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Ashland Theological Seminary ASHLAND THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY A RESOURCE: SPIRITUAL COMPANIONSHIP AND BIPOLAR DISORDER A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF ASHLAND THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY IN CANDIDACY FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF MINISTRY BY CHRISTY JEAN WOOD ASHLAND, OHIO JUNE 1, 2019 Copyright © 2019, by Christy Jean Wood All rights reserved For Aunt Marie, Laura, Jessica, Brandon, and Taylor In Memory of my Mom and Grandparents God uses broken things. It takes broken soil to produce a crop, broken clouds to give rain, broken grain to give bread, broken bread to give strength. It is the broken alabaster box that gives forth perfume. It is Peter, weeping bitterly, who returns to greater power than ever. Vance Havner APPROVAL PAGE Accepted by the faculty and the final demonstration examining committee of Ashland Theological Seminary, Ashland, Ohio, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Ministry degree. _________________________ ________________________ Academic Advisor Date _________________________ ________________________ Director of the Doctor of Ministry Program Date ABSTRACT The purpose of this project is to create a resource that will better equip pastoral caregivers to become spiritual companions for people with bipolar disorder. The resource, Spiritual Companionship and Bipolar Disorder, establishes that pastoral caregivers are gateway people for those with bipolar disorder to receive appropriate care and models multi-disciplinary collaboration. The resource is evaluated by twelve experts using a questionnaire that includes both quantitative and qualitative questions. As a result, the resource is found to have a strong foundation and creative spiritual experientials. Insights give direction on how to improve the resource including format and cohesiveness. CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES……………………………………………………………………...viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS………………………………………………….……………ix Chapter 1. INTRODUCTIONS AND PROJECT OVERVIEW.…………...................1 2. BIBLICAL, HISTORICAL, AND THEOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS......27 3. REVIEW OF LITERATURE………………………………………………55 4. DESIGN, PROCEDURE, AND ASSESSMENT………………………..86 5. REPORTING THE RESULTS..…..………………………………………97 6. SUMMARY AND REFLECTIONS……………………………………...114 Appendix 1. PROPOSAL……………………………………………………………….134 2. RESOURCE ASSESSMENT TOOL AND COVER LETTER………..179 3. RESOURCE………………………………………………………………183 REFERENCES……………………………………………………………………….189 TABLES Table Page 1. Table 1. Goal Number 1 – Pastoral Caregivers as Gateway People ……98 2. Table 2. Goal Number 5 – Interference with Connection to God……….100 3. Table 3. Goal Number 7 – FurtherResources.....…………………………102 4. Table 4. Goal Number 4 – Impact of Bipolar Disorder ...........................103 5. Table 5. Goal Number 3 – Theological Basis for Holistic Approach.......105 6. Table 6. Goal Number 6 – Spiritual Exercises........................................107 7. Table 7. Goal Number 2 – Biblical Basis..…………………………….......109 viii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This project has taken me on a three-fold journey. Physically I have faced several health challenges and moved twice. Spiritually, I have encountered God in new ways, been healed in various ways, and had the privilege to have the support of several faith communities. This project has also challenged me cognitively. My research affirmed some ways of thinking, but it also persuaded me to change my perspective on other ways of thinking. Mostly due to my geographical changes, my support team grew. I want to thank my Waco family for being the foundation of my support group. I was fortunate to live in an intentionally diverse Christian community when I started this endeavor. I will never forget The Ark and its many personalities who remain a part of me and informed my research and conclusions, especially Renee and Robin. Cindy Julian, thank you for being my greatest cheerleader and never doubting I could do this. Megan, Mandy, Gale, Rebecca, Lydia, and David, you ensured I had a safe place to land providing me with space to laugh and cry and doubt and hope. Anastasia, you took action and rallied the troops to make my way to San Antonio for my CPE Residency. Even though I was only in San Antonio a year, I found a family in a group of mutual friends. Heather, Lynn, Leigh, and Christina, you have never let me go, even though I moved on to Corpus Christi With my two moves, I changed field consultants. First, Dr. Lauri Rogers, psychologist at Baylor University Counseling Center, helped me get started, and then the baton was passed to Denise Espino, a licensed professional counselor, and partner of Mental Health Grace Alliance. Pastor Burton Bagby-Grose has ix seen me through to the end. It is an honor to call him not only my pastor, but a peer, mentor, and friend. Thank you, Dr. Karen Taylor, for sharing your personal experiences of loss and grief to help me navigate through my dissertation using it as a tool for processing my own loss and grief. My resource people have been available to me in person, on the phone, and via email. They may not understand how much their time and resources benefited this project, but it would not be complete without you. First and foremost, Mental Health Grace Alliance (Joe, Matt, and Jenna) for inspiring my resource project. Carrie and Beth, you gave my project your Social Worker eyes along with helpful editing. Thank you, Brandy and Liz, for spending your free time editing my proposal, section by section, page by page. Gwen, Elizabeth, and Mark, you carried me to the finish line. Last, but never least, I would not be where I am today without my family, blood and chosen. Dad, I know you think I will never finish going to school, but this is truly it. Mom, there is not a day I do not miss you. I wish you could have seen me finish. Thank you for always being my biggest cheerleader. Tabitha and Gidget, you are more than my sisters. Emma and Lila, I do everything I do knowing you are watching. Dale, Miranda, Maddie, Ethan, Caedmon, Asher, and Keagan, one of my greatest gifts is being a part of your ostentation of peacocks. Rachel Jean, you have never stopped believing in me. I cannot imagine my life without you. Not many people still have a beloved and loyal friend since second grade. x CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION AND PROJECT OVERVIEW Crazy. Psycho. Schizo. Insane. Deranged. Cray-cray. These are words used in everyday life. I admit that I still say some of them. They are words we use without thinking of the real meaning and what these words communicate. It is similar to the use of the word “retard.” There is a stigma attached to these words that demean people who genuinely do struggle with mental health challenges and disorders. Over the past years, several celebrities have drawn attention to mental health. The death of actor and comedian Robin Williams prompted an onslaught of conversation concerning mental health, particularly on social media (Hoffner and Cohen 2017). For some, it was the first time to engage in the mental health conversation. For others, like me, there was a sigh of relief that finally, at least for a while, people were talking about mental health. Even before Robin Williams, the Christian world was shocked by the death of Matthew Warren, youngest son of ministry team leaders of Saddleback Church Rick and Kay Warren (Boorstein 2014). As his parents openly shared about his death, Christians were asked to consider the relationship between faith and mental health. Inside or outside the church, the statistics do not change. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, one in four Americans will face a mental health disorder or challenge (National Alliance on Mental Illness 2012). While I never expected to be included in these numbers, I am one in four. My project 1 began during the latter half of my recovery from a debilitating season of my mental health disorders. Purpose Statement and Research Question The purpose of this project was to create a resource that would better equip pastoral caregivers to become spiritual companions for people with bipolar disorder. The research question was: To what extent did this resource better equip pastoral caregivers to become spiritual companions for people with bipolar disorder? Overview The purpose of this project was to create a resource that would better equip pastoral caregivers to become spiritual companions for people with bipolar disorder. The assessment of the resource established that pastoral caregivers are gateway people for those with bipolar disorder to receive appropriate care and models multi-disciplinary collaboration. A model for holistic care was provided based on a biblical and theological framework for understanding mental health concerns and affirmed the role of scripture in mental health recovery. The resource demonstrated the importance of developing a secure identity in Christ for mental health recovery. The resource provided an understanding of bipolar disorder including the emotional, physical, cognitive, and spiritual impact of bipolar disorder. The resource also demonstrated how bipolar disorder could interfere with one’s connection with God, the church, and community. The impact of bipolar disorder can interfere with one engaging in spiritual exercises, but appropriate spiritual 2 exercises are offered in this resource that would assist the caregiver to position a care receiver to encounter Jesus. The manual provided further resources to assist pastoral caregivers in being better spiritual companions to people with bipolar disorder. Foundations The project was birthed from personal experience. The resource also has
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