Finding Hope

This past weekend I went on what I call a Mental Health retreat. My hope was that by spending time in the peace of my dad's place up north that I would have time to regroup and unwind. My dad is always up there so he was there with me. There is something reassuring about him and I think as we get older we're getting to know each other better which brings me joy!! He was a welcome distraction when I needed it.

I decided I needed a book to read while I was there and in my search for a book, I found exactly what I needed only I didn't know when I bought it that it would move mountains in this struggle of mine.

The book is called Hope Prevails and it's written by a Christian Neuropsychologist who treats people with Mental Health diseases all the time. This however, was the first time she herself ever experienced depression. The reason the book intrigued me is because the description talks about the missing piece of the treatments regularly subscribed, the piece of Spirituality.

If you've followed my blog at all you know that connecting with God is something I struggle with in the midst of my depression because I feel such shame about it. Within the first chapter she brought to light verses I've read/heard maybe 100 times but they never came to life for me. All the verses she shared had to do with Joy, something that is most definitely not part of my depression.

I have been savoring this book! I could have read right through it and only read the verses in the book itself, but I have been taking the time to look them up in my Bible. I've been underlining and journaling as I go along.  I want to always remember and have marked the verses I'm finding that are helping so much this time, in case there is a next time.

I'm happy to say that I nipped this before it got too big and overwhelming to handle. I feel like, without this book and all the reminders of God's abundant Joy, I'm not so sure it would have been possible. I feel like I now have weapons to fight this with! My God, my medicine and my therapy are the perfect combination.