You Are Not Alone
This last Sunday I taught a lesson on mental health in church to the adults and youth. I know I only scratched the surface of such a broad topic. One of my goals was to bring awareness and a desire for people to learn more about mental health. Based on the positive feedback I received, it seemed like many people felt connected to the topic and wanted to learn more.
Another goal of mine was to help people realize they are not alone in their struggles with mental health issues. I felt like I needed something very powerful to achieve this goal. However, since our past society has attached negative stigma to mental health issues that still lingers, it was very unlikely that I would be able to get everyone to stand up and publicly mention a mental health challenge he or she is going through or has gone through.
So I did an anonymous online poll with the question: "What mental health challenge(s) do you currently struggle with or have you struggled with in the past?" I felt that an anonymous poll would allow people to share without fear of judgment.
I was shocked. Within the span of about 2 minutes, we received over 70 responses. Here are some. The larger the word appears, the more frequently it appeared in the responses:
Although it was heart-wrenching to see what people struggle with, I was also jumping for joy! This simple anonymous poll helped others open up in a safe way, which allowed everyone to see that people with mental health challenges are no longer a small minority!
This is probably typical no matter where you go today. Just imagine if you did a poll like this in your church meeting, book club, knitting group, painting class, political meeting, or any other group. How many responses do you think you would receive?
Here were some questions I wasn't able to ask during my lesson. The questions were intended to inform others about words, phrases, techniques, 0r strategies that have helped (or not helped) people during their mental health challenges. If you feel so inclined, post your thoughts here, send me a private message, or just answer the questions to yourself.
What personal actions have helped or not helped you during a mental health challenge?
and...
What actions by others were helpful or unhelpful to you during a mental health challenge?
Remember, nobody is exempt from hardships and challenges. For many people (and really, I mean many) the hardships and challenges will be related to mental health. Let's create a community of understanding, of thoughtfulness, of compassion, and of helpfulness.
Joy is possible.
Love ❤️, Jen
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