How did Jesus care for his mental health?

How did Jesus care for his mental health?

• He sought solitude. (Mark 6:29-32)
• He prayed. (Luke 5:16)
• He prioritized sleep. (Mark 4:37-39)
• He practiced gratitude. (John 6:11)
• He showed forgiveness. (Matthew 6:14)
• He knew the Word. (John 1:10)
• He sought support. (Matthew 26:36-38)
• He prayed. (Luke 5:16)

I continue to be a bit befuddled when I think back to how poorly the Christian community helped people with what was going on in their own head during the 80's, 90's and early 2000's. While I still wouldn't say we are good at it, I think the Christian community has come to see counseling as a more important part of the healing journey some people need to make. I am blessed to see that our society seems to have really shifted in this and is helping the whole person -- not just certain parts of that person. 

Jesus took care of himself. He rested. He prayed. He slept. He listened to what his body needed. But somehow, humans today are told things like: "No pain, no gain." They are told to "just push through it." Or, if they are a Christian and seek the wrong counsel, they are told that if they trust the Lord, that's all that they need. 

I have heard (or have said myself) or have felt someone imply the following "excuses" for why a Christian should not seek counseling.

• I need to just "trust God."
• God is in control.
• God's got this. 
• I just need to pray more.
• There must be sin in my life.
• I have the great counselor. Why would I need another person to counsel me?
  
• What's the point at looking into the past?
  
• I must have a lack of faith.
• I'm not good enough.
• What's the point?
  
• I don't have money to waste like non-Christians do.
  
• Why can't I just keep it all together?
  
• I just need to push through.
• If I get therapy, it's because I'm seeking something outside of God.
  
• If I'm really walking with God, I wouldn't need counseling.
  
• Therapy is for crazy people.
• What will people think?
• I have the Holy Spirit! Why would I need to talk to someone else?

Do you know that according to some studies, Christians are only half as likely to seek therapy as non-Christians. That in and of itself should tell you that the church is doing something majorly wrong when it comes to mental health. 

How many times over the 25 or so years I battled anxiety and depression did some well-meaning Christian quote something like this at me: 

“Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?  Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

. . . you of little faith?”

Don't I have faith? Am I listening to the Devil? Rebuke those thoughts! Very few people said to me, something like this: 

“You probably feel like you've tried everything spiritually. I hope you know that there is no shame in seeking some counseling/therapy in order to help you sort out what might be plaguing you?"

In the New Testament, Jesus healed people so many times and purposely dispelled the myth that anyone had sinned to cause the ailment. Why then, 2,000 years later, are we still acting like our mental health issues are a result of not having enough faith?

I am not saying that you canNOT pray your mental health away, but if I personally could have, I would have certainly accomplished that with all the prayers I uttered. I begged God. I felt willing to try anything. I actually reached out to two different counselors before I landed with the one I am with now. One of them was not very good and just "listened." It was my first time seeking support and so I had no idea what to expect. The other gave me a lot of tips and help for anxiety, but while I was able to use some of the tools, the anxiety and depression inside of me was due to MIS-WIRING in my brain! All the fighting against the patterns wasn't stopping the intense anxiety welling up inside me.

How do I know that my brain was mis-wired?

Because after just a few months of EMDR and working with Kim, the improvements inside of me are MONUMENTAL. I am on NO medicines for depression or anxiety after decades (on and off) of being unable to imagine my life without them. I am a changed person. I can feel it down to the core of who I am. (And, there is NO judgment if you need meds. By all means, do what you need to do to get through the life you are currently in.)

I struggle to understand why any Christian would avoid therapy and just say, "I'm giving it to God." Would you give Him your broken leg and not let a surgeon on Earth set the bone? I don't understand. But mental health continues to be something that we feel we should be able to power our way through.

If you are managing your mental health well and finding good strategies and able to cope, then by all means, keep striving in the way you are striving. But if you find yourself plagued by intense seasons of anxiety and depression ... PLEASE consider talking to someone. 

My life has been changed FOREVER, and I truly believe that nearly every single person in the WORLD could benefit from some mental health help from the right kind of therapist. Don't do this alone.

I won't ever try that again.