Article Overview
By Tegan Brindley, LMHC, LMFTA
For many people, faith and mental health feel like competing forces—but they don’t have to be. Licensed therapist and former youth pastor Tegan Brindley shares how integrating spirituality with evidence-based therapy creates a more complete path to healing, especially for those who’ve been told to “just pray more” or felt dismissed by their church community.
Since becoming a licensed therapist, I have been surprised by how much religious conversation and spiritual experiences show up in the counseling room. Whether it’s holding space for pain, sadness, joy, or confusion, connecting with someone in a way that embraces their most personal experiences, beliefs and emotions is sacred and spiritual.
For 12 years I served as a youth and young adults pastor in the Christian church with the hope that establishing brave spaces for young people to explore their spirituality would create long-term positive outcomes in their life.
However, during my pastoral career, I started to feel limited in the ways I was able to help my students on their spiritual journey. What was missing for me was the church’s inability to connect the abstract theological principles of God and faith with the reality of human biology.
We’re Not Just Spiritual Beings
Humans have a biological wiring that develops in tandem with their lived experiences. The human brain is extremely adaptive and protective and will structurally change, if needed, to survive.
The church saw spiritual growth in a more linear fashion, ignoring the real-world impact of life’s events on human behavior. The messages and teachings that I often heard from the pulpit rarely, if ever, acknowledged that we are not starting our spiritual journeys on an equal playing field.
Rather, we are showing up at a given time with a mind, body and spirit that has been adapting to the challenges that life throws our way.
For some people, these adaptations are subtle, even helpful, and do not create barriers to connecting their beliefs with their behaviors. For others, especially those with adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and a history of trauma, the connection between beliefs and behaviors, brain and body, are much more complicated.
This is where I believe the intersection of spirituality and clinical counseling can be a force of healing and growth. When it’s recognized that the two aren’t mutually exclusive, and they both can be acknowledged equally.
If you’ve felt torn between your faith and your mental health, you’re not alone. Schedule a consultation with Tegan to explore how both can be honored in your healing journey.
When “Let Go and Let God” Becomes a Barrier
Let’s look into one example of how this might play out for someone seeking connection to a higher power and struggling to get out of cycles and patterns that are harmful.
The phrase “Let go and let God” is a phrase that I have heard expressed a lot in Christian culture. The sentiment behind this expression is that God is capable and powerful when humans are not.
For some, this phrase—which is not actually found anywhere in the Biblical scriptures—unintentionally communicates that we can be passive in our healing journey. It implies that we don’t have to work so hard for desired outcomes if we believe in a God that has secured victory, blessings and goodness in our lives.
It points to the idea that if we just give “it” to God, there is no need to look introspectively and do the hard work to reflect on deeper questions like why or how I got here.
Many of our clients, both religious and not, find themselves in deep-rooted patterns and behaviors they wish they could stop. They are stuck in toxic cycles and can’t understand why they can’t just let something go or do something differently.
For clients with strong religious beliefs, through hard work in the counseling process they come to understand the answer is not just to have more faith and trust in God. In fact, some of the most faithful believers struggle significantly in toxic cycles.
They learn that pure willpower and desire fall short when the amygdala—the part of the brain that signals when danger or threat is near—is overactive. When our bodies are being stimulated by perceived threats all the time, the secretion of cortisol leads to toxic stress that over time can physically alter our brain’s ability to think critically and rationally.
It is unfair to assume that for all people, spiritual strength can overcome biology. What’s more productive is a holistic approach where the focus is on both.
You’re Not Passive in Your Own Healing
Healing and spiritual growth is a highly personal process that requires deep introspection and individual insight. We are not passive participants in our own healing. Rather, many spiritual traditions invite us to be co-creators of our healing process—partnering with the divine in both external and internal development.
What I have witnessed as a counselor is that whether a person is spiritual, religious, agnostic or “other,” when we can name and make sense of why certain patterns of beliefs and behaviors are happening, without judgment, a path to healing begins to emerge.
A Partnership That Changes Lives
Spirituality and religion, and therapy and counseling share a kinship that have the power to impact lives in a way that spirituality alone cannot. The pairing of these things can enhance joy and beauty, improve coping skills and enrich relationships.
At Renewed Stories, we understand that spirituality coupled with the realities of biology requires an approach that respects each of these elements and heightens understanding of both.
We serve clients throughout Spokane and Eastern Washington who are navigating the complex intersection of faith and mental health—whether you’re working through religious trauma, trying to reconcile your beliefs with your experiences, or simply looking for a therapist who won’t dismiss the spiritual dimensions of your life.
Who This Approach Serves
Our faith-integrated therapy is especially meaningful for:
- People who’ve experienced “church hurt” but still value spirituality
- Christians who’ve been told to “just pray more” about their mental health struggles
- Those deconstructing their faith and needing support through that process
- Spiritual clients whose previous therapists dismissed their religious beliefs
- Anyone who’s felt they had to choose between honoring their faith and getting real help
- You deserve a therapist who sees all of you—your faith, your doubts, your trauma, your hope. In our Spokane practice, that’s exactly what we offer.
Ready to explore faith-integrated therapy? Learn more about working with Tegan or schedule your first session.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to be Christian to work with you? Not at all. While my background is in Christian ministry, I welcome clients of all faith traditions—or no faith tradition at all. I meet you where you are.
What if I’m questioning my faith? Many of our clients are in seasons of doubt or deconstruction. This is a safe space to explore those questions without pressure or judgment.
Is this the same as pastoral counseling? No. I’m a licensed professional counselor who uses evidence-based clinical approaches. I can address mental health concerns that fall outside the scope of pastoral care, while still honoring your spiritual life.
Will you push your beliefs on me? Never. My role is to support your healing, not to evangelize or convince you of anything. Your spiritual journey is yours alone.
Related Resources
Tegan’s full therapist profile
Getting started at Renewed Stories
Serving Spokane, Washington: At Renewed Stories Counseling, we’re honored to offer mental health support that honors your whole person—mind, body, and spirit.
