The need for spiritual support in misinterpretation of psychological ilnesses and stigmatization as a lack of belief

The aims of this study are to examine, the extent to which religious people with illness have receieved or are receiving psychological support, predict their attitudes towards receiving psychological support, determine the interaction between religious beliefs and practices and psychological illness, determine the levels of social stigma and internalized stigma in the process of receiving psychological support, and to give advice and suggestions on how to apply spiritual counseling and guidance services for the problems faced by individuals who are stigmatized during the process of receiving psychological support. In this study which was carried out in qualitative method, people with different psychological ilnesses were included in the study group using snowball and maximum diversity sampling from purposeful sampling methods. Using the criterion sampling method, the patients were provided with psychological support for at least two months. In this context, data were collected through interviews conducted with the working group using semi-structured interview. Accordingly, the sample of the study consisted of 20 patients, one of them male, with depression, bipolar disorder, panic attack, anxiety disorder and personality disorder. The data were interpreted by using content analysis. As a result of the research it was determined, stigmatization of psychological illnesses as a lack of belief by one's social environment causes internal stigmatization in patients. In addition to receiving medical treatment, they also tried to identify and correct the deficiencies in patient's religious practices. It was also determined that there is the need for spiritual support for both patients and their relatives about the right perception and treatment of diseases. In line with the findings obtained, opinions and suggestions were presented for MDR experts and MDR applications. Key Words: Psychology of Religion, Psychological Support, Internalized Stigma, Social Stigma, Lack of Belief, Spiritual Counseling and Guidance.