Two posts in one week?!?!? You guys are so lucky.
I know this is a blog primarily about my son, but I love to write and often am able to sort through my thoughts when I can put pen to paper (or fingers to keys in this case).
Most of you know that I am a mental health counselor at a Christian college. Today marks the last day of my first school year here and I've had some time to reflect on some of the stuff I've learned. One of the things that came up more than once this year was this statement:
"I was hesitant to come to counseling because I thought that if I just prayed enough I would start to feel better."
I've also had students flat out ask:
"As a Christian, how do you explain/see mental illness?"
So, I wanted to share with my vast readership my thoughts on this.
Let me give you some background (bear with me)...
Yes, I am a Christian. I grew up in a Christian home and went to a Christian college (the very one I work at now). I chose at a young age to follow Christ and through the trial of losing my mom realized just how important it is to store my hope in Him. It was through this season of watching my mom suffer from cancer and eventually pass away from it that I found my calling to pursue a career in the mental health field. This has taken many turns. I started out with the plan become a guidance counselor at a middle school. After completing a short practicum with a play therapist I decided that I wanted to be a therapist. I graduated with a degree in psychology and began a Master's in Social Work program the following fall. In my last semester I decided that I love the world of education and that being a school social worker was what I wanted to pursue. I first worked with a company that did school based group therapy for students identified as high risk for substance abuse. Then I began work as a school social worker at a start-up charter school in the city of St. Louis. That was tough work! During this time I completed the licensure process to become a clinical social worker which would allow me to be a therapist.
As I was growing more and more frustrated with the school I was working at and feeling less and less hopeful that a school social work job would become available at another school in St. Louis, I checked GC's job listings on a whim. And wouldn't you know it? They were looking for a new counselor.
I fully believe that God has called me to not only be a counselor, but to be a counselor at GC.
Now that you know the background I can share with you why I believe in the importance of mental health care providers. Yes, it's how I get paid, but it's so much more than that.
Let me first say that I do believe in the power of prayer. Can someone simply pray and pray sincerely and faithfully that God will take their burden of mental illness away? Certainly. And I believe that in some cases, He will. But is mental illness a direct result of sin in a person's life? No. Do you think that cancer is? Or any other physical disability?
I do believe that pain and suffering and illness in general are all a result of man's sinful nature. We sin and have therefore fallen short of the Glory of God. We are corrupt and as sin has entered our world, bad things do happen...even to good people. But the good news here is that God has placed on earth people who He has called to help those who are struggling (physically, mentally, academically, etc.). Since I believe that I have been called to help people who are suffering mentally I do NOT believe that what I do is unnecessary. God has given me a gift of not only sympathizing with others but empathizing. In fact, my top spiritual gift is Mercy, with Discernment not too far behind. These mean that I am compassionate, a quick judge of character, and discern the needs of others well. Sound like great qualities to have in a counselor to me!
So, to boil this down, I believe that mental illness is real and that therapists are people who God has provided to help those in need. I also believe that prayer and drawing nearer to Him are absolutely necessary in order for someone to achieve complete healing and peace. He is the Prince of Peace, after all.
In my opinion, counseling alone will not bring you the freedom from mental illness you desire. Sometimes you need medication. Sometimes you need to make better decisions about your lifestyle and who you surround yourself with. And at all times you need to be praying and seeking a closer relationship with the ultimate Healer.
***interested in finding your own spiritual gifts? take this free online test. took me about 10 mins. http://www.spiritualgiftstest.com/index.html
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