When you and I connect with one another, we empower each other to live well in spite of any possible daily battles with our disorder. Individually, no one of us has all the answers. But, together we have solutions for one another. Corporately we have answers for one another as we encourage each other and share what “works” for us as individuals in living well in spite of our bipolar disorder.
It is a paradox that strength comes when we are ready to admit that we are unable to do save things alone. It does not make us weak it makes us smart.
In this edition of Fresh Hope for Mental Health, a son and mother share their compelling joining of finding hope in the midst of the hopelessness that followed a manic episode. Lee shares his story of the first glimmer of hope that he had in the midst of severe depression. It was when he heard Pastor Brad’s story that Lee for the first time had hope.
In the book, Guise clarifies the difference between motivation and self-will. He says that motivation is short-lived, and to make real change you have to begin doing small things that can be done via pure self-will, and not depend on motivation to do it.
Relationships can be difficult because of shame-based thinking. Shame can lock you into cognitive distortions that cause difficulties in marriage, parenting, work relationships and friendships. Shame itself can make it way into your soul, warping how you see everything in life. Grace, on the other hand, frees one to be in relationships with others and to enjoy those relationships even when there is conflict!
“I don’t know about you, but I think I’ve spent way too much of life changing due to pain and brokenness. For me, it is time to change for other reasons like enlightenment or because I want to change.”
In this edition, Pastor Brad talks with Perry Root, Sr. about experiencing grief or depression during Christmastime. Perry is an M.S.W. student doing his practicum with Fresh Hope and is also a fulltime member of the Community of Grace staff. He shares some insights as to experiencing grief or depression at this time of the year.
According to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention currently 44, 965 people die by suicide every year or 123 people per day. Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States. Since, suicidal ideation increases the likelihood of attempts, (according to the same article) it begs the argument for making ideation a critical point of detection and prevention.
“Therefore, we will not fear though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, and the mountains quake with their surging.” (Psalms 46:2)
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