Can spirituality bring the soul back to mental healthcare?

In Episode 3 of Healing People, Not Patients, Shelley Karrel, discusses integrating spirituality into mental health practice. Drawing from her doctoral research and 20 years of Mussar practice, she explores barriers clinicians face—lack of training, fear of boundaries, and ethical concerns—and how Mussar’s focus on character traits like humility and patience can create meaningful patient connections. Shelley offers practical ways to see patients as “holy souls,” fostering healing through curiosity and compassion.

Top 3 Takeaways:

• Barriers to Spirituality: Clinicians often lack training and personal spiritual awareness, fearing ethical or competency issues when addressing patients’ spiritual needs.
• Mussar in Practice: The Jewish practice of Mussar helps clinicians balance traits like humility and patience, transforming interactions by fostering curiosity over judgment.
• Healing Through Connection: Seeing patients as “holy souls” encourages clinicians to build authentic relationships, prioritizing patients’ values and meaning over technical fixes.

About the Guest:

Shelley Karrel is a registered clinical counselor in Vancouver, BC, with a Master’s in Counseling from City University of Seattle and a PhD candidate at Yorkville University, researching barriers to integrating spirituality in psychotherapy. With 30 years of counseling experience and 20 years practicing Mussar, she helps clients balance character traits to align with their soul’s purpose.

🔗 Connect with Shelley Karrel:

🌐 Website: Karrelcounselling.com

📘 Blog: “Your Spiritual Curriculum is Calling” on Karrelcounselling.com

📚 Recommended Reading: Everyday Holiness and With Heart in Mind by Alan Morinis

Healing People, Not Patients explores ways to enhance medical practice by infusing it with compassion, humanity, and a deeper sense of purpose, aiming to help healthcare professionals rediscover the "soul" of their work. Framed around the four questions of the Passover Seder, it probes how to transform medicine for the better, promoting an empathetic and supportive approach that empowers patients to create meaningful, sober lives, while drawing on Jewish teachings about community and friendship.

"Our theme song, "Room for the Soul," is available on Bandcamp at https://jonathanweinkle.bandcamp.com/track/room-for-the-soul."

Dr. Jonathan Weinkle is an internist and pediatrician who practices primary care at a community health center in Pittsburgh. He strives to be a "nice Jewish doctor" focused on patient-centered healthcare, emphasizing effective communication and holistic well-being.

He teaches the courses, “Death and the Healthcare Professions” and “Healing and Humanity” at the University of Pittsburgh, authored the books Healing People, Not Patients and Illness to Exodus, and runs ‘Healers Who Listen’, where he blogs on healing and Jewish tradition. Once an aspiring rabbi, he now integrates faith and medicine to support other physicians and his own patients.

🌐 Website: healerswholisten.com

🔗 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jonathan-weinkle-3440032a

📸 Instagram: @HealersWhoListen

📘 Facebook: @JonathanWeinkle

The Healing People, Not Patients Podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute medical, legal, or professional advice. Always consult qualified professionals regarding your personal or organizational decisions.