Guided Invocation for Well-Being
What You Need to Know Before You Apply
What is the purpose of this trial?
This trial explores whether a guided spiritual practice, called Guided Invocation for Mystical Experience, can foster meaningful spiritual experiences and improve well-being in Christian adults. Participants will attend one in-person session and then follow either a Christian-based program or a non-religious program for four weeks. The researchers aim to determine if the Christian program results in greater improvements in well-being. Suitable candidates are English-speaking Christians who have not used psychedelics and are open to hypnosis. As an unphased trial, this study provides a unique opportunity to explore personal spiritual growth and enhance well-being.
Will I have to stop taking my current medications?
The trial information does not specify whether you need to stop taking your current medications. It focuses on a spiritual intervention and does not mention medication changes.
What prior data suggests that this guided spiritual intervention is safe for participants?
Research has shown that participating in guided spiritual activities, such as those designed for mystical experiences, is generally safe. This trial does not involve any drugs, reducing the risk of typical drug-related side effects. Studies on similar spiritual activities indicate they are well-tolerated. Activities like meditation, included in this trial, usually lead to positive experiences. Some participants might initially feel a bit uncomfortable or uneasy, but serious issues are rare. Overall, guided spiritual practices are often safe and can enhance well-being without major risks.12345
Why are researchers excited about this trial?
Researchers are excited about the Guided Invocation for Mystical Experience trial because it explores a new way to integrate peak spiritual experiences with personal beliefs and practices. Unlike standard therapies that primarily focus on psychological or pharmaceutical approaches, this trial utilizes a structured, faith-based method that includes reflective activities grounded in Christian teachings. It offers a unique combination of psychoeducation, regular engagement with spiritual themes, and personal reflection, which might lead to deeper emotional and cognitive integration of spiritual experiences. This innovative approach could reveal insights into how spirituality can be harnessed to enhance well-being, a relatively unexplored area in current treatment options.
What evidence suggests that this guided invocation is effective for improving well-being?
Research has shown that spiritual health activities can improve overall well-being. This trial will compare two approaches: the Structured Christian Integration and the Structured Control Integration. Studies have found that practices like meditation and prayer enhance brain function, leading to improved focus, empathy, and creativity. Participation in religious activities correlates with greater life satisfaction and self-esteem. Neuroscience research indicates that contemplative prayer, a deep and thoughtful form of prayer, positively affects brain activity related to well-being. In summary, spiritual practices can provide mental health benefits without medication, offering a promising way to enhance life quality.16789
Who Is on the Research Team?
Gary Elkins, PhD
Principal Investigator
Baylor University
Are You a Good Fit for This Trial?
This trial is for healthy adults who are interested in spiritual experiences and well-being. Participants should be open to Christian-based or general integration programs and able to attend one in-person session, plus complete follow-up assessments over two months.Inclusion Criteria
Exclusion Criteria
Timeline for a Trial Participant
Screening
Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial
Intervention
Participants complete one in-person session of the 'guided invocation for mystical experience'
Integration Program
Participants are randomly assigned to complete either a Christian-based or control integration program for 4 weeks
Follow-up
Participants complete follow-up assessments to evaluate well-being and mystical experiences
What Are the Treatments Tested in This Trial?
Interventions
- Guided Invocation for Mystical Experience
Trial Overview
The study tests whether a guided, non-drug spiritual session can create mystical experiences and improve well-being. After the session, participants are randomly assigned to either a Christian-based or standard integration program for four weeks.
How Is the Trial Designed?
2
Treatment groups
Experimental Treatment
Active Control
Participants assigned to the structured Christian integration condition will engage in a 4-week, integration program designed to facilitate reflection on and incorporation of their peak spiritual experience into their existing religious framework. The intervention includes four modules with psychoeducational materials, structured activities grounded in Christian teachings, and weekly phone calls with the interventionist. Participants will use a toolkit with weekly writing prompts and recorded audio sessions (14-22 minutes) focused on themes such as revisiting and reflection, awareness and nature, love and connection, and transformation. Participants will engage with materials regularly (e.g., audio sessions at least four times per week) and submit written responses at the end of each module. The program is standardized and designed to support ongoing cognitive and emotional processing and integration into daily life and religious practice.
Participants assigned to the structured control integration condition will engage in a 4-week, self-guided program designed to match the structure, duration, and level of engagement of the Christian integration condition. The intervention includes four modules with psychoeducational materials, structured poetry analysis without religious or spiritual content, and weekly phone calls with the interventionist. Participants will use a toolkit with weekly writing prompts and audio sessions focused on various analyses (e.g., content, structure, imagery, symbolism) of poetry. Participants will engage with materials regularly (e.g., audio sessions at least four times per week) and submit written responses at the end of each module. The program is standardized and designed as a structurally equivalent control condition and no specific benefit is anticipated.
Find a Clinic Near You
Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?
Baylor University
Lead Sponsor
Templeton World Charity Foundation
Collaborator
Citations
Mystical Experiences Without Psychedelics and How ...
The goal of this clinical trial is to evaluate whether a guided, non-drug spiritual intervention can facilitate mystical-type experiences ...
Effectiveness of spiritual health-based interventions in ... - PMC
Spiritual health interventions have increasingly been recognized for their potential to improve general health outcomes.
Religious and spiritual experiences from a neuroscientific ...
We will summarise the rapidly expanding knowledge about the neuroscience of meditation and prayer, near-death experiences, ecstatic epilepsy, psychedelic ...
Spiritual Flow: The Influence of Religious Experience on ...
Through many studies, the result has been that intrinsic religious orientation is related positively to well-being; extrinsic religiosity appears to be ...
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cannelevate.com.au
cannelevate.com.au/article/contemplative-prayer-meditative-religious-neurological-wellbeing/How Contemplative Prayer Affects Your Brain
Discover how contemplative prayer shapes brain function and wellbeing. Learn what neuroscience reveals about meditative religious practices.
Mystical-type experiences occasioned by psilocybin mediate ...
This report presents the 14-month follow-up and examines the relationship of the follow-up results to data obtained at screening and on drug session days.
Psychedelics, Mystical Experience, and Therapeutic Efficacy
12 studies of psychedelic therapy utilizing psilocybin, ayahuasca, or ketamine were analyzed for association between mystical experience and symptom reduction.
Predictors of psychedelic mystical experiences
A follow up study using a range of dosages reported that dosages of 20 mg/70 kg were associated with complete mystical experiences in 44.4% of ...
Meditation-related psychological adverse effects, ...
Overall, this review aims to provide a foundation for a more comprehensive and systematic understanding of MRPAEs and to inform approaches to advanced ...
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