Back in the early ’90’s, I was a big fan of the sitcom Keeping Up Appearances where a social climber called Hyacinth Bucket (pronounced Bouquet) seeks out any opportunity to ingratiate herself with those she perceives as higher class than herself. She uses material goods (china, for example) to make herself seem to be of a […]
Making Time
January 29, 2013 by Leave a Comment
I wrote once about the amount of time mental illness takes from us, about the waste of our time and resources that our ill-health can bring. Mental illness can cause us to feel like we are wasting our time, being idle, not making the most of our opportunities. I urged that we think of our […]
10 Things NOT To Say To Someone Who Is Depressed
January 12, 2013 by 10 Comments
I have posted before about a few things that are unhelpful to say to someone who is experiencing depression (here and here) and I thought I would draw together the ten least helpful things in one post. Similar lists can be found all over the internet, of course! 1) Pull yourself together. This, and similar […]
Flat-Pack Furniture and the Body of Christ
January 10, 2013 by 4 Comments
A particularly strenuous bout of flat-pack furniture making and carrying said furniture up the stairs has led me to reflect on weakness. The Bible is very clear that we all do different things within the body of Christ – that we all are different parts of his body, and all equally valuable. Paul wrote, in […]
2012 in review
January 2, 2013 by Leave a Comment
The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog. Here’s an excerpt: 600 people reached the top of Mt. Everest in 2012. This blog got about 5,000 views in 2012. If every person who reached the top of Mt. Everest viewed this blog, it would have taken 8 years to get […]
The Obligatory New Year Post
December 29, 2012 by 3 Comments
We are nearly into 2013 now, so I thought I’d do one last post of 2012. Overall, I’ve had a pretty good year, and I thought I’d run through my ups and downs: Positive I have been mostly well this year, bar two dips (one around the time of my ESA tribunal, and another when […]
Hope in Hopelessness
December 18, 2012 by 2 Comments
Writing a speculative piece for elsewhere earlier today, I described how I felt that God gave me hope during my worst illness, that when I came to believe in him, I felt a change. God is indeed our hope and our deliverer, and trusting in him makes things better. But not always. There are times […]
Biblical Figures and Madness
December 16, 2012 by 10 Comments
I have quite regularly heard those who argue against Christianity say that Jesus, Paul, and other Biblical figures were mentally ill. Indeed, there were people who thought that at the time they were preaching – Mark 3:21 records that Jesus’ family thought he was insane and in Acts 26:24 Festus accuses Paul of insanity. It […]
Fear Not
December 9, 2012 by Leave a Comment
I have been meaning to write a little about Christmas. I know this can be a hard time for many, particularly for those who have little money yet see others feasting all around them, or few friends and family around them to celebrate with. There are, of course, also people who have lost loved ones […]
The World of Mentalists Awards
December 3, 2012 by 4 Comments
Well, I have some more good news to share. The excellent blog, The World of Mentalists has awarded me Best New Blog jointly with The Maniac’s Path. Many thanks to the blog and to the lovely people who nominated me for the award. Do check out the blog as there are many other categories and much […]
Believer's Brain 