Blog Archives - Church and Mental Health

How To Handle Tragedy As A Church

posted on December 26, 2017

Tragedy is something we experience in our fallen world in a multitude of different ways. From the internationally known wildfires in California that lead to people being displaced, to the war crimes in Eastern Aleppo in Syria that have sent out haunting photos, we see these images, hear their stories, and feel helpless and hopeless to enact change. Then we have the seemingly endless local tragedies of murders, rape, and car crashes which up end families and affect whole communities.

In the midst of this chaos stands the Church. In this darkness, there is light in Christ. And in the trauma someone receives, one can be restored. So what can the Church do to help?

How To Handle Mental Health During The Holidays

posted on November 6, 2017

The holidays are upon us with several days that allow us to take time for remembrance, spend time with family, and look back on life. For those that struggle with mental health and substance abuse disorders, this time may actually be a very difficult period. Whether you are trying to avoid using, but going to family functions where alcohol is in high supply and siblings or parents who you use to drink with or struggling with trauma symptoms including mood swings and flashbacks which are triggered by memories your family brings up, this may be a hard time of the year.

Pray For Your Professionals and Pastors

posted on October 31, 2017

Having served both in the capacity of a pastoral role as well as a licensed professional counselor, one of the big, dark secrets that are often not discussed within the Christian circles is the idea of practicing what we preach. What do I mean by this? It is a fairly common point of failure that we lack vulnerability as professionals and pastors.

My request to you readers, pray for your professions and pastors as you would for everyone else. For they hold a role that is important but at times unsteady. I have several in my life that while I am legally bound to not talk about my clients, they know when it is time to pray for me. But I feel this is more the exception than the rule.

What Is Mental Health?

posted on August 19, 2017

Mental health is a very defined practice which for the past one hundred years has been established, refined, regulated, and researched. The formal definition says “a person’s condition with regard to their psychological and emotional well-being.”

One common misconception is mental health workers see disorders in everything. While mental health symptoms that make up a disorder may be present in areas of a person’s life, a person has to meet a specific set of criteria that is defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. The current version is the DSM-5.

Is Mental Health Taboo? Pastors Think So.

posted on August 13, 2017

Nearly twenty percent of people struggle with mental health at any one time in the lives yet sixty percent of them did not receive any treatment for it according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). While it is not conclusive this is due to lack of resources or because people are ashamed, I can say from my experience as a counselor, the latter is definitely in the majority. Instead of dealing with their mental health, they’re avoiding it which costs individuals and the general public nearly $200 billion a yaer. Unfortunately, this taboo came from the culture around these people and the Church is actually making it worse.

Can Christians Go To Counseling?

posted on August 12, 2017

Answering this question is foundational to the purpose of this entire website. Without answering this question, we have no reason to continue in discussing how mental health can collaborate with the church.