Finding Spirituality Through Occupation

I thought the concept regarding that occupations have the ability to enrich one’s spirituality and vice versa was interesting because I’d never really thought of it to be a two-way street per say. I always thought of occupations to be enriching, but not that my own spirituality could enrich the occupations themselves but it makes sense! I would say that there are definitely certain occupations I have participated in that enrich my spirituality. When I was younger, it was gymnastics and then after I was done with that, I tried yoga and I realized I felt a very different kind of spiritual-ness and I really enjoyed that. I’ve been playing the guitar since I was 12, so that is something that enriches me spiritually and because of my great love for music I feel that my spirituality enriches it as well. I am not to a point where I can say aerial yoga enriches my soul just yet. However, I can feel that each time I do it I come closer to that feeling. During my last class, one of the poses we did is called “the womb” or “the fig” but it was so amazing and it was in that moment that I felt a bit more connected in  this new occupation. It was a wonderful feeling!

The OTPF practice framework defines spirituality as “the aspect of humanity that refers to the way individuals seek and express meaning and purpose and the way they experience their connectedness to the moment, to self, to others, to nature, and to the significant or sacred.” I really like this definition because I think it defines spirituality really well. It encompasses a broad variety of ways in which one may feel a sense of connectedness and explains how this ultimate feeling of connectedness occurs; through meaning and purpose.

Spirituality is placed under client factors within the framework, which I feel is an appropriate location as that is where beliefs and values can be found, as well. These are two things that I think play a big role in defining one’s sense of spirituality.

I think it’s important that spirituality be recognized within the profession of occupational therapy for a number of reasons. The fact that it’s something that often comes through the engagement of certain occupations and is seen as important for one’s well-being is clear that it belongs within our framework. I certainly think the reason people may feel otherwise is due to the nature of spirituality as it is something very subjective and hard to address. I think humans often avoid things we have a difficult time comprehending or understanding, and spirituality is definitely something that fits within that category. However, that doesn’t mean it’s something that shouldn’t be addressed or even avoided. I believe it’s an important part of our experience as humans and thus should be embraced as a part of our profession!