Your Mental Health Rights: How They Protect and Support Your Recovery
Your Rights to Religious Freedom and Practice

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Your Mental Health Rights: How They Protect and Support Your Recovery
Your Rights to Religious Freedom and Practice

You have a right to religious freedom and practice. This right says that you can believe what you want about religion, and express what you believe how you want, like by praying, or by going to a church or temple or synagogue. This right asks other people to respect your beliefs, and to respect how you want to express what you believe.

Your Right To Believe Whatever You Want About Religion and Spirituality

It is your right to believe whatever you want about religion and spirituality. This right can support your recovery because what you believe can:

• give you hope;
• give you peace or comfort;
• help you understand, and help you be understanding;
• help you get through tough times;
• help you feel strong; and
• always be there for you, even if no one or nothing else is there for you.

Use your rights. Think about what you believe. Do not let anyone make you feel bad about what you believe. Do not let anyone force you into believing in anything you don't want to believe in.

Other people should help you use your rights. Other people:

• should not make you feel bad about what you believe; and
• should not try to force you to believe in something you don't want to believe in.

Your Right To Practice the Religion or Kind of Spirituality You Choose, or not to Practice Any Religion or Spirituality at All

It is your right to practice the religion or kind of spirituality you choose, or not to practice any religion or spirituality at all. If you practice your religion or spirituality, you have to do it in a way that does not take away the rights of other people. This right can support your recovery because practicing what you believe:

• protects your freedom and independence;
• can connect you to the rest of your world;
• can let you be with people who believe the same things that you do; and
• with other people who believe the same things can give you support.

Use your rights. Practice your religion or spirituality, if you want. Know that practicing religion on spirituality can include doing things like:

• praying;
• meditating;
• singing religious or spiritual songs; and
• reading religious or spiritual books, magazines or papers, like the Qur'an, the Talmud, the Bible, the I Ching or other books, magazines or papers.

If you want to go somewhere to practice your religion or spirituality, but you can't get there on your own, ask for help getting there. Ask for help if you want to read a religious or spiritual book, magazine or paper, but can't get one on your own.

Other people should help you use your rights. Other people should not keep you from practicing your religion or spirituality if you are doing it in a way that does not take away the rights of other people. No one should make you feel bad about how you are practicing your religion or spirituality.

Your Right To Not Have to do Anything Religious or Spiritual That You Don't Want to Do

It is your right to not have to do anything religious or spiritual that you don't want to do. This right can support your recovery because not having to do religious or spiritual activities that you do not want to do protects your freedom and independence.

Use your rights. Do not do anything religious or spiritual that you do not want to do.

Other people should help you use your rights. Other people are not allowed to force you to do anything religious or spiritual that you do not want to do. That means that other people are not allowed to force you:

• to go to church, temple, mosque or other religious places;
• to pray;
• to eat food that you don't want to eat because it is against your religious or spiritual beliefs; and
• to do other religious or spiritual things that you do not want to do.

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