I have self harmed, on and off, since I was fourteen. I have self harmed both before and after coming to faith, and I still struggle with, and often fail to resist, the urge to do it when I am depressed. As you may know, I have written my Guide to Self Injury, covering everything […]
Letting Go of the Past
April 4, 2013 by 7 Comments
I have done lots of things wrong in my life. While I’m not in the same league as Paul (‘the chief of sinners’) I have done things I should not, said things I should not, treated others badly. As a Christian I understand that all sin leads to death – and that therefore I need/ed […]
Self Harm, and Me – a post for #SIAD
March 1, 2013 by Leave a Comment
It seems such a long time ago now, when I first started cutting my skin. A one-off response to feelings of overwhelming anger and pain when I was fourteen led me to take a knife to my arm. It would have been just a one-off, too, had I not faced those feelings again, years later. […]
A Good Enough Christian
January 4, 2013 by 1 Comment
My mother told me about a book she read some years ago about being a “good enough” parent. She said that, amidst the conflicting advice and all the well-meaning instructions about childcare, this book emphasised only being “good enough.” No one can be the perfect parent, and people can wear themselves out trying to be, […]
Why, Lord? The Book of Job
November 22, 2012 by Leave a Comment
I have been reading the book of Job, in the Old Testament, today. I must confess that I have found this a difficult book in the past, with its many speeches, and I found it difficult to know whether Job’s comforters were right about him. Now that I have finally got round to reading it […]
“It’s Ok, You Can’t Help It”
October 24, 2012 by 2 Comments
Remembering a comment my mother made some time ago when I was depressed has made me think a little. She said, “We didn’t know whether you were ill, or just being unpleasant.” It led me to question how much responsibility I really bear for my behaviour when I am ill. It is true that my […]
“You Have a Spiritual Problem”
July 14, 2012 by 3 Comments
There is a great deal of rather ignorant talk from some Christians about mental illness. I think everyone has at least heard of, if not actually experienced, Christians who believe that mental ill-health is a spiritual problem rather than a medical one. Such people believe that a Christian must be in emotional good health, and […]
Sin, Truth and Me
May 15, 2012 by Leave a Comment
I am a sinner. I have done many things wrong in my life. I have sinned against my neighbour and against my God. We are all sinners. The Bible teaches that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…” (Rom 3:23) Every last one of us has failed God in some way, […]
Truthfulness About Myself
May 7, 2012 by 3 Comments
As a Christian I serve the one called The Truth, Jesus. As a human I too often fail to tell and see the truth about myself. As a person with a mental health problem I have trouble seeing truth from the lies told by illness about myself. I speak, now, from a position of wellness […]
Do you have “depression”?
May 6, 2012 by 4 Comments
What I’d like to write about here is, I think, an intense irritant to most mentally ill people. That is, the way people loosely use the term “depression” to refer to things that are not medical depression and get themselves all twisted up and end up stigmatising us. I am making it sound more simple […]
Believer's Brain 