Believer's Brain

Scrupulosity: Doubt, Obsession and Compulsion

I have discussed earlier in this blog’s life the concept of scrupulosity, sometimes referred to as religious OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder.) That particular post was a bit of a mish-mash of things I found online, and I felt it had some shortcomings. Nevertheless it remains the most searched-for and viewed article on my whole site. I […]

“High Flight”

I have recently been reading a book called “Through Corridors of Light: Poems of Consolation in Time of Illness” (you can buy it at Amazon UK if you like) which includes lots of poems about illness, some with a spiritual element and some not, and which I would heartily recommend. I would definitely check out […]

Credit: Andy Riley - Return of the Bunny Suicides

Suicide and Religious Faith

This another question posed by Adrian Warnock in his post: Suicide and Religious Faith following on from his question about mental illness which I posted about in mental illness and my faith. This week, his question is: Research suggests that religious faith protects against suicide. Why do you think that is in light of how your […]

Mental Illness and my Faith

Apologies for the essay-like title, but I am writing this post in response to Adrian Warnock’s posts on Patheos (“A conversation about faith and mental illness” and “How has faith shaped our view of mental illness?”) He asks a question, in the light of the publishing of Amy Simpson’s book Troubled Minds and the suicide of […]

Christ’s is the World

Sorry to post this so soon after the last one but I felt I had to! Someone I know on Facebook posted the lyrics to this song, which spoke so powerfully to me that I felt I had to include them here! The words were written by the Iona Community and I couldn’t find a […]

Gentleness and Stigma

To acknowledge ourselves as having a mental illness can make us vulnerable. If you read the website of Time to Change, the anti-stigma campaign, you can read about others who have experienced discrimination because of their mental illness, who have been told that they are “faking it” and that they have a flaw in their […]

Concerns about Age

There’s not a joy the world can give like that it takes away When the glow of early thought declines in feeling’s dull decay; ‘Tis not on youth’s smooth cheek the blush alone, which fades so fast, But the tender bloom of heart is gone, ere youth itself be past. -Byron, Stanzas for Music [1] […]

If You’re 5 Minutes Late…

Well, I had the first day of the Work Programme today. It started at 9am (which I am not used to getting up at any more!) Unfortunately I had an awful night’s sleep, what with coughing (I have a cold) and worrying about being sanctioned, I think I got a couple of uncomfortable hours but […]

The Dreaded Work Programme

Not a proper article per se, I just wanted to say that I have finally reached that stage of unemployment-whilst-on-sickness-benefits that requires me to attend the Work Programme. According to gov.uk, “This provides support, work experience and training for up to 2 years to help people find and stay in work.” As I’ve mentioned before, I […]

Well-Beloved

Recently, we bought our cat some food. She didn’t like it (cats!) but the name struck me. It was by a brand called James Wellbeloved. What a wonderful name! I would happily give up my (rather cool, I think) surname to be called Wellbeloved, it’s even better than the surname of someone I know, who […]