WEDNESDAY, July 10, 2002 (HealthDayNews) -- A stay at a "healing temple" can work as well as anti-psychotic medications in treating mental illness.
Researchers found a "striking reduction" in the symptoms of the disorders after a few weeks, says Dr. R. Raguram, chief author of a study appearing in the current issue of India's version of the British Medical Journal.
Raguram, a professor of psychiatry with the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences in Bangalore, India, says the improvement was similar to what would have been achieved with the use of drugs.
In India and other low-income countries, residents often turn to local resources when dealing with mental health problems because they are generally lower in cost. One such resource is the healing temple.
The study was conducted at the temple of Muthuswamy, which is located in a remote village in India. According to the study, local legend says that Muthuswamy was able to heal people, particularly those with mental illness, simply by touching their hands. The temple is built over his grave.
For the study, the researchers tested 31 people who sought help at the temple between June and August of 2000. The mentally ill often come with at least one family member, who can tend to their needs. The ill person is encouraged to take part in routine daily activities, like cleaning the temple or watering the plants. Stays at the temple are often provided at no charge.
Of the 31 people studied, 23 had paranoid schizophrenia, six had delusional disorders and two had bipolar disorder. Most of them had been sick for over a year, but none had received any prior psychiatric treatment. The majority of the study subjects were male farm laborers. All were Hindu. The average stay at the temple was six weeks.
There were no specific healing or religious ceremonies performed, and the patients didn't take any herbal preparations during their stay.
The study volunteers received psychiatric testing when they first got to the temple, and then again when they left.
Raguram and his team found that scores on the psychiatric tests improved by 20 percent after a stay at the temple, which, according to the study, is similar to the improvement seen with many mental illness medications.
Raguram says he believes the improvements may be a function of staying in a protective, non-threatening environment that is in tune with the patient's cultural beliefs.
Dr. Harold G. Koenig, an associate professor of psychiatry and medicine at Duke University's Center for the Study of Religion/Spirituality and Health, says he's not surprised at the results, though he says they are modest and could be a transient, placebo effect.
Koenig adds there have been, and still are, similar places for treatment in the United States. He says they're somewhat like a vacation retreat, and provide a place to get away from the "havoc" of daily life. If patients are expected to help with chores, such as feeding animals, it provides them with the structure that may be missing in their lives.
What To Do
To read more about alternative therapies for mental health conditions, go to the Center for Mental Health Services or Mental-Health-Matters.com.
