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Paths Through Addiction and Recovery: The Impact of Spirituality and Religion

The path into addiction and from addiction into recovery is a complicated one filled with personal strengths and weaknesses, motivational and behavioral tasks, significant support, and intrinsic and extrinsic influences that become part of a cyclical, seemingly chaotic process that leads to sustained, often radical change in the life of the addicted individual (DiClemente, 2003). Spirituality and more formal religious affiliation and practice often play an important role in this journey (Fletcher, 2001). Science, especially the science of psychology and psychiatry, has had a difficult time exploring and understanding the role that spirituality and religion play in addiction and recovery. Recently there has been renewed interest in exploring how spirituality and religious traditions can influence health (Thoresen, Oman, & Harris, 2004) as well as in the study of human nature, motivation and behavior change (Miller & Delaney, 2004). The articles in this special issue highlight important interactions between spirituality or religion and the process of addiction and change. These interactions can influence motivation and readiness to change, values and decision making, commitment, support for drug use or for recovery, stress production or reduction, sustaining change, and creating the foundation for a new lifestyle (DiClemente 2003; Humphreys & Gifford, 2006). It is interesting that religion and spirituality can act both as risk and as protective factors in initiation of and recovery from addiction. Initiation of the use of drugs can be fueled both by disenchantment with or rebellion against overly restrictive religious regulation as well as a search for spiritual enlightenment. Spiritual crises, epiphanies, and values embodied in various religious traditions such as forgiveness, a merciful god, humility, and redemption can also serve as important motivators that can spur readiness and strengthen commitment to move into recovery. The challenge for prevention and treatment is to understand whether and how spirituality and religious practice and values operate in the population of individuals that we are attempting to influence. Bringing in religion can be a two-edged sword that must be used carefully. Many