Words we Use Talking about Mental Illness

I've been watching some discussions about mental illness take place on Facebook recently. I've been encouraged by the courage of many in talking about their own struggles with mental illness. And I've been shocked at some of the responses they've received - many of them the very reason why this isn't talked about in the church often enough.

As someone who has been there myself and has walked alongside others in their struggle, I know it's difficult to talk about openly. For all the ground we've gained, there is still a lot of stigma around mental illness. And, sadly, that stigma often seems greater in the church.

To some degree I understand. If you've never dealt with mental illness yourself, it can be hard to understand. I didn't really understand it until I faced it myself. Then I was able to more easily alongside others who were struggling, with the love and grace they needed.

I think the part of the online discussions I've been struggling with the most is the implication that a person with mental illness would be cured if they just had more faith and prayed more. Can those things help someone struggling with mental illness? Absolutely. But to imply (and sometimes, out-right state) that's all they need is destructive.

Some of the people I know who had the greatest faith and the most intimate prayer lives are also those who are in the midst of the some of the deepest battles with mental illness. Telling someone they need to have more faith and pray more to be cured does nothing more than make light of a legitimate struggle.

In the case of any other kind of illness we would definitely pray for God to heal the person, but we would also encourage the person to see appropriate medical help. Why do we treat mental illness any differently?

I guess the thing I'm looking for in all of these discussions I've seen, that often seems to be missing, is the love and care for one another that Scripture teaches. Yes, there are times when we need to speak some hard truth to each other, but that should never come at the expense of loving and caring for one another. It should be part of it.

I would say that even when we're participating in discussions on social media of any kind, maybe even especially there, we need to be careful not to use our words in the destructive way I've been seeing them used lately. When someone admits to a struggle with mental illness, we need to respond with care and love. Being supportive of their struggle and their journey back to health.

What if, instead of telling people what they should do when they admit a struggle with mental illness, we listened? And we cared? And we offered love and support?

God's Hands

Cold, dark, unresponsive

A lifeless heart weighed down

By life’s burdens crushed beneath

The heaviness of struggle

Waiting for rescue and release

Waiting to be set free

How long must I wait?

How long will this go on?

Will this weight be lifted?

Will I walk again?

Or, is this my new home,

My new way of living life?

Warmth, light, a hand reaching

Taking my lifeless heart

In gentle, loving hands

Hands that lift the crushing weight

Hands that gather the pieces

To tenderly rebuild, bring life

A beautiful, new creation

Shining in His glorious light

His brilliant Masterpiece

Restored to the fullness of it all

The joy of all He designed me for

And He delights to gift to me

Topics we Don't Often Discuss

There are things in life that we don't often discuss with others. Topics that we just don't see as being something we talk about with others.

I've realized recently that when you're single, the list of these topics seems to be longer. Most decisions you make as a single person, only have input from others if you intentionally ask for it, as there is no one else living in the direct results of those decisions. And it's easy to get in the habit of just making them yourself.

I experienced this recently in picking a topic for a Bible study. I can't say what the rest of the group thought, but I know I was quite indifferent to the topic. I wasn't opposed to it, but it didn't really catch my interest either.

It took me a while to figure out why. It was a topic that I don't generally talk about with others. My decisions in this area have little to no impact on other people and its been that way for almost 10 years. As a single person, I've just made the decisions as best I can in line with God's Word and moved on. So, the idea of studying it and discussing it with a group just didn't connect and seemed a bit strange to me.

But, I've also realized that this can easily become a dangerous thing. If there's an area of life that's always kept completely private from other people, it becomes an area where the enemy can easily get us off track. We have no one challenging us on it and helping us see when we're getting off track.

There are other areas where I've been far more intentional about building in accountability and community. But this was an area where I'd never before considered the need for it and that's probably more dangerous than anything.

No matter our life circumstances, we weren't made to walk the Christian life alone. We need each other. And in same areas, especially those we don't normally talk about, we need to be intentional about creating that community where we can talk about them.