Christian Care and Mental Health
A series of articles designed to help Christians understand the various components of mental health and to support those with mental health needs.
© February, 2007 by Rev. Daniel Krueger ~ author of “Gospel Therapy”
www.Gospeltherapy.com
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The Apostle Paul writes: “We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do” Romans 7:14-15. In dealing with depression and other mental health issues, what you want to do, and what you choose to do, are often at odds with each other. Unfortunately, we often fail to recognize this distinction and its impact on mental health.
In an experiment where people were placed into a sad or happy mood and then shown a series of slides which could be viewed at their own pace, happy people spent more time looking at happy scenes, whereas sad people spent more time looking at sad scenes. Another experiment had depressed and non-depressed students interact socially, frequently switching partners, and then rating how much they liked the other individual. The old proverb “misery loves company” turned out to be true. Depressed people preferred the company of other depressed people, whereas happy people preferred the company of other happy people.
In the classes I teach on depression and anxiety one activity is recording, for several weeks, what I refer to as UPPERS and DOWNERS. Uppers and Downers are not the things we want to do or don’t want to do. Uppers and Downers are determined by how we feel after doing a specific task. For instance, you may want to stay in bed all day because you are feeling depressed. After a particularly stressful day you may feel like sitting down and eating a bucket of strawberry ice cream. The question is, how do you feel after these activities? While these are choices you may want to make, they are also choices that are designed to make you feel even more negative about yourself, and tend to perpetuate depression.
Frequently people are not fully aware of the impact of their daily choices. I remember vividly the reaction of one class member who, on her list of downers (things that make you feel depressed after doing it), wrote: “Calling my Mother!” This woman’s mother happened to be very judgmental and negative. Shortly afterward I asked this same woman what was one of the first things she did when started to feel depressed. At first she gasped, then in a tone expressing amazement she uttered, “I call my Mother!” Prior to that moment she was oblivious to the connection between this particular choice and her daily battle with depression.
I believe it was Albert Einstein who defined insanity as “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Improving mental health involves a thorough examination of the daily choices we make and the discipline to make new choices. One positive choice that may impact your life, is starting your day out with Scripture and Prayer. Before you consider everything you think you must do, refresh yourself with all the things that God has promised to do for you in Christ, and a reminder that at the end of day, no matter where you have failed, you will still be perfect through Christ. It may be just the medicine you need to make you WANT to get out of bed!
