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Surviving Depression
- Mar 14, 2009 at 7:46 PM
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- Comments (3) Total Views (96) Everyone can see this journal post.
"Those who trust in man....will be like a bush in a dry and empty land. They will not enjoy success when it comes. They will live in dry places in the desert. It is a land of salt where no one else lives. But I will bless any man who trusts in me. I will show my favor to the one who depends on me. He will be like a tree that is planted near water. It sends out its roots beside a stream. It is not afraid when heat comes. Its leaves are always green. It does not worry when there is no rain. It always bears fruit." (Jeremiah 17:5-8, NIV)
"When our hope is in God and our life is in His care, we are sustained when we otherwise would be devasted." (Recovery Bible pg 955)
I don't know how God does the sustaining, I only know it is true in my life. Just when I think I have lost all hope and am going to run dry, God fills me up again with hope and encouragement and strength, and He washes away my despair. I have only to come to Him in prayer and read His Word to find the comfort and strength I need.
There have been times though that it seemed God's promises fell flat in my life, and I could not receive comfort from them. I did not understand why. Now I have come to realize that the pain of clinical depression (defined as feelings of worthlessness and hopelessness that last longer than two weeks) sometimes brings a darkness that threatens to squeeze the life out of me. It is during those times that I could not receive comfort from anyone or anything. After beginning to take antidepressant medication, I slowly began to feel better again and God's promises could once again encourage me. If you find yourself in a similar place surrounded by darkness, do not despair. Hang on to the hope that next week might be better and that God's promises are still true for you. Do not be afraid or ashamed to take medication if you need to. Clinical depression is like any other chronic illness. If you had diabetes, you would take insulin. If you have depression, you might receive help through antidepressants. It might take 3-6 weeks before you begin to feel better, and you might have to try a few different medications before finding the one that works best for you. But don't give up. Keep hanging on to the hope that what God says is true even if you cannot feel it.
"The water I give...becomes a fresh bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life." (John 4:14)
"When our hope is in God and our life is in His care, we are sustained when we otherwise would be devasted." (Recovery Bible pg 955)
I don't know how God does the sustaining, I only know it is true in my life. Just when I think I have lost all hope and am going to run dry, God fills me up again with hope and encouragement and strength, and He washes away my despair. I have only to come to Him in prayer and read His Word to find the comfort and strength I need.
There have been times though that it seemed God's promises fell flat in my life, and I could not receive comfort from them. I did not understand why. Now I have come to realize that the pain of clinical depression (defined as feelings of worthlessness and hopelessness that last longer than two weeks) sometimes brings a darkness that threatens to squeeze the life out of me. It is during those times that I could not receive comfort from anyone or anything. After beginning to take antidepressant medication, I slowly began to feel better again and God's promises could once again encourage me. If you find yourself in a similar place surrounded by darkness, do not despair. Hang on to the hope that next week might be better and that God's promises are still true for you. Do not be afraid or ashamed to take medication if you need to. Clinical depression is like any other chronic illness. If you had diabetes, you would take insulin. If you have depression, you might receive help through antidepressants. It might take 3-6 weeks before you begin to feel better, and you might have to try a few different medications before finding the one that works best for you. But don't give up. Keep hanging on to the hope that what God says is true even if you cannot feel it.
"The water I give...becomes a fresh bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life." (John 4:14)
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Amen. too often the church is so quick to preach against medication and say "you just need to pray harder". well, what those church members do not know is that we are praying without ceasing for real, but our condition does not subside. there is no shame nor sin in medication.
- alli286
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