Depression Lies by Rick Qualls

By: Rick Qualls

Depression lies.  It takes our thoughts and twists them until they become a chain that binds us. Distorted thinking keeps us from getting the help we need.

One lie of depression is:  I will never get well.  This lie locks us into a sense of hopelessness.  Other thoughts then follow:  it won’t do any good to seek help and there is nothing I can do to get better.

The truth is that you can get well.  There is help for depression.  There are things you can do to manage your depression.  

Here are some Bible verses that speak to this very issue.  The psalmist who is in a pit of destruction writes:  “I waited patiently for the LORD; he inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the LORD. “      Psalms 40:1-3

A second lie is that we think we must get better on our own.  Our culture highly values individual independence.  Too often, seeking help is seen as a sign of weakness.

The truth is that we need help for managing depressive illness.  It takes strength to reach out to others, such as your doctors, therapists, friends,  and others.  Successful people, regardless of their venue, build a team.   

God created each of us different from one another, each with different strengths and weaknesses.  These differences are not given to divide us but rather to serve one another.  You need others, they need you. 

The Bible uses the imagery of a body to describe our relationships with one another.  “If they were all one part, where would the body be?  As it is there are many parts,but one body.  The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you’. And the head cannot say to dthe feet, “I don’t need you!” 1 Cor 19-21.

A third lie is that we are weak if we take medication.  Many resist taking medications for mental illnesses.  

The truth is we take insulin for diabetes.  We take antibiotics for infections.  Depression is an illness.  It effects us mentally by twisting our thoughts, our mood becomes low, physically we don’t process as quickly, bodily functions slow down.  There is evidence that regardless of the source of depression, brain chemistry is changed, as are neural pathways. 

Medication is a gift God has given us through scientific research.  With other diseases we seek the best treatment.  When my doctor has prescribed medication I have taken it and found it to be helpful.  I would encourage you to consider that as a possibility if your doctor and counselors recommend it.  

  “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.”  Psalms 147:3