This article presents a case study in which self-hypnosis, hypnosis-assisted psychotherapy, and palliative care strategies were provided within a multi-modal integrative treatment program for a 38-year-old woman with traumatic brain injury (TBI) secondary to motor vehicle accident. Self-hypnosis was helpful in anxiety reduction and pain management. Hypnosis-assisted psychotherapy was beneficial...
BACKGROUND: Maintaining a sense of self-care while providing patient centered care, can be difficult for practitioners in palliative medicine. We aimed to pilot an "on the job" mindfulness and compassion-oriented meditation training for interdisciplinary teams designed to reduce distress, foster resilience and strengthen a prosocial motivation in the clinical encounter. METHODS: Our objective...
Introduction Mindfulness Meditation involves paying attention to our mind and body moment by moment, being aware of what arises without judgement. Experience and evaluation demonstrated that some patients receiving one to one mindfulness meditation failed to achieve their identified goals due to difficulty in committing to regular meditation practice when at home. They felt the traditional...
Introduction: The concept of hope in palliative care is an important and neglected area of research. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a progressive degenerative motor neuron disease, offers an excellent opportunity to study this construct as the illness is virtually always fatal. Our research explored the meaning of hope in individuals with ALS. Patients and methods: Sixteen patients (13...
It is recognized as increasingly important in palliative care that spiritual needs of terminally ill patients should be acknowledged and addressed. Two research projects investigated the feasibility of psychotherapeutic and music therapeutic assistance offered to advanced cancer patients. The first project (1998-2000) sought to improve the understanding of the effect of therapeutic support...
AbstractBackground. Existential distress and treatment-resistant depression are common and difficult to manage in patients with serious and life-limiting illnesses. Psilocybin-assisted therapy has shown early promise for these conditions, but access outside research settings remains narrow, inconsistent, expensive and often shaped by outdated eligibility rules. These include extremely limited...
Psychological and existential distress are common across the cancer trajectory and can impair quality of life, treatment adherence, and family functioning. Although psychosocial and pharmacological interventions provide meaningful support, their overall effects are often modest. This review examines the emerging role of psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT) as a potential approach to better...
BackgroundPsychiatry has long maintained an ambivalent relationship with religion and spirituality, often acknowledging their relevance while remaining cautious about clinical engagement.ObjectivesThis article examines the historical, conceptual, and clinical tensions surrounding spirituality in psychiatry and explores how contemporary psychedelic research has renewed attention to meaning and...
Psychedelic substances are recognized for their potential to ease psychological suffering linked to end-of-life issues, yet policy remains restrictive. The wide range of both substances and therapeutic approaches used in end-of-life populations has not been adequately covered by reviews to date. To identify and learn from the variety that exists within the research on therapeutic psychedelic...