Spiritual Awakening Predicts Improved Drinking Outcomes in a Polish Treatment Sample

Abstract

Purpose This study examined concurrent and longitudinal associations between two dimensions of affiliation in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)—attendance and spiritual awakening—and drinking outcomes among adult patients who were in treatment for alcohol dependence in Warsaw, Poland. In a study conducted at four addiction treatment centers, male and female patients (n = 118) with a DSM-IV diagnosis of alcohol dependence were assessed at baseline (Time 1 or T1), one month (T2), and 6 to 12 months post-baseline (T3) for AA meeting attendance, various aspects of AA affiliation, and alcohol use. AA meeting attendance and alcohol consumption were measured using the Timeline Followback (TLFB) interview. Self-report of having had a spiritual awakening was measured using a modified version of the Alcoholics Anonymous Involvement (AAI) scale. Results There were no cross-sectional or longitudinal associations between AA meeting attendance and improved drinking outcomes. In contrast, self-report of a spiritual awakening between T2 and T3 was significantly associated with abstinence (OR = 2.4, p < .05) and the absence of any heavy drinking (OR = 3.0, p < .05) at T3, even when demographic and clinical characteristics were statistically controlled. Conclusions Self-reports of spiritual awakening predicted improved drinking outcomes in a Polish treatment sample.

Sex Differences in Spiritual Coping, Forgiveness, and Gratitude Before and After a Basic Alcohol Addiction Treatment Program

“…In this group, referring to spiritual resources, including the application of moral values in a stressful situation of taking up alcohol addiction treatment, may be quicker and stronger than in groups with lower faith levels. This hypothesis is supported among others by a study conducted in a group of Poles beginning addiction therapy, which showed that this group may be especially prone to experience spiritual awakening during treatment (Strobbe et al 2013 ).…”

“…It also promotes the realization that regaining the positive image of self, others, the world, and God/Higher Being by means of hard work on ones’ emotions and the development of constructive methods of coping with stress (including those that are based on spiritual resources) can really be achieved, which may contribute to the development of a more internal orientation regarding the drinking-related locus of control (Koski-Jännes 1994 ) and strengthening the belief in abstinence self-efficacy (Piderman et al 2008 ). These processes may foster further spiritual development and maintaining sobriety (Linquist 2013 ; Strobbe et al 2013 ). The presented proposal for the process of spiritual change occurring in women during the therapy is a hypothesis, which needs to be verified in further studies.…”

The Effect of Baseline Patterns of Spiritual Coping, Forgiveness, and Gratitude on the Completion of an Alcohol Addiction Treatment Program

“…Moreover, spirituality is known to support recovery from alcohol dependence by providing individuals with a sense of purpose, meaning in life, and optimism, buffering stress and increasing social support (Jarusiewicz 2000; Lyons et al 2010;Miller 1998Miller 2013Pardini et al 2000;Piderman et al 2008). Alcohol addiction therapy may also evoke substantial improvements in the spirituality domain, in some cases leading to the experience of spiritual awakening (Strobbe et al 2013). Surprisingly, despite these well-documented associations between spirituality and alcohol dependence as well as between stress and drinking problems (e.g., the stress-coping model of addiction; Wills and Hirky 1996), few studies have explored the impact of spiritual coping on alcohol dependence and its treatment.…”

“…Moreover, spirituality is known to support recovery from alcohol dependence by providing individuals with a sense of purpose, meaning in life, and optimism, buffering stress and increasing social support (Jarusiewicz 2000 ; Lyons et al 2010 ; Miller 1998 2013 ; Pardini et al 2000 ; Piderman et al 2008 ). Alcohol addiction therapy may also evoke substantial improvements in the spirituality domain, in some cases leading to the experience of spiritual awakening (Strobbe et al 2013 ).…”

A influência da Religiosidade/Espiritualidade na terapêutica e prognóstico de pacientes com transtornos mentais: uma revisão integrativa

“…Melhor prognóstico psiquiátrico a partir da abordagem da R/E também foi descrito no abuso de substâncias (Conner, Anglin, Annon, & Longshore, 2009;Parhami, Davtian, Collard, Lopez, & Fong, 2014). O autorrelato de um "despertar espiritual" foi associado à abstinência (Strobbe, Cranford, Wojnar, & Brower, 2013) propósito, otimismo, generosidade e gratidão, a partir de indicadores religiosos/espirituais, em pacientes com depressão, declinando sua sintomatologia e possibilitando maior acessibilidade e adesão ao tratamento (Tulbure et al, 2018). A perda de fé previu menos melhora nos escores de depressão (Dew et al, 2010), enquanto maior resiliência previu maior resposta à Development, v. 9, n. 11, e2889119784, 2020 (CC BY 4.0) | ISSN 2525-3409 | DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.33448/rsd-v9i11.9784 13 medicação e remissão do tratamento em idosos com Transtorno Depressivo Maior (TDM) (Laird et al, 2018).…”