Spirituality refers to an individual’s way of finding meaning and contentment in life. It is not solely concerned with the individual’s religious belief. A person’s spirituality contributes to their sense of self-identity and individuality. Following a brain injury those affected may ask ‘big’ questions such as ’Why did this happen?’, ‘Why me?’, ‘Who am I now?’ Signs of spiritual distress may include a preoccupation with illness, grief, anger, fear, loss of hope, changes in or questioning of beliefs.
Those who previously had particular beliefs may experience a loss of faith and this may in turn result in a loss of one of their usual social support networks. Social networks may also be lost as a result of possible changes in the person’s cognition, communication, personality and behaviour following brain injury. Changes following brain injury affect the person’s self-identity and may make it difficult for the person to ‘fit’ back into their previous lifestyle. Maintaining previously established relationships and making new relationships can be difficult following a significant brain injury however this is extremely important as a source of support.