JOURNAL ARTICLE REVIEW: A THEOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DEFENSE OF SELF-FORGIVENESS 2
Journal Article Review of Forgiveness Therapy: A Clinical Intervention for Chronic Disease
Summary
Forgiveness Therapy: A Clinical Intervention for Chronic Disease discusses forgiveness
therapy by identifying chronic disease insights, forgiveness in health settings, and the physiology
of forgiveness. Chronic illnesses are the leading causes of disability and death in the United
States and recent research found that counseling therapy interventions offer insights for the
management and treatment of these diseases (Elliot, 2010). Chronic diseases can vary from
obesity, addiction, and additional mental health diagnoses. Therefore, preventive health care is
imperative to reduce suffering accompanied by these conditions (Elliot, 2010). Research and
studies such as ACES documented there is an evident connection between early childhood
adversity and chronic illnesses. Table 1 in this article identifies examples of adversity such as
recurrent physical, emotional, and sexual abuse. In addition, an adolescent living in a household
where someone is in prison, domestic violence, alcoholic or drug use, mentally ill, or the loss of
a parent can result in physical and psychological difficulties in adulthood (Elliot, 2010). As a
result, these difficulties can shorten their life expectancy.
Psychological literature has recognized forgiveness as the desired goal in a therapeutic
setting. “A separate area of health research is investigating forgiveness interventions in patient
care” (Elliot, 2010). Forgiveness therapy is also known as an impactful method of breaking
cycles that involve aggressive or negative emotions. Wade et al state that, in order for
forgiveness to be accomplished in a clinical setting the client must the negative feelings and
increase positive reactions and emotions (2008). These two stages are labeled as decisional and
emotional forgiveness. Forgiveness treatment is noted as a paradoxical treatment in which the
individual lets go of the thoughts of revenge, anger, or hatred, and in turn, they are healed
JOURNAL ARTICLE REVIEW: A THEOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DEFENSE OF SELF-FORGIVENESS 3
(Borris, 2003). In addition, to letting go of thoughts and feelings individuals must increase self-
awareness in therapy to reach inner peace. Lastly, recent studies in forgiveness interventions
notate physiologic changes within emotional forgiveness. This includes broader health benefits
like hormone patterns, peripheral physiologic measures, and brain function (Elliot, 2010).
Interact
I chose to analyze this topic for personal and academic reasons. I struggle with
forgiveness and want to gain a deeper understanding of getting to a solution. First, I never knew
how impactful forgiveness could have on your physical health. I knew firsthand the impact that
holding on to pain or disappointment could have, but I did not know the contribution it has on
your physical health. Growing up I was always taught it’s unhealthy to hold on to negative
emotions or a grudge, but I struggle with the concept of letting go. Although I did not experience
any of the adversity listed in the article, I feel that my relationship with my father has played a
huge role in my ability to trust others. I’m not sure if the fear of being let down to the point that I
never accept help or ask for help is considered a mental health diagnosis, but this has left a major
impact on how I interact with others.
I remember a particular event that took place around the age of nine. My dad had
convinced me to participate in track. At first, I was apprehensive as I was new to the sport but as
he predicted I excelled. I placed high enough to make it to regionals. There was one catch, I had
to be at the school to make the road trip by 8:00 a.m. I knew my dad would be so proud of me
that making it to the school that Saturday morning would be a breeze. The night before the trip I
had a hard time sleeping out of fear of oversleeping (I still have this problem present day).
Nervously, I woke up two hours in advance and began to get dressed. I called my dad on the
JOURNAL ARTICLE REVIEW: A THEOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DEFENSE OF SELF-FORGIVENESS 4
phone to tell him I was ready. My mom and dad haven’t been together since I was one, so I only
had one parent in the household. My dad answered the phone and said he was on his way. I
grabbed my bag and waited outside on the porch. Then 8:00 a.m. passed and he never showed
up. At this time, I had never left my hometown and was really looking forward to experiencing
something new. I was devastated. Since then, my dad has always had a hard time keeping his
word, and present day I notice that there’s this huge emotional effect on my mental health when
a man I love does not keep his word. As a result, I will never ask them for anything, and I hold
on to each moment they don’t keep their word. It wasn’t till therapy and self-awareness I realized
this about myself. I had been battling forgiveness for the last twenty years and had no tangible
clue.
Reading this article shed light on some common causes of chronic illness and the
forgiveness interventions used to create a healthier individual. I found the two main steps to be
crucial and would love to read more of Enright and Fitzgibbons’ research on decisional and
emotional forgiveness. I wonder how the two different outcomes and how impactful decisional
forgiveness are over a long period. While reading about this concept a part of scripture comes to
mind, Ephesians 4:31-32 states “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander,
along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each
other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” This scripture directly addresses emotional forgiveness
as it is getting rid of anger, hate, bitter, and resentful emotions and in turn creates an opportunity
for healing (Enright & Fitzgibbons, 2000). This scripture calls upon us to not only let go of
negative emotions but to be more like Christ as he forgave us.
Apply
JOURNAL ARTICLE REVIEW: A THEOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DEFENSE OF SELF-FORGIVENESS 5
Sylvia Brown, a 33-year-old single woman selected me to be her counselor. She told me
she was referred to me by a member of her church and heard great things about therapy. I
currently work in a center that specializes in mental health counseling for women. Sylvia has
been struggling with depression and maintaining emotional balance. She would describe herself
as moody or having a temper. She has recently connected back with her father for the last year
after not seeing him for the last twenty years. She is visibly overweight and can barely manage to
get out of bed every day unless it is for church. Her church has asked her to be a mentor for
young girls, but she is feeling inadequate as she has been struggling with her own mental health
and healing broken relationships. She questions if she would be a good mentor in her current
state and would like to get to the root of her depression.
Sylvia agrees to meet with me in my office and begin to fill out her intake and consent
forms. In order to learn more about Sylvia’s childhood, I had her complete an inventory form
that would give me information on whether she experienced adversity in early childhood. This is
based on the findings in the adverse childhood experiences program research (Felitti, 1998).
After reviewing her inventory form, I asked her could identify when she noticed she was feeling
depressed. She mentioned that she felt like she was doing good and making positive progress in
church for the last three years. She said she started feeling depressed and emotionally unbalanced
when her dad started calling her. He has been trying harder and harder the last year to get back
into her life. On her inventory form, she checked the box for living in a home with a drug user.
After reviewing this journal article on forgiveness therapy, I began to explain to her that
oftentimes when a young child experiences adversity they have mental health challenges as
adults (Feeliti, 1998). I explained to her that growing up with her father being an addict could
influence her mental health as an adult. Additionally, adversity that occurs at a developmentally
JOURNAL ARTICLE REVIEW: A THEOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DEFENSE OF SELF-FORGIVENESS 6
sensitive time can be imprinted in the person’s brain (Elliot, 2017). She recognizes that her dad
calling her triggers memories from her childhood and instantly affects her mood. She
acknowledges that she has not forgiven him for things in her life. I recommended forgiveness
therapy and explained the two types of forgiveness. First, decisional forgiveness is when a
therapist works with the client to make a decision to forgive while emotional forgiveness is
forgiveness that includes changes in emotion and motivation toward the offender (Enright and
Fitzgibbons 2000). She understands that she needs to forgive her father and would like to attend
therapy to focus on emotional forgiveness to accomplish Enright’s four phases (Enright and
Fitzgibbons 2000).
JOURNAL ARTICLE REVIEW: A THEOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DEFENSE OF SELF-FORGIVENESS 7
References
Borris, E. R. (2003). The healing power of forgiveness. Washington, DC: Peace I
Elliott, B. A. (2011). Forgiveness Therapy: A Clinical Intervention for Chronic Disease.FJournal of
Religion and Health,F50(2), 240–247. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41349784
Enright, R. D., & Fitzgibbons, R. P. (2000). Helping clients forgive: An empirical guide for
resolving anger and restoring hope. Washington, DC: American Psychological
Association.
Felitti, V. (1998). Relationship of childhood abuse and household dysfunction to many of the
leading causes of death in adults: The adverse childhood experiences (ACES) study.
American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 14(4), 245-258
Wade, N. G., Johnson, С. V., & Meyer, J. E. (2008). Understanding concerns about interventions
to promote forgiveness: A review of the literature. Psychotherapy: Theory, Research,
Practice, Training, 45{1), 88-102.
JOURNAL ARTICLE REVIEW: A THEOLOGICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DEFENSE OF SELF-FORGIVENESS 8
References
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