The Depressed Christian
What is wrong with me? That is the question I continued to ask myself throughout my high school years. I wasn’t aware of all of the symptoms that went into depression or if I was even depressed at all. I know that despair was the deepest feeling that I possessed regularly. The feeling never took a break, and I never got a break from it until it was gone. According to the American Psychological Association (2023) depression is a disorder that causes egregious despair for extended amounts of time, that can inhibit how an individual operates on a daily basis. Eventually, I learned how to navigate my life with depression. I still made great grades, I still managed to take as many AP classes as I wanted to, I still got into all of the universities I wanted to go to, but still l was in despair daily. As a christian, it never made sense to me that I was potentially depressed. For a long time, I equated depression with a lack of faith. Because of this I never addressed my feelings to the Lord with the intention of him fixing it. I thought it was my circumstance to change. Before I continue I think it’s important to emphasize that depression is a mood disorder. The American Psychiatric Association views depression as a serious medical illness.
“Despite the negative views and opinions held by many mental health professionals, research examining religion, spirituality, and health has been rapidly expanding—and most of it is occurring outside the field of psychiatry. This research is being published in journals from a wide range of disciplines, including those in medicine, nursing, physical and occupational therapy, social work, public health, sociology, psychology, religion, spirituality, pastoral care, chaplain, population studies, and even in economics and law journals. Most of these disciplines do not readily communicate with each another, and their journal audiences seldom overlap. The result is a massive research literature that is scattered throughout the medical, social, and behavioral sciences.”
