geriatrics
Religion and Spirituality in Older Adults
Harmful Effects of Religion and Spirituality
Religion is not always beneficial to older adults. Religious devotion may promote excessive guilt, inflexibility, and anxiety. Religious preoccupations and delusions may develop in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, or psychoses. Certain religious groups discourage mental and physical health care, including potentially lifesaving therapies (eg, blood transfusions, treatment of life-threatening infections,insulintherapy), and may substitute religious rituals (eg, praying, chanting, lighting candles). Some more rigid religious groups may isolate and alienate older people from nonparticipating family members and the broader social community. 