But the imagination of a better alternative to our current life is at the same time a criticism of this life. Religion in its own way says that this life is not as good as it could be, indeed that this life is one of suffering. He took opium to deal with his liver illness, skin problems carbuncles , toothaches, eye pain, ear aches, coughs, and so on — the many illnesses that were the result of overwork, lack of sleep, bad diet, chain smoking and endless pots of coffee.
Let me give but one example out of many. Neither opium pills nor creosote do any good. The tooth has got to come out and he jibs at the idea.
It helped stop pain, perhaps even assisted him recover from his illness, but it was ultimately not of much use in dealing with his deeper problems. Immediately, we assume we know what opium means: a drug that dulls feelings and pain, giving a false sense of wellbeing and eventually leading to an early death. Indicating both blessing and curse, the metaphor is deeply ambivalent, which is precisely why Marx chose it. Read times Last modified on Wednesday, 16 November Communism, religion and atheism Jesus and Marx.
Contradiction: the crucible of historical materialism. Twelve practicing Catholics and twelve non-religious, non-spiritual individuals participated. They were shown two pictures of women in a similar pose, the Virgin Mary and an unknown woman, while they received a repetitive noxious electrical stimulation. Both groups were equally sensitive to the pain but the religious group reported less pain when looking at the picture of the Virgin Mary while the non-religious group reported the same amount of pain.
The non-religious group preferred the picture of the other woman although the picture did not lessen their pain. The Catholic participants reported that they were in a calm, meditative state when the religious image was presented to them. These researchers found that the right ventrolateral prefrontal cortex VLPFC cluster in the brain was specifically activated in the religious sample when looking at the Virgin Mary, but not in the nonreligious sample. The VLPFC is also involved in other cognitive processes which is long-term memory and working memory maintenance.
Post scan reports suggested that the Catholic sample used a strategy known as self-focused reappraisal that allowed them to down regulate the perceived intensity of the pain when presented with a religious image. The image of the Virgin Maryis felt to Catholics projects a calming presence of understanding and support that allows these individuals to feel supported by their higher power.
Meaning making symbols can thus influence the experience of pain. Bush et al. This study also evaluated whether different forms of religious coping were associated with different outcomes. The researchres gathered information from 61 patients seeking treatment at a pain management center. Most of patient were Caucasian women with fibromyalgia, arthritis, post surgical, and carpal tunel pain.
Patients provided a wide array of demographic data, 51 percent indicated that they were moderately religious and 30 percent reported that they were very religious. The participants also completed questionnaires concerning how pain, affected their lives, how they coped with the pain, the role and functional of religious faith and practice in their lives, their general mood, and outcomes related to their coping process.
As regards the first question, religious and nonreligious coping were moderately related to pain outcomes after accounting for the influence of demographic variables.
More specifically, the positive religious coping items were correlated with increased positive affects and a strengthening of religious faith and practice. Religious coping efforts were more helpful than nonreligious coping. Giving attention to these religious processes may improve treatment outcomes. Researchers suggested that elderly individuals report using a repertoire of pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic strategies to manage chronic pain.
Older women and elderly individuals of minority racial background reported using religious coping strategies to manage their pain more often than did older Caucasian men.
Older women also reported using diversion and exercise significantly more often than did older men. A study by Wachholtz and Pargament randomly assigned 84 college students to one of three groups, relaxation, secular meditation, and spiritual meditation. Participants filled out psychological and spiritual assessments prior to learning their technique.
After practicing their technique for 20 minutes a day for two weeks, each individual placed their hand up to their wrist in a cold water bath and held it there for as long as they could. Psychological and spiritual assessments were completed again.
The spiritual meditation group reported significantly more mystical experiences than the other two groups and a greater increase in closeness to God. Furthermore, although they reported the same subjective level of pain as the other groups they were able to endure the pain level almost twice as long as the other two groups. There is some debate regarding the role of spirituality and the impact of meditation on health.
They were assessed through a pretest on headache frequency and severity, affect, anxiety, depression, quality of life, self efficacy, religious demographics, spiritual well-being, and spiritual experiences. Following one month of 20 minutes a day practice, the participants returned to the lab to practice their technique followed by placing their hand in a cold pressor bath. Next they completed a follow-up assessment.
The Spiritual Meditation group reported a significantly greater reduction in headaches and greater pain tolerance in comparison to the other groups as well as an increase in existential well-being. All four phrases express a sense of goodness, support and comfort similar to what the participants in the Wiech et al.
Repeating these phrases, or using visual stimuli can make these spiritual resources more salient to individuals who are experiencing pain. Spiritual coping is discussed in many studies, so far. Finally, both positive and negative spirituality and religious practices were strongly related to well-being for the clergy.
In some of studies, reported cultural differences are affect the results that related to both negative and positive spiritual and religious coping. In these studies shown that, in different cultural settings are also affected spiritual and religious coping during times of stres and illness. Also, there are some Jews, Christian, and others.
In Turkish sources, little empirical research has explored the specific ways in which religious and spiritual coping may directly impact chronic pain. However, numerous studies demonstrated that there is a negative relationship between spiritually and symptoms related chronic disease e.
There is a positive relationship between spirituality and well-being, life satisfaction and the quality of life. Studies conducted in Turkey are given below. These studies are related to spirituality, pain and chronic illness. A study by Ozer examined perception and definition of the quality of life in patients with heart failure. The research participants reported prayer is one of the most important things to improve the quality of life.
These participants reported, they pray for coping with a high level of pain distress, and pray that their pain should not start again. When their pain starts they squeeze their fists and clench their theeth in order to endure the severity of pain. A study by Afsar and Pinar evaluated spirituality in cancer patients with various types of advanced cancer and found that spiritual activities influenced their general happiness and life satisfaction. Cancer patients also reported, when they experienced pain they preferred social isolation, a change in their enviroment, massage and lying down or resting as coping strategies.
The spouse reported experiencing hopelessness, spiritual distress and failure in coping with social problems. Karakavak and Cirak interviewed mothers with children having chronical diseases, about their feelings, adjustment, support systems during the care of their child. They were found to have used some strategies to cope with their children illness including religious belief, praying, receiving social support to their families and consulting to health professionals.
Mothers try to cope with the illness of their children by the help of spiritual feelings and live their spirituality through religious beliefs and practices to pray, reciting the Koran, to perform namaze etc. Mothers attempted to perform religious practices visiting shrines, having amulets, consulting to a hodja, to recite Koran, use herbal teas etc.
These studies also found some adverse effects of religious and spiritual interventions as strategies to cope with chronic illnesses and their symptoms pain, depression, anxiety, hopelessness, fatigue, distres. Several spirituality interventions have been applied in nursing practice, such as prayer, use of honey. There are several spirituality interventions that should be researched and applied in holistic care.
Spirituality interventions is very effective for individuals health, illness, and in recovering from diseases. Regarding all these individual and social variations, health professional can choose the proper way to care for patients in the light of their belief systems and religious values.
The most important role of the health professionals are to help their patients in the most appropriate and effective way. Health professionals need to be more aware of the importance of spirituality and religion in helping and supporting people having pain. Once health professionals learn from patients about their spiritual or religious nature that might be crucial for their personal health care, they should, just as for any physical or psychosocial symptom, develop a pain treatment plan that reflects appropriate goals of care.
Currently, studies suggest that few clinicians incorporate discussions about spirituality into their care of patients, while conversely many patients want spirituality to be considered within their health care options. Spiritual history should be taken as part of a holistic patient care. Health professionals need to be more aware of the importance of spirituality and religion in helping and supporting people in pain. In conclusion, this literature review highlights the importance of spirituality and religion as strategies for coping with pain.
People with chronic pain turn to their religion and spirituality to cope with their condition. Religious or spiritual practices can help in managing pain in several ways. Although both religious and spiritual beliefs influence pain management, sometimes people believe that opioid substances or intravenous medication is forbidden in their religious belief and might reject medical or surgical pain interventions.
Therefore, further research is needed to integrate spirituality and religion into clinical pain management. National Center for Biotechnology Information , U.
Journal List Health Psychol Res v. Health Psychol Res. Published online Sep Ozden Dedeli 1 and Gulten Kaptan 2. Author information Article notes Copyright and License information Disclaimer. Contributed by Contributions: the authors contributed equally. Received Mar 9; Accepted Jun 2. Dedeli and G.
This article has been cited by other articles in PMC. Abstract Pain relief is a management problem for many patients, their families, and the medical professionals caring for them. Key words: pain management, spirituality, religion. Background Studies concerning pain can be traced back as early as Babylonian clay tablets. Spirituality, religion and pain Pain is a complex phenomenon involving a cascade of behavioral responses, thoughts, and emotions.
Spiritual interventions based on pain management Spirituality-based strategies are commonly used to cope with chronic pain. Discussion Several spirituality interventions have been applied in nursing practice, such as prayer, use of honey. Conclusions In conclusion, this literature review highlights the importance of spirituality and religion as strategies for coping with pain. References 1. White L, Duncan G. Medical surgical nursing: an integrated approach.
Solimine MA. Hoeman SP, ed. Rehabilitation nursing process, application and outcomes. Cusick J. Spirituality and voluntary pain. APS Bulletin Accessed on: 18 Aug Golberg B. Connection: an exploration of spirituality in nursing care. JAN ; 27 Unruch A. Spirituality, religion, and pain. Can J Nurs Res ; 39 Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people.
The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people is the demand for their real happiness. To call on them to give up their illusions about their condition is to call on them to give up a condition that requires illusions. The criticism of religion is, therefore, in embryo, the criticism of that vale of tears of which religion is the halo. Mark Vernon: Marx saw religion as a comforter.
But the real challenge is to live without the "heart in a heartless world" that it provides. Peter Thompson: Marx's phrase makes sense only within its original context.
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