Values, Meanings, Hermeneutics and Mental Health

Abstract

A patient with neuropsychiatric symptoms was presented. The relevance of hermeneutics to the explanation and understanding of her illness experience and expression was highlighted. Her illness narrative was reviewed as a multi-layered discourse, and the clinical outcome through this hermeneutic analysis and intervention was reported. The complex interplay between values culture and meaning in the experience and expression of mental illness was summarized, demonstrating how hermeneutics facilitates values-based practice (VBP) to promote mental health and well-being.