorned outright.
At the same time, ministers and priests are now attempting to help remove the stigma of going to a therapist for help, realizing that talking with clergy may not be enough to heal the wounds of the mind as well as the soul.
What I hope Keriaty will do in the course of his career, is also address the mental needs of the poverty-stricken areas of this country, for they are the ones who probably need help the most, yet cannot afford the exorbitant costs of therapy, let alone medication, if need be. The poverty-stricken’s only choice is to go to a church for counseling, but a minister cannot yet objectively help such people with issues such as substance abuse, or being verbally, mentally, physically or sexually abused, unless that minister also has a graduate degree in psychology. Some clergy do, such as those in the Pagan community. But then, I’ve encountered ministers who just don’t have the gift of gentle, sympathetic yet objective counseling that many human souls need.
Therefore, I am very glad to read of a spiritual psychiatrist who will be something of a walker between the worlds of religion and the mental health community. He is a bridge-builder, and may there be many more like him.
BB,
Rev. Kat ^.^
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